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Quran Align

Quran Align is a C++ command-line tool that aligns Qur’anic recitation recordings with reference text and produces word-level start and end timestamps. Its workflow uses PocketSphinx, Qur’an-specific language resources, and audio features to refine boundaries; pre-generated JSON timing files are also available.

Explore the practical guide ↓

Independent OpenViST project profile, based on linked sources.

Quran Align — OpenViST project profile in Audio & Voice AI.
OpenViST project illustration. See the linked sources for product details.
Understand the project

Practical overview

When it fits

Use the released JSON files when adding timing-driven features to matching Qur’anic audio, or consider the command-line workflow when you need to generate alignments and can prepare its specialized language and training resources.

Who it is for

  • Developers building recitation playback or study tools
  • Researchers and audio practitioners analyzing Qur’anic recitation timing
  • Users who need existing word-timing data without running the alignment tool

Documented uses

  • Highlight the spoken word during recitation playback
  • Repeat a selected word or phrase using timing boundaries
  • Compare timing across recitation recordings
  • Analyze a reciter’s cadence
Before you choose

Requirements & limits

The repository provides pre-generated word-timing files through its Releases tab. Those files are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International; the software repository lists the MIT license.

  • Timing data is defined against Qur’anic text split by spaces, with segment indices and start/end times in milliseconds.
  • The tool expects EveryAyah-style audio and depends on Qur’an-specific language resources.
  • The README says the script for preparing model training inputs is in an unpublishable state, so that preparation is left to the user.
  • The project cautions that data lacks human-reviewed reference labels; repeated or skipped phrases and ambiguous boundaries can affect results.
  • The README requires WAV files generated by FFMPEG.

Check current requirements in the official documentation. Source-based guidance does not mean OpenViST has run or independently tested this project.

Source-based practical guide

Use pre-generated Qur’anic word-timing files

Obtain word-level timing data for a reciter without running the alignment tool.

Before you start

  • A timing file available for the reciter from the repository’s Releases tab.
  • The corresponding recitation audio if using the timings for synchronized playback.

Steps

  1. Open the repository’s Releases tab.

  2. Download an available word-by-word timing file.

  3. Read each JSON segment’s word indices and start/end timestamps in milliseconds; use the timings with the corresponding audio for playback or analysis.

Expected outcome

A JSON timing file can support word highlighting, phrase repetition, comparison, or cadence analysis when paired with matching audio.

Guide limitations

  • Pre-generated files are available only for many reciters, not necessarily every recording.
  • Timing boundaries can be ambiguous; repeated or skipped phrases are a notable source of errors.
  • Some words may be omitted or grouped in a segment when their boundaries cannot be determined.
  • The timing files are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International.
Documentation 1 ↗
Source-based practical guide

Prepare prerequisites for the alignment tool

Prepare a UNIX-based environment and inputs for the documented Qur’anic recitation alignment workflow.

Before you start

  • A UNIX machine; Windows Bash/LWS is also listed.
  • PocketSphinx, SphinxTrain, and cmuclmtk from CMU Sphinx.
  • EveryAyah-style recitation recordings.
  • A C++11-compatible compiler and Python.

Steps

  1. Set up the listed operating system and install the listed CMU Sphinx components.

  2. Obtain EveryAyah-style recordings of the recitation.

  3. Prepare WAV files using FFMPEG, as the README says the tool expects WAV files generated this way.

  4. Consult the align tool’s help output for its usage; override CMUSPHINX_ROOT in the Makefile if needed.

Expected outcome

The listed software and audio prerequisites are prepared, and the tool’s help output is identified as the next step for usage details.

Guide limitations

  • The script that generates speech-model training inputs and supporting data files is described as being in an unpublishable state, and its preparation is left to the reader.
  • The README does not provide the training-input generation steps.
  • The WAV handling relies on a hard-coded audio-data offset rather than a RIFF parser.
Documentation 1 ↗
Evidence and transparency

Sources & review

Official repository ↗
Source record details
Source availability
Active
Sources checked
15 October 2026
Original website title
cpfair/quran-align · Official homepage title · retained in its source language
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