A Comparative Study of the word Alaqa in Quran and Embryology

With the passage of time and developments of science, a change in the
meaning of some words in Quran is seen. 'Alaqa' is one of these words which
is mentioned in the verses related to embryo growth as the second phase of
development. Surveying several exegesis, lexicons and translations of holy
Quran, we come across a great variety of meanings in this regards.
Developments in embryology have made embryo growth process clearer.
Some exegetes have explained this process in scientific words. The pioneer
interpreters have not given the meaning of this word or have limited
themselves to the existing meanings in lexicons. Briefly studying the growth of
the embryo in the preliminary stages, we are trying to recognize the scientific
concept of this word.
At the time Quran was revealed, people did not know about embryology
and Quran used expressions that were intelligible for the common people of
that era. 'Alaqa' means leech or something that attaches somewhere. Considering
the characteristics of leech, the meaning becomes closer to human
understanding. It seems that preliminary embryo can be appropriate meaning for 'Alaqa'. Blood clot, wet blood, red Object and leech also seem justifiable meanings. From the scientific point of view this phase corresponds to the
beginning of blastocyst's sticking to uterine tissue and the rush towards it. In
this stage blastocyst sticks to endometrium like a leech and starts to nest in it
as deep as possible. The interior cell mass forms two layers; hypoblast and
epiblast and continues to form the embryo and fetal membrane. The placenta the source of hormones secretion and embryo feeding
remains attached to the wall of uterus until the end of pregnancy. The embryo
remains overhanging of the placenta by umbilical cord.