Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall (1875-1936) was an English traveler, novelist, polemicist, and educationist who embraced Islam in 1917. His travels throughout the Muslim world formed the basis of several novels set in the Middle East and allowed him to become fluent in Arabic, Turkish and Urdu. After his conversion, he served as the acting imam of the London Mosque (Notting Hill), worked for 15 years with Muslims in the Indian subcontinent as the editor of Islamic Culture (Hyderabad, Deccan), and served as the Nizam's advisor and publisher.
The meaning of the glorious Qur'an: An explanatory translation is his best-known work. While familiar with European Qur'anic criticism, he also spent time in Egypt with various scholars to acquaint himself with their views. In later years, his work served as the basis for the Portuguese (Mozambique) and Tagalog (the Philippines) language editions.

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