| Dondoli Mosque | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Islam |
| Location | |
| Location | Wa, Upper West, Ghana |
| Architecture | |
| Type | mosque |
| Date established | 19th century |
Dondoli Mosque is a mosque built in the Sudanese architectural style in the village of Dondoli in Wa in the Upper West region in Ghana. It was named after the neighborhood the mosque is. [1]
It was claimed a man called Karimafa who migrated from Mali to Wa built the mosque. It was claimed the mosque was used to be called Karimafa Mosque after the founder. [1] [2] It was claimed it was built in the 19th century. Most communities in the Northern part of Ghana are Muslim. In about the 10th century AD, Islam was said to enter Africa. It moved from Egypt to the Western and Southern parts along the gold trade routes. [3]
In Ghana, Islamic traders, Mande warriors and other missionaries used these trade routes. Sometimes these routes were marked by the incursions by the Berber Dynasty. This played a major role for the spread of Islam in that area. Mosques were constructed to serve as resting points for some of these Islamic traders. [3]
Like other mosques in Northern and Savannah Regions of Ghana, Dondoli Mosque is built in the traditional Sudanic-Sahelian architectural style, using local materials and construction techniques. [1]
The Mali Empire was an empire in West Africa from c. 1226 to 1670. The empire was founded by Sundiata Keita and became renowned for the wealth of its rulers, especially Mansa Musa. At its peak, Mali was the largest empire in West Africa, widely influencing the culture of the region through the spread of its language, laws, and customs.
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. The Islamic world encompasses a wide geographic area historically ranging from western Africa and Europe to eastern Asia. Certain commonalities are shared by Islamic architectural styles across all these regions, but over time different regions developed their own styles according to local materials and techniques, local dynasties and patrons, different regional centers of artistic production, and sometimes different religious affiliations.
Sudano-Sahelian architecture refers to a range of similar indigenous architectural styles common to the African peoples of the Sahel and Sudanian grassland (geographical) regions of West Africa, south of the Sahara, but north of the fertile forest regions of the coast.
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The Dyula are a Mande ethnic group inhabiting several West African countries, including Mali, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Burkina Faso.
Islam was the first Abrahamic monotheistic religion to arrive in Ghana. Today, it is the second most widely professed religion in the country behind Christianity. Its presence in Ghana dates back to the 10th century. According to the Ghana Statistical Service's Population and Housing census (2021), the percentage of Muslims in Ghana is about 19.9%.
The Swahili people comprise mainly Bantu, Afro-Arab, and Comorian ethnic groups inhabiting the Swahili coast, an area encompassing the Zanzibar archipelago and mainland Tanzania's seaboard, littoral Kenya, northern Mozambique, the Comoros Islands, and northwest Madagascar.
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The Wangara are a diaspora community of ethnic Soninke origin who served as specialized long-distance merchants throughout West Africa, particularly in Trans-Saharan trade. Originating from the Ghana Empire, over time the Wangara became integrated into numerous other communities and ethnic groups, particularly in Timbuktu, Agadez, Kano, Gao, Salaga, Kong, Bissa, Kankan, Fouta Jallon, Djenné as well as Bambouk, Bure, Lobi, and Bono goldfields and Borgu. They were practicing Muslims who helped spread the religion widely and served as clerics, political advisors, healers and marabouts, often following the Suwarian Tradition.
The Hausa are a native ethnic group in West Africa. They speak the Hausa language, which is the second most spoken language after Arabic in the Afro-Asiatic language family. The Hausa are a culturally homogeneous people based primarily in the Sahelian and the sparse savanna areas of southern Niger and northern Nigeria respectively, numbering around 86 million people, with significant populations in Benin, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Chad, Central African Republic, Togo, Ghana, as well as smaller populations in Sudan, Eritrea, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Senegal, Gambia. Predominantly Hausa-speaking communities are scattered throughout West Africa and on the traditional Hajj route north and east traversing the Sahara, with an especially large population in and around the town of Agadez. Other Hausa have also moved to large coastal cities in the region such as Lagos, Port Harcourt, Accra, Abidjan, Banjul and Cotonou as well as to parts of North Africa such as Libya over the course of the last 500 years. The Hausa traditionally live in small villages as well as in precolonial towns and cities where they grow crops, raise livestock including cattle as well as engage in trade, both local and long distance across Africa. They speak the Hausa language, an Afro-Asiatic language of the Chadic group. The Hausa aristocracy had historically developed an equestrian based culture. Still a status symbol of the traditional nobility in Hausa society, the horse still features in the Eid day celebrations, known as Ranar Sallah. Daura is the cultural center of the Hausa people. The town predates all the other major Hausa towns in tradition and culture.
The Larabanga Mosque is a mosque built in the Sudanese architectural style in the village of Larabanga, Ghana. It is the oldest mosque in the country and one of the oldest in West Africa, and has been referred to as the "Mecca of West Africa". It has undergone restoration several times since it was founded in 1421. The World Monuments Fund (WMF) has contributed substantially to its restoration and lists it as one of the 100 Most Endangered Sites. The restoration works have revived the knowledge of adobe maintenance.
The trade and pilgrimage routes of Ghana are located in the Bono, Bono East, Ahafo, Savannah, North East, Northern, and Upper East Regions of northern Ghana. The routes were used by Bono people, Mandé warriors, Islamic traders and missionaries.
Ahmadiyya is an Islamic branch in Burkina Faso under the leadership of the caliph in London. Although the Community was established and officially recognized as an Islamic community in 1986, there were small communities of Ahmadi Muslims in existence several decades prior to its establishment.
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is the second largest group of Islam in Ghana after Sunni Islam. The early rise of the Community in Ghana can be traced through a sequence of events beginning roughly at the same time as the birth of the Ahmadiyya movement in 1889 in British India. It was during the early period of the Second Caliphate that the first missionary, Abdul Rahim Nayyar was sent to what was then the Gold Coast in 1921 upon invitation from Sunni Muslims in Saltpond. Having established the movement in the country, Nayyar left and was replaced by the first permanent missionary, Al Hajj Fadl-ul-Rahman Hakim in 1922.
Wa Naa's Palace is the home to the King of the Wala people who are said to be the majority in Wa in the Upper West Region of Ghana. It is located in the heart of the town and the home to the entire family, palace staff and officials of the kingdom. It is the place for cultural, political, religious and social importance for the local people. In the palace, the chief sits on either a skin of a lion or antelope where as others sit on the skin of a cow or sheep.
Nakore Mosque is a mosque built in the Sudanese architectural style in the village of Nakore, southwest of Wa in the Upper West region of Ghana. It is a small mosque.
Wechiau Mosque is a mosque built in the Sudanese architectural style and Djenne style in the village of Wechiau in the Upper West region of Ghana. It has similar features as the Larabanga mosque.
Wuriyanga Mosque is located in the Upper East region of Ghana, beyond Garu. It is located southeast of Bawku.
Bole Mosque was located in the center of Bole in the West Gonja District which is now in the Savannah region, formally Northern region in Ghana. Due to torrential rain in September 2023, the structure which was already infected with termites, has finally collapsed.
Banda Nkwanta Mosque is located in the West Gonja District in the formally Northern region of Ghana. It is now in the Savannah region. Banda Nkwanta is a small town along the intersection of the Bui Dam road and the Wa-Techiman highway.
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