IGCSE Islamiyat: Paper 1 (Cambridge 0493)

Cambridge IGCSE Islamiyat Paper 1 (0493) is a 1.5-hour exam covering the Qur’an and the life of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), split into four sub-topics: the major themes of the Qur’an, the Qur’an’s history and importance, the Prophet’s life and importance, and the first Islamic community. It is one of two compulsory papers – Paper 2 covers the Hadiths, the Rightly Guided Caliphs and the Articles of Faith and Pillars of Islam – and this page sets out Paper 1’s full content for the current 2026-2027 examination series.

This guide covers Paper 1, one of two compulsory papers for Cambridge IGCSE Islamiyat 0493, 2026–2027 series. Both papers are 1.5 hours long with five questions each; Questions 1 and 2 are compulsory, and candidates answer two more chosen from the remaining questions.

Where this fits in 0493

Paper 1 covers the Qur’an and the life of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), while Paper 2 (not covered in this guide) covers the Hadiths, the Rightly Guided Caliphs, and the Articles of Faith and Pillars of Islam. Together the two papers form the whole of 0493 — there is no separate topic list beyond these four sub-topics per paper, so Paper 1’s content is the complete foundation candidates need for half the qualification.

Syllabus coverage

CAMBRIDGE IGCSE ISLAMIYAT 0493 — PAPER 1

• 1.1 Major Themes of the Qur’an — the central themes and teachings running through the Qur’an
• 1.2 The History and Importance of the Qur’an — how the Qur’an was revealed and compiled, and its significance
• 1.3 The Life and Importance of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) — the key events of his life and their significance for Muslims
• 1.4 The First Islamic Community — the early Muslim community in Makkah and Madinah, and its formative events

How to approach it

Because each question requires a compulsory response plus a choice from the remainder, breadth of preparation across all four sub-topics matters more than depth in only one or two — a candidate who has thoroughly revised three of the four sub-topics but is weak on the fourth risks being forced into an unfamiliar question if that is where Question 1 or 2 (the compulsory pair) happens to sit. Answers are strongest when they combine accurate factual recall — dates, names, the sequence of events — with an explanation of significance, since examiners consistently reward candidates who go beyond “what happened” to explain “why it matters,” particularly for 1.2 and 1.3 where the syllabus explicitly asks for an understanding of importance, not just narrative recall. Building a simple timeline of the Prophet’s life and the early community (1.3 and 1.4) is a useful revision anchor, since many exam questions ask candidates to place events in relation to one another. For 1.1 and 1.2, practise linking a named theme of the Qur’an to a specific example of its teaching, rather than listing themes as abstract labels — vague, unsupported statements are a common way marks are lost even when the underlying knowledge is correct.

The major themes of the Qur’an

The Qur’an’s central theme is tawhid, the absolute oneness of God, which underlies every other teaching in the text. Alongside this sits prophethood: the Qur’an presents Muhammad (pbuh) as the last in a succession of prophets sent by God to different peoples, each carrying essentially the same message, and it retells the stories of earlier prophets and communities as lessons and warnings for its own audience. A third major theme is the Day of Judgement and the afterlife — the teaching that every person is accountable for their deeds and will be rewarded or punished accordingly, which gives the Qur’an’s ethical teaching its urgency. Finally, the Qur’an provides guidance for individual and social conduct, covering worship, family law, trade, justice and the treatment of the poor. These themes are not evenly spread through the text: Makkan surahs, revealed during the Prophet’s time in Makkah, are generally shorter and more rhythmic in style, and concentrate on belief — tawhid, prophethood and the Day of Judgement. Madinan surahs, revealed after the move to Madinah, are generally longer and more detailed, addressing legislation and the organisation of the community, including worship, inheritance, marriage, treaties and warfare.

The history and compilation of the Qur’an

The Qur’an was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) over a period of 23 years, beginning with the first revelation in the Cave of Hira in 610 CE, delivered through the angel Jibril. It comprises 114 surahs of varying length. During the Prophet’s lifetime, the revelation was preserved both by memorisation — by huffaz, those who had memorised the whole text — and by writing on available materials, but it did not yet exist as a single bound volume. This changed after the Prophet’s death, when the Battle of Yamama, fought during the Ridda wars, killed a large number of huffaz and exposed the risk of the Qur’an being lost if reliance continued on memory alone. The first Caliph, Abu Bakr, therefore ordered the Qur’an’s collection into a single written text, a task entrusted to Zayd ibn Thabit. As Islam spread further under the third Caliph, Uthman, Muslims in different regions began reciting the text in different dialects, and disputes arose during military campaigns; Hudhayfah warned Uthman of the danger this posed to the unity of the faith. Uthman responded by having the sheets held by Hafsah copied by a committee under Zayd ibn Thabit, standardising the dialect used, sending official copies to the main centres of the Muslim world, and having other variant copies destroyed. This distinction — Abu Bakr compiled the Qur’an, Uthman standardised it — is a frequent source of confusion and worth holding clearly in mind.

The life of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)

Born in Makkah in 570 CE, the Prophet received his first revelation in 610 CE in the Cave of Hira and began preaching publicly around 613 CE, attracting increasing persecution from the Quraysh. Following the deaths of his wife Khadijah and his uncle Abu Talib in 619 CE — a period known as the Year of Sorrow — his position in Makkah grew more precarious, and in 622 CE he undertook the Hijra, the migration to Madinah that marks the start of the Islamic calendar. There he agreed the Constitution of Madinah, establishing a framework for the new community. The following years saw major confrontations with the Quraysh: victory at the Battle of Badr in 624 CE, a setback at the Battle of Uhud in 625 CE when archers left their position to collect spoils, and a successful defence at the Battle of the Trench in 627 CE. The Treaty of Hudaybiyyah in 628 CE eased tensions with the Quraysh, and in 630 CE the Prophet led the largely peaceful Conquest of Makkah, granting a general amnesty to its inhabitants. He delivered his Farewell Sermon in 632 CE shortly before his death, setting out principles of equality, the sanctity of life and property, and the rights of women.

The first Islamic community

On arriving in Madinah, the Prophet established the Constitution of Madinah, a document defining the rights and duties of Muslims, Jews and other groups living in the city, and establishing Madinah as a single community with the Prophet as its arbiter. To address the practical difficulties faced by Muslims who had migrated from Makkah with few resources, the Muhajirun (migrants) were paired with the Ansar (helpers, the Muslims of Madinah already established there), an arrangement that met immediate material needs and became a model of brotherhood within the early community. After the Prophet’s death in 632 CE, Abu Bakr was chosen as the first Caliph at a meeting known as Saqifah, and almost immediately faced revolts across Arabia that threatened the community’s survival — the Ridda (apostasy) wars, fought against false prophets such as Musaylimah and against tribes refusing to pay zakat. Abu Bakr’s success in suppressing these revolts established that allegiance was owed to Islam and the Muslim state as a whole, not personally to the Prophet, which is why the community held together after his death rather than fragmenting; it also confirmed zakat as an obligation of faith rather than a voluntary tribute.

Official syllabus

Cambridge IGCSE Islamiyat 0493 syllabus for 2026 and 2027 — cambridgeinternational.org.

Related resources

• Islamiyat Paper 1: Practice Questions — exam-style practice questions with full worked answers on this paper’s four sub-topics
• Islamiyat Paper 1: Revision Notes — condensed recall notes covering the same content
• O Level Islamiyat: Paper 1 (Cambridge 2058) — the equivalent paper for Cambridge O Level Islamiyat, identical in structure to this IGCSE syllabus
• Islamiyat subject hub — all Marlbridge Islamiyat resources across IGCSE and O Level