A mosque is a place of worship for Muslims. Any act of worship that follows the Islamic rules of prayer can be said to create a mosque, whether or not it takes place in a special building. Informal and open-air places of worship are called musalla, while mosques used for communal prayer on Fridays are known as jāmiʿ. Mosque buildings typically contain an ornamental niche (mihrab) set into the wall that indicates the direction of Mecca (qiblah), ablution facilities and minarets from which calls to prayer are issued. The pulpit (minbar), from which the Friday (jumu'ah) sermon (khutba) is delivered, was in earlier times characteristic of the central city mosque, but has since become common in smaller mosques. Mosques typically have segregated spaces for men and women. This basic pattern of organization has assumed different forms depending on the region, period and denomination.
Islamic architecture comprises the architectural styles of buildings associated with Islam. It encompasses both secular and religious styles from the early history of Islam to the present day. Early Islamic architecture was influenced by Roman, Byzantine, Persian, Mesopotamian architecture and all other lands which the Early Muslim conquests conquered in the seventh and eighth centuries. Further east, it was also influenced by Chinese and Mughal architecture as Islam spread to Southeast Asia. Later it developed distinct characteristics in the form of buildings, and the decoration of surfaces with Islamic calligraphy and geometric and interlace patterned ornament. New architectural elements like cylindrical minarets, muqarnas, arabesque, multifoil were invented. The principal Islamic architectural types for large or public buildings are: the mosque, the tomb, the palace, and the fort. From these four types, the vocabulary of Islamic architecture is derived and used for other buildings such as public baths, fountains and domestic architecture.
Baitul Mukarram, also spelled as Baytul Mukarrom is the National Mosque of Bangladesh. Located at the center of Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh, the mosque was completed in 1968. It has a capacity of 40,000.
An onion dome is a dome whose shape resembles an onion and is usually associated with Russian architectural style. Such domes are often larger in diameter than the tholobate upon which they sit, and their height usually exceeds their width. These bulbous structures taper smoothly to a point.
The Mosque City of Bagerhat is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Bagerhat District, Bangladesh. It contains several mosques built during the Bengal Sultanate in the 15th-century, of which the Sixty Dome Mosque is the largest. Other mosques include the Singar Mosque, the Nine Dome Mosque, the Tomb of Khan Jahan, the Bibi Begni Mosque and the Ronvijoypur Mosque. The mosques were built during the governorship of Ulugh Khan Jahan, a Turkic military officer appointed as governor in the Sundarbans by Sultan Mahmud Shah of Bengal.
The architecture of Bengal, which comprises the modern country of Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and Assam's Barak Valley, has a long and rich history, blending indigenous elements from the Indian subcontinent, with influences from different parts of the world. Bengali architecture includes ancient urban architecture, religious architecture, rural vernacular architecture, colonial townhouses and country houses and modern urban styles. The bungalow style is a notable architectural export of Bengal. The corner towers of Bengali religious buildings were replicated in medieval Southeast Asia. Bengali curved roofs, suitable for the very heavy rains, were adopted into a distinct local style of Indo-Islamic architecture, and used decoratively elsewhere in north India in Mughal architecture.
The architecture of Indonesia reflects the diversity of cultural, historical and geographic influences that have shaped Indonesia as a whole. Invaders, colonizers, missionaries, merchants and traders brought cultural changes that had a profound effect on building styles and techniques.
Baiturrahman Grand Mosque is a Mosque located in the center of Banda Aceh city, Aceh Province, Indonesia. The Baiturrahman Grand Mosque is a symbol of religion, culture, spirit, strength, struggle and nationalism of the Acehnese people. The mosque is a landmark of Banda Aceh and has survived the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
Moth Ki Masjid is a heritage building located in Delhi, and was built in 1505 by Wazir Miya Bhoiya, Prime Minister during the reign of Sikander Lodi (1489–1517) of the Lodi dynasty. It was a new type of mosque developed by the Lodis in the fourth city of the medieval Delhi of the Delhi Sultanate. The name of the mosque literally translated into English language means ‘Lentil Mosque’ and this name tag ‘Lentil’ has an interesting legend. This mosque was considered a beautiful Dome (Gumbad) structure of the period.
Cut Mutiah Mosque is a mosque in Jakarta, Indonesia. The mosque is named after an Indonesian national heroine Cut Nyak Meutia who took part in the struggle against Dutch colonialism in Aceh. The mosque was originally a Dutch property before it was finally transformed into a mosque.
The Ganting Grand Mosque is a Sunni mosque located in Ganting, Padang, West Sumatra, Indonesia. Construction began in 1805, making it the oldest in Padang and one of the oldest in Indonesia. It is a Cultural Property of Indonesia.
Bibi Maryam Mosque is a masjid located in the Killarpul area of Narayanganj district in Bangladesh which was built under the period of Mughal intervention in around 1860. This masjid has been renamed in the 21st century as Killarpul Shahi Jame Masjid.
Istiqlal Mosque, in Otoka, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the largest mosques in the city. It was named after Istiqlal Mosque, Jakarta, the national mosque of Indonesia, since the mosque was the gift from Indonesian people and government for Bosnia and Herzegovina as a token of solidarity and friendship between two nations. The name "istiqlal" is Arabic word for "independence", thus it is also meant to commemorate the independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is also colloquially known as "Indonesian mosque" or "Suharto mosque", as the credit to the initiator of the mosque construction.
Great Mosque of Medan or Masjid Raya Al Mashun is a mosque located in Medan, Indonesia. The mosque was built in the year 1906 and completed in 1909. In beginning of its establishment, the mosque was a part of the Maimun palace complex. Its architectural style combines Middle Eastern, Indian and Spanish elements. The mosque has an octagonal shape and has wings to the south, east, north and west.
Baiturrahim Mosque is a mosque located in Ulee Lheue, Meuraksa sub-district, Aceh Province, Indonesia. As a legacy of the Sultan of Aceh in the 17th Century, it is one of the historical mosques in Indonesia. Back then the mosque was named Jami Ulee Lheu Mosque. In 1873, when the Baiturrahman Grand Mosque was burned by the Dutch, all the worshipers held a Friday prayer at Ulee Lheue. Since then the name of the mosque became Baiturrahim Mosque.
Baitul Makmur Tanjung Uban Grand Mosque is the largest mosque in Bintan Island and is located in Simpang Makam Pahlawan, Tanjung Uban, Riau Islands Province, Indonesia. The whole 1.6 hectares of area of Baitul Makmur Tanjung Uban Grand Mosque is waqf (endowment) of the deceased King Daud. The construction started in 2008, and it began to be used in 2012 even though the development process has not been fully completed. The mosque is expected to accommodate up to 3,000 pilgrims in the main hall, as well as 6,000 pilgrims with mosque courtyards. It has five domes, with a main dome and four small domes that surround it. This dome is made of mild steel, and rustproof. On the main dome has a diameter of 9 meters, which supposedly making this dome cost up to 600 million rupiah. The dome was decorated with colorful ornaments that symbolize the diversity of tribes and nations of Muslims.
For list of notable Indonesian mosques, see List of mosques in Indonesia.
Grand Mosque of Kubang Putih is an early 19th-century mosque located in the town of Kubang Putiah, West Sumatra, Indonesia. The mosque is designated as a cultural heritage object along with several other old mosques in West Sumatra, such as Bingkudu Mosque in Agam, Rao Rao Mosque in Tanah Datar, and the Ganting Grand Mosque in Padang.
The Grand Mosque of Fes el-Jdid is the historic main Friday mosque of Fes el-Jdid, the royal city and Marinid-era citadel of Fes, Morocco. It is believed to have been founded in 1276, around the same time that the city itself was founded, making it the oldest mosque in Fes el-Jdid.
