Islam began in Arabia in the early 600s, and within a century Muslim rulers governed lands from Spain to Central Asia. The central building of Islam is the mosque (from Arabic masjid, "place of prostration"), where Muslims pray together, especially at noon on Fridays. Muslims pray facing Mecca, so every mosque is laid out around that direction.
- The qibla wall is the wall that faces Mecca; worshipers line up facing it.
- The mihrab is a niche in the qibla wall that marks the direction of prayer.
- The minbar is a stepped pulpit beside the mihrab, from which the Friday sermon is given.
- The prayer hall is the covered space in front of the qibla wall; many mosques also have a courtyard with water for washing before prayer.
- A minaret is a tower from which the call to prayer was given.
Key idea
Why it works
| Plan type | What it is | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Hypostyle | A wide hall of many columns, often with a courtyard | The Great Mosque of Córdoba, Spain |
| Four-iwan | A courtyard with a great vaulted hall (iwan) on each side | Mosques of Iran, such as at Isfahan |
| Central dome | A great dome over the prayer hall, with half-domes | Ottoman mosques of Istanbul, after Hagia Sophia |
Looking closely: The Dome of the Rock. The Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik built it on the great platform in Jerusalem that Muslims call the Noble Sanctuary and Jews call the Temple Mount. It is not a mosque but a shrine, built around a sacred rock. An octagon of walls holds two rings of columns, so visitors can walk around the rock beneath a high, gilded dome. Long inscriptions in angular Arabic script, dated to the year 72 of the Islamic calendar (AD 691 to 692), run around the inside; they are among the earliest surviving Islamic inscriptions. The blue tiles outside are later, from the 1500s, and the gold dome has been restored many times.
Worked example: Find the direction
- Look for the niche in one wall: the mihrab.
- The wall with the mihrab is the qibla wall, and it faces Mecca.
- The minbar, a stepped pulpit, usually stands beside it.
Answer: The mihrab in the qibla wall shows the direction of Mecca.
Common mistake