Dr. Shuaibu Umar Gokaru was born and raised in Gokaru, a small town in Alkaleri Local Government Area of Bauchi State, Nigeria. He attended Iqamatissunnah Islamiyyah/Primary School and memorised the entire Qur'an by heart in 2001. Later, he went to Government Day Secondary School Kofar Wamabai. Afterwards, he studied at the then A.D.Rufa'i College for Legal and Islamic Studies, Misau, Bauchi, Nigeria, now known as A.D.Rufa'i College of Education, Legal, and General Studies, where he obtained a Diploma in Shari'a & Civil Law in 2004. Dr. Gokaru earned his B.A. Degree in Islamic Studies in 2010 from Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Nigeria, followed by a Master of Arts Degree in Islamic and other Civilisations from the International Islamic University, Malaysia (IIUM) in 2014. He completed his Doctor of Philosophy in Islamic Civilisation at the University of Malaya in 2017. Dr. Gokaru has served as a Lecturer at Bauchi State University Gadau, Nigeria, from 2012 until January 2023, when he was appointed as a Lecturer at the Department of Islamic History and Civilisation, Academy of Islamic Studies, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. While at Bauchi State University Gadau, Dr. Gokaru taught various courses and supervised students at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. He held various positions, including Faculty Examination Officer of the then Faculty of Arts and Education (now Faculty of Arts) from 2017 to 2021, and Dean of the Students' Affairs Division, Office of the Vice-Chancellor, from 2021 to 2022. He also served as Chairman of the Committee and Member of numerous committees such as the Senate Committee, Senate Business Committee, Committee of Deans and Directors, Appointment and Promotion Committee, and University Disciplinary Committees, among others. He is a journal reviewer for publications such as Al-Habeer: Journal of Islamic Studies, Al-Tamaddun: Journal of Islamic History and Civilisation, and Al-Milal: South Asian Journal of Religion and Philosophy. He has published several papers in international peer-reviewed academic journals (WOS and Scopus), including the Indonesian Journal of Social Sciences and Al-Tamaddun: Journal of Islamic History and Civilisation, Universiti Malaya.

Hanafi Hussin is an Honorary Professor at the Department of Southeast Asian Studies, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Universiti Malaya.  He has received his Master's Degree and PhD in Cultural and Performing Arts Studies.  His current focus is on Southeast Asian anthropology, particularly ritual and performing arts. He actively researches and publishes on rituals and identity of the Kadazandusun community of Sabah, particularly in Penampang and Tuaran Sabah and Bajau and Bajau Laut/Sama Dilaut of the east coast of Borneo and Southern Philippines. He was the Dean of the Faculty of Creative Arts (2022-2024) and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (2016-2018). Before his retirement, he also served as Head of the Maritime Social Sciences and Humanities Unit, Institute of Ocean and Earth Sciences (IOES) and Head of Universiti Malaya Migration Research Centre (UMMRC), Universiti Malaya. He was appointed and served as a Visiting Professor at various universities, Huazhong Agriculture University, Wuhan, China (2024), Thammasat University (2021), Universitas Indonesia (2020-2021) and Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Indonesia (2020). He can be reached at hanafih@um.edu.my.

Abuisaac is an academic, translator, and interpreter currently serving as a lecturer at the University of Malaya. He holds extensive expertise in translation studies, intercultural communication, TESOL, and Arabic-English linguistics. Formerly the head of a translation unit at an English language center, he has designed and taught courses that integrate language, technology, and critical thinking to enhance students’ communicative and analytical skills.  Abuisaac’s research interests span Qur’anic translation, pragma-translation, intercultural rhetoric, discourse analysis of literary texts, and communication within cross-cultural contexts. He also specializes in syntax and semantics, focusing on the interface between structure and meaning across languages. His academic work emphasizes the role of language in shaping understanding, identity, and dialogue across cultures. He has supervised postgraduate research on media language, pragmatics, and cross-cultural communication, and is committed to learner-centered, research-informed teaching practices. His scholarly approach blends theory and practice, fostering both linguistic precision and cultural awareness. Fluent in Arabic and English, and experienced in both academic instruction and professional interpretation,  Abuisaac continues to contribute to the fields of language, translation, andintercutlrual  communication through teaching, research, and scholarly collaboration.