A new reading of " sinīna " in the verse " Walabithū fī kah- fihim thalātha mi- atin sinīna"

One of the verses that has been a subject of disagreement among grammarians and exegetes since the early centuries is the verse “Wa labithū fī kahfihim thalātha mi’atin sinīna...”: “And they remained in their cave for three hundred years...” (Q. 18:25). The verse discusses the People of the Cave (Kahf) who fell asleep in a cave. According to this verse, the duration of their sleep was three hundred years, and there is no disagreement among exegetes regarding this meaning. However, there is disagreement about the grammatical role and case marking of the word "Sanin" in this verse. This word is the plural of "Sanah," meaning "year," and since it follows the number "three hundred," according to Arabic grammar rules, it should have the role of "tamyiz" (specification). Based on Arabic grammar rules, after the number "one hundred," the tamyiz should be singular and in the genitive case, whereas "Sanin" is plural, which contradicts Arabic grammar rules. Grammarians and exegetes have proposed five different roles for this word. This research, using a historical-comparative analytical method and library resources, attempts to provide a new solution for determining the role of this word. Since the Quran has borrowed words from some languages, especially those of its own family, and scholars have acknowledged the existence of such words, the use of the grammar of some Semitic languages is also plausible. The chosen branch in this research is the Syriac language, which shares many grammatical similarities with Arabic. The results of this research indicate that the role of "Sanin" in this verse is tamyiz, but not according to Arabic grammar rules, but rather in accordance with Syriac grammar.a