Who is the real father of Abraham, peace be upon him, in the Qur'an, and is the stronger view that he is "Azar" or "Tarh"?

Scholars differed on the name of Ibrahim's (peace be upon him) father, holding two views:

1. His name is "Tarh" (or "Tarikh"): This is the view of the majority of scholars, exegetes, and genealogists. Their evidence is based on some narrations and the statements of the People of the Book. They differed in interpreting the occurrence of the name "Azar" in the Qur'an in several ways: That he had two names: "Tarh" and "Azar". That "Azar" was the name of an idol, not his father's name. That it was a description or a derogatory title.

2. His name is "Azar": This view takes the apparent meaning of the noble verse (And [mention, O Muhammad], when Abraham said to his father Azar) and the hadith (definition) in Al-Bukhari which mentions "Azar" as Ibrahim's father on the Day of Resurrection. This view was chosen by Imam Al-Tabari, the majority of hadith scholars, and the Permanent Committee. Sheikh Ahmed Shakir preferred it, emphasizing that the Qur'an is the dominant authority over other books, and that an authentic hadith does not admit interpretation.

The preponderant view is that "Azar" is the true name of Ibrahim's father. This does not negate the possibility that "Tarh" might also be his name in another language, or that both terms may have a single origin with a slight variation. This difference is not a matter of creed; rather, it is a scholarly, interpretive issue.