My understanding is that many children who study the Koran are in the same boat when it comes to understanding. Since it's taught in Arabic, children who don't speak or read Arabic learn it by rote without understanding the text. They understand what they're taught about it.

But it's apparently even more complicated than that since Arabic has evolved over the past few hundred years (just as English has).

E.g. http://www.political...m/blog/the-koran/

Cheers,
Scott.