Reassessing the Barrier of Dhū al-Qarnayn: Qurʾānic Geography, Metallurgy, and the Pamir Highlands

This article advances a convergent reassessment of the Qurʾānic account of Dhū l-Qarnayn and the construction of the barrier against Yaʾjūj and Maʾjūj (Q 18:83–101). It argues that the narrative imposes clear textual and material constraints that favour a localized, mountain-based interpretation rather than identification with large nomadic confederations or monumental continental walls. Key Qurʾānic elements—two mountain flanks, incursions from elevated terrain, and a construction process combining heated iron elements with molten copper—are examined through environmental and metallurgical analysis. The described sequence is shown to be technically coherent and consistent with a real, functional structure. The article further situates Dhū l-Qarnayn’s movements within a broader historical-geographical framework, demonstrating their compatibility with routes of Achaemenid expansion from central Iran to Gandhāra and subsequently into northern highland corridors. While refraining from site identification, the study delineates a plausible zone of investigation within the Pamir mountain system, particularly the transitional area between western and eastern Pamir, as the most coherent geographical context for the Qurʾānic barrier.