Some notes on the Historical Evolution of the Qur’anic Term “qarn” In modern standard Arabic the word qarn (pl. qur?n), whose root is q-r-n, has two primary meanings: a horn or a century. An examination of the attestations of the term qarn in early Islamic sources demonstrates that it underwent different lexical transformations that reflect certain need of the early Islamic community. This analysis also shows that the period of time it designates was a controversial issue among early Muslim scholars. Modern scholarship lacks a serious discussion of the lexical implications of qarn, whereas its meanings as unit of time are almost entirely neglected. Even the Encyclopedia of Islam does not include an entry on the term qarn. This paper aims to examine the lexical meanings and evolution that the term qarn underwent in early Islamic religious and historical thought. This investigation also gives insights into the scholarly concerns of the early Islamic community. Thus, the treatment of this term reflects, I argue, the crucial role the prophetic tradition has played in defining the scholarly and religious discourses that prevailed in early Islamic society. Before the figure of one hundred years became to be finally the standard temporal meaning of qarn there were ten versions on this subject. Thus, one of the main contributions of this paper is to show why one hundred years eventually became to be the standard temporal meaning of qarn. In so doing, this investigation also contributes to better understand certain aspects of the evolution of early Islamic historical thought. As for the methodology, I apply a comparative textual analysis of the appearances of the term qarn in early Islamic sources; to the relevant narratives. As for the sources, this study starts with the appearances of the term qarn in the Qur’?n and the prophetic tradition. It is based, however, on the occurrences of this term in early Islamic exegetical literature.