The short answer
Jinn are a creation of Allah that the Quran says was made from fire (Ar-Rahman 55:15). The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said the angels were created from light and the jinn from marij of fire, the words of 55:15, which our translation renders "smokeless fire" (Sahih Muslim 2996, graded sahih, meaning authentic).
What are jinn in Islam?
The Quran sets the jinn beside humankind: man was made of clay, the jinn of fire.
خَلَقَ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنَ مِن صَلْصَـٰلٍ كَٱلْفَخَّارِ وَخَلَقَ ٱلْجَآنَّ مِن مَّارِجٍ مِّن نَّارٍ
Al-Hijr 15:27 gives it again: "And the jinn did We create aforetime of essential fire."
'A'isha, may Allah be pleased with her, reported that the Prophet said the angels were created from light, the jinn from marij of fire, and Adam, peace be upon him, from what has been described to you. The Arabic words for what the jinn were made from, min marijin min nar, are the words of Ar-Rahman 55:15, rendered "smokeless fire" in our translation. Al-Hijr 15:27 uses a different phrase, rendered "essential fire".
Sahih Muslim 2996
خُلِقَتِ الْمَلاَئِكَةُ مِنْ نُورٍ وَخُلِقَ الْجَانُّ مِنْ مَارِجٍ مِنْ نَارٍ وَخُلِقَ آدَمُ مِمَّا وُصِفَ لَكُمْ
1AuthenticSahih Muslim 2996
What does the word jinn mean?
Jinn is the usual English spelling of the Arabic word; you will also see jin and djinn. The Quran uses more than one form. Ar-Rahman 55:15 and Al-Hijr 15:27 say ٱلْجَآنَّ (al-jann), and Adh-Dhariyat 51:56 and Al-Kahf 18:50 say ٱلْجِنَّ (al-jinn). Our translation gives "the jinn" for both.
Ibn Faris (died 395 AH), in his dictionary Mu'jam Maqayis al-Lughah, says the root j-n-n is one root meaning covering and concealment, and that the jinn were named so because they are concealed from the eyes of creation. He quotes Al-A'raf 7:27 beside it 9.
What does the Quran say about the jinn?
They are named beside humankind
وَمَا خَلَقْتُ ٱلْجِنَّ وَٱلْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ
Some listened to the Quran
Surat al-Jinn, surah 72, is named after them. It opens with a company of the jinn who heard the Quran:
قُلْ أُوحِىَ إِلَىَّ أَنَّهُ ٱسْتَمَعَ نَفَرٌ مِّنَ ٱلْجِنِّ فَقَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّا سَمِعْنَا قُرْءَانًا عَجَبًا يَهْدِىٓ إِلَى ٱلرُّشْدِ فَـَٔامَنَّا بِهِۦ ۖ وَلَن نُّشْرِكَ بِرَبِّنَآ أَحَدًا
Al-Ahqaf 46:29 to 32 tells of jinn who listened and turned back to their people as warners. In 46:31 they say: "O our people! respond to Allah's summoner and believe in Him."
Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that devils (al-shayatin) who had set out towards Tihama came upon the Prophet at Nakhla, leading his Companions in the Fajr prayer. They listened to the Quran and told their people they had heard a wondrous Quran. Then Allah revealed "Say: It has been revealed to me", and the report ends: what was revealed to him was the speech of the jinn. The report uses both words, devils and jinn, and this page does not reconcile them.
2AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 773
Iblis was of the jinn
Al-Kahf 18:50 says of Iblis, who did not prostrate to Adam: "He was of the jinn, so he rebelled against his Lord's command."
Sulayman and the jinn
Allah gave Sulayman (Solomon), peace be upon him, "certain of the jinn who worked before him by permission of his Lord" (Saba 34:12). Saba 34:14 says nothing showed them his death except a creeping creature that gnawed his staff. When he fell: "the jinn saw clearly how, if they had known the Unseen, they would not have continued in despised toil."
An-Naml 27:39 has an ʿifrit of the jinn, rendered "a stalwart" in our translation, answering Sulayman, who had asked which of his chiefs would bring him "her throne" (27:38), meaning the throne of the ruler of Sheba: "I will bring it you before you can rise from your place."
Are all jinn the same?
The jinn who speak in Surat al-Jinn describe themselves. In 72:11 they say: "And among us there are righteous folk and among us there are far from that. We are sects having different rules." In 72:14: "there are among us some who have surrendered (to Allah) and there are among us some who are unjust."
The jinn who speak in Surat al-Jinn say some of them have surrendered to Allah and some are unjust, so the Quran speaks of jinn who obey and jinn who do not.
What is the qarin?
Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet said every one of us has a qarin (a companion) from the jinn assigned to him. The Companions asked whether that included him. He said yes, but that Allah had helped him against his, so it commands him only to good. The seeking of protection is covered below.
3AuthenticSahih Muslim 2814a
Abu Tha'laba al-Khushani, may Allah be pleased with him, reported a saying attributed to the Prophet that the jinn are of three kinds. One has wings and flies in the air, one is snakes and dogs, and one settles in places and travels on. The six graders listed accept it (sahih, hasan or strong), several of them grading its chain. It is one report from one Companion. It does not say how to tell the kinds apart, does not make any snake or dog a jinn, and does not speak of believing or unjust jinn.
4AuthenticMishkat al-Masabih 4148
What did our search find no source for?
Much said about the jinn online has no source in the places we searched, sunnah.com and dorar.net. Each topic below has its own search record.
Is a jinn a ghost?
We found no report that calls a jinn the spirit of a dead person, and sunnah.com has no result for "ghost" 10. The Quran gives the jinn their own creation, from fire, as in the verses above.
Is there a list of signs of jinn in a house?
No report we found lists signs of jinn in a house 11. The nearest is about a snake. Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him, told of a young man in Medina who speared a snake in his home, and of what the Prophet then said: "There are jinn in Medina who have accepted Islam; if you see any of them, warn it for three days; if it appears to you after that, kill it, for it is a shaytan." This is one event in Medina, with no ruling, no guide for anyone's home today and no signs listed.
5AuthenticSahih Muslim 2236a
Are there symptoms of jinn possession?
We found no report that lists symptoms of possession 12. A symptom that worries you is a health matter first. See a doctor first and do not wait for a religious explanation: your GP, or NHS 111 if it cannot wait. If you feel unsafe, the Samaritans are on 116 123. Ask a scholar you trust about any religious question.
What about fighting a jinn in a dream?
Our search found no report about fighting a jinn in a dream 13. The hadith on a dream a person fears names the shaytan (the devil). Abu Qatada, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet said a good dream is from Allah and a bad one from the shaytan. Whoever has a bad dream he fears should spit on his left and seek refuge with Allah from its evil, and then it will not harm him.
6AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 3292
Is there a reward for reciting Surat al-Jinn?
A long report narrated from Ubayy ibn Ka'b, may Allah be pleased with him, gives a reward for reciting each surah in turn, with a line for Surat al-Jinn. The four gradings listed (two of the line, two of the whole report) call it fabricated. We found no report of reading the surah a set number of times 14.
7FabricatedAl-Kafi al-Shafi fi Takhrij Ahadith al-Kashshaf 304
How do Muslims seek protection from the jinn?
Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet used to seek refuge from the jinn and from the eye of humans until the two surahs of refuge were revealed. Then he took to them and left the rest. This report is graded differently (see the sources), and it does not forbid other words of seeking refuge.
8Graded differently Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2058
The last verse of An-Nas reads: "Of the jinn and of mankind." The texts of seeking refuge have their own pages: Al-Falaq and An-Nas, the four Quls, Ayat al-Kursi and morning and evening adhkar.
Growing up I heard a lot of jinn stories, mostly at family gatherings, and almost none came with a source. When I started asking where a story came from, I found the Quran said much less than the stories did but what I did find out was super interesting!
Try it: four questions
Pick an answer; each one explains itself.
1What does the Quran say the jinn were created from?
Answer: Fire. Fire (Ar-Rahman 55:15, Al-Hijr 15:27). Clay is what man was made of (55:14); the hadith gives light for the angels (Sahih Muslim 2996, graded sahih). Source 1
2Which surah opens with a company of the jinn who heard the Quran?
Answer: Al-Jinn, 72. Surat al-Jinn 72:1 and 72:2.
3Who does Al-Kahf 18:50 say was of the jinn?
Answer: Iblis. Al-Kahf 18:50: "He was of the jinn." The angels fell prostrate; Iblis did not.
4In Al-Jinn 72:14, what do the jinn who speak say of themselves?
Answer: Some have surrendered and some are unjust. The verse says: "there are among us some who have surrendered (to Allah) and there are among us some who are unjust."
Questions people ask
Are jinn real in Islam?
The Quran states that the jinn are a creation of Allah (Al-Hijr 15:27; Adh-Dhariyat 51:56), and surah 72 is named after them. In it the jinn who speak say some of them have surrendered to Allah and some are unjust (72:14). For a personal question, ask a scholar you trust.
Is a jinn a demon?
Al-Kahf 18:50 says Iblis was of the jinn. In Surat al-Jinn the jinn who speak say some of them are righteous and some unjust (72:11 and 72:14). The sources speak of jinn who believe and jinn who do not.
Is there a reward for reading Surah Jinn?
Our search found one report of a reward for Surat al-Jinn, a line in a long report on every surah. The four gradings listed (two of the line, two of the whole report) call it fabricated. The surah itself is part of the Quran.
Sources
Every claim on this page comes from one of these. Gradings are reported with the scholar's name; we do not grade hadith ourselves.
- 1
'A'isha reported that the Prophet said: the angels were created from light, the jann from marij of fire (min marijin min nar, the phrase of Ar-Rahman 55:15), and Adam from what was described to you.
Sahih Muslim 2996 Book 55, Hadith 78
Authentic: in Sahih Muslim
- 2
Ibn Abbas reported that a barrier was put between the devils and the news of heaven; the party that went towards Tihama came upon the Prophet at Nakhla leading his Companions in the Fajr prayer, listened to the Quran, and went back to their people; Allah then revealed 'Say: It has been revealed to me', which was the speech of the jinn.
Sahih al-Bukhari 773 Book 10, Hadith 167
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 3
Ibn Mas'ud reported that the Prophet said that each person has a qarin from the jinn assigned to him; asked whether he too had one, the Prophet said yes, but that Allah helped him against it, and it commands him only to good.
Sahih Muslim 2814a Book 52, Hadith 62
Authentic: in Sahih Muslim
- 4
Abu Tha'laba al-Khushani reported, attributing it to the Prophet, that the jinn are of three kinds: one with wings that fly in the air, one of snakes and dogs, and one that settle in places and travel on.
Mishkat al-Masabih 4148 Book 20, Hadith 83
Authentic: Sahih (Al-Albani); its chain is sahih (Al-Hakim); its chain is strong (Shu'ayb al-Arna'ut); its chain is sahih (Al-'Iraqi); sahih (Al-Albani); its chain is sahih (Al-Albani); its chain is hasan (Al-Qastallani); hasan (Al-Wadi'i). Remarks: its narrators were declared trustworthy, with disagreement about some of them (Al-Haythami); he included it in his Sahih (Ibn Hibban)
- 5
Abu Sa'id al-Khudri told of a young man who struck a snake in his house and died; the Prophet said to ask forgiveness for him, then said that there are jinn in Medina who have accepted Islam, and what to do on seeing one of them.
Sahih Muslim 2236a Book 39, Hadith 190
Authentic: in Sahih Muslim
- 6
Abu Qatada reported that the Prophet said a good dream is from Allah and a bad dream from the shaytan, and that someone who has a bad dream he fears should spit on his left side and seek refuge with Allah from its evil, and then it will not harm him.
Sahih al-Bukhari 3292 Book 59, Hadith 101
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 7
A long report narrated from Ubayy ibn Ka'b, which gives a reward for reciting each surah in turn from the Fatihah to the end of the Quran, has a line for Surat al-Jinn; the graders found call it fabricated (mawdu').
Al-Kafi al-Shafi fi Takhrij Ahadith al-Kashshaf 304 Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani, al-Kafi al-Shafi 304, as dorar.net lists it
Fabricated: fabricated (Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani); fabricated (Al-Munawi); fabricated (Al-Shawkani); fabricated (Al-'Iraqi)
- 8
Abu Sa'id al-Khudri reported that the Prophet used to seek refuge from the jinn and from the eye of humans until the mu'awwidhatayn were revealed; when they were revealed he took to them and left everything else.
Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2058 Book 28, Hadith 23
Graded differently. Here is who graded it which way:
- SoundAl-Tirmidhi, Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani, Al-Albani, Al-Suyuti
- WeakDarussalam
- Other remarksAl-Baghawi
See each grading in full, with its wording and where it was given
Scholars disagree about this hadith. Here is how each graded it, so you can follow the scholar you trust.
- Da'if: Darussalam (as shown on sunnah.com)
- حسن غريب (hasan gharib): Al-Tirmidhi, Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2058 (as listed on dorar.net)
- [حسن كما قال في المقدمة] (hasan, as he set out in the introduction): Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani, Hidayat al-Ruwat 4/282 (as listed on dorar.net)
- صحيح (sahih): Al-Albani, Sahih al-Tirmidhi 2058 (as listed on dorar.net)
- إسناده صحيح (its chain is sahih): Al-Albani, Hidayat al-Ruwat 4488 (as listed on dorar.net)
- صحيح (sahih): Al-Suyuti, al-Jami' al-Saghir 6955 (as listed on dorar.net)
- صحيح (sahih): Al-Albani, Sahih al-Jami' 4902 (as listed on dorar.net)
- حسن (hasan): Al-Albani, al-Kalim al-Tayyib 247 (as listed on dorar.net)
- إسناده غريب (its chain is gharib, singular): Al-Baghawi, Sharh al-Sunna 3/30 (as listed on dorar.net)
- 9
Ibn Faris says the root j-n-n is one root with the sense of covering and concealment, and that the jinn were named so because they are concealed from the eyes of creation; he quotes Al-A'raf 7:27 beside it.
Ahmad ibn Faris (d. 395 AH), Mu'jam Maqayis al-Lughah, vol. 1, pp. 421 to 422, entry 'jnn' Read on 24 October 2026. Record: scholarly-ibnfaris-jinn-root.
- 10
Our search of sunnah.com and dorar.net, 24 October 2026, for a report that identifies a jinn with the spirit of a dead person. Found none; sunnah.com has no result for ghost or ghosts. A search of sunnah.com (English text) and dorar.net (the first 15 results per term) on 24 October 2026: this is what our search found, not proof that no such report exists.
sunnah.com and dorar.net Record: search-jinn-ghost, with every search term and result.
- 11
Our search, 24 October 2026, for a report that lists signs of jinn in a house. Found none; the nearest report is the house-snake report in Sahih Muslim 2236. A search of sunnah.com (English text) and dorar.net (the first 15 results per term) on 24 October 2026: this is what our search found, not proof that no such report exists.
sunnah.com and dorar.net Record: search-jinn-house-signs, with every search term and result.
- 12
Our search, 24 October 2026, for a report that lists symptoms of possession by a jinn. Found none. One report of a child with lamam is assessed differently by the graders found, does not use the word jinn, and is not used. A search of sunnah.com (English text) and dorar.net (the first 15 results per term) on 24 October 2026: this is what our search found, not proof that no such report exists.
sunnah.com and dorar.net Record: search-jinn-possession-symptoms, with every search term and result.
- 13
Our search, 24 October 2026, for a report about fighting a jinn in a dream. Found none; sunnah.com has no result for jinn and dream together. A search of sunnah.com (English text) and dorar.net (the first 15 results per term) on 24 October 2026: this is what our search found, not proof that no such report exists.
sunnah.com and dorar.net Record: search-jinn-dream, with every search term and result.
- 14
Our search, 24 October 2026, for reports on the reward of reciting Surat al-Jinn. Found one, the surah-by-surah report narrated from Ubayy ibn Ka'b, which every grading found calls fabricated; found no report of reading the surah a set number of times. A search of sunnah.com (English text) and dorar.net (the first 15 results per term) on 24 October 2026: this is what our search found, not proof that no such report exists.
sunnah.com and dorar.net Record: search-jinn-surah-virtues, with every search term and result.
- Q
Quran Arabic and English for Ar-Rahman 55:14 to 15, Adh-Dhariyat 51:56 and Al-Jinn 72:1 to 2 (the verse blocks, without the Bismillah the Tanzil copy prints at the head of 72:1); clauses of 15:27, 46:31, 18:50, 34:12, 34:14, 27:39, 72:11, 72:14, 7:27 and 114:6; and the two Arabic forms of the word.
Tanzil Project Uthmani text, CC BY 3.0. English: adapted from Marmaduke Pickthall's translation (1930), modernised and checked against modern translations.
Next
- Al-Falaq and An-Nas: meaning and reported benefitsQuran lesson
- Ayat al-Kursi: meaning and reported virtuesQuran lesson
- Morning and evening adhkarDua lesson
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- Angels in Islam: roles and referencesGuide
- The Unseen and the HereafterThe hub
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