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Parts of a Quran at Birmingham University in the United Kingdom has been proven to be one of the oldest in the world.

Radiocarbon tests carried out by Oxford University showed that the fragments dated back to sometime between 568 and 645 AD. The results show that current fragments were created close to the time Prophet Mohammed lived.

"The tests delivered exciting results which will contribute significantly to our understanding of the earliest copies of the Qur'an," said Susan Worral, director of special collections at the University of Birmingham.

The scripts, which are written in Hijazi, an earlier form of the Arabic language, contain parts of Suras 18 to 20.

"This is an exciting discovery. We know now that these scripts are from the time of the first three Caliphs" said Dr. Mohammed Isa Waley, lead curator for Persian and Turkish Manuscripts.

Tests prove copy of Quran dates back to the time of the Prophet

Radiocarbon results show that the script, in a university collection in the UK, is the oldest known surviving copy of the holy book.