University of Cincinnati

UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI Date:___________________ I, _________________________________________________________, hereby submit this work as part of the requirements for the degree of: in: It is entitled: This work and its defense approved by: Chair: _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ Adaptation of Mosque Design for American Muslims A thesis submitted to the Division of Research and Advanced Studies of the University of Cincinnati in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Architecture in the College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP) 2004 by Amir Khan (B-Arch, University of Engineering & Technology, 2001) Committee Chairs: Gordon Simmons Nnamdi Elleh Aarati Kanekar ABSTRACT Although the mosque has experienced fourteen centuries of stylistic development, it is still an architectural rarity in the United States. The thematic and visual characteristics of mosque architecture in America must confront an alien environment, one that has its own deeply embedded historical and visual vocabulary. The response, then, of the architectural characteristics of the American mosque to its context is one of tension, resulting both from religious and cultural paradigms. Thus, American Muslims have had to import, adapt or innovate. This thesis proposes two hypotheses: (1) mosque design in the United States must respond to its own inner formal determinants (cultural and functional); (2) architecture is site-bound, and mosque design must also respond to the local climate, building materials and contemporary building technology, and it must be sensitive to the social and built environments. With this in mind, the thesis explores the influences from typology (conventional architectural elements) and American culture (new social factors for immigrant Muslims), to discover an appropriate design for a mosque in the United States, specifically in Cincinnati, Ohio. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION: 02 THE COMPONENT PARTS OF MOSQUE 05 Formal Typology of the Mosque 07 The Liturgical Elements of a Mosque 10 REGIONAL ARCHITECTURAL PRECEDENTS 13 History of the Mosque 13 Mosques in Iran and Central Asia 16 Mosques in Sub-Saharam West Africa 21 Mosque in China 24 Summary 27 Suggestions for Cincinnati Mosque 28 MUSLIMS AND AMERICAN CULTURE 29 Muslim Immigration Patterns to the United States 29 American Muslim 30 Space and Gender 33 Summary 37 Muslim community in Cincinnati 38 Summary 39 SITE 29 Location 40 Site Selection 42 History of Clifton 45 APPENDIX 58 BIBLIOGRAPHY 63 1 INTRODUCTION Although it is well established that Islam was in practiced in the United States in the post-civil war period, no serious studies exist on the subject of a Muslim aesthetic in America. One of the reasons is the brief history of the American mosque, which does not exceed half a century. The earliest significant mosque in this country, the Islamic cultural center of Washington D.C, was built in 1950.1 Mosques in America follow traditional elements and forms, even though they exist in a new environment which is very different from the past. Typically American mosque clients are professionals who live in the suburbs of cities; the money for the construction often comes from wealthy foreign patrons who commission buildings with aesthetic embellishment. In this way, the client and the patrons control the image of the mosque. Because of this, the American mosque image is essentially concerned with satisfying an emotional condition that has historic efficacy for the immigrant Muslims.2 Drawing on history, we can say that Muslim religious aesthetics have three factors with regard to any style or expression: import, adapt and innovate. These three factors are useful because they address the issues of culture, geography and environment and because they identify the development of a style or expression by shaping the stylistic features of mosques that are away from the origin, that is, in places outside of Arabia, the birthplace of Islam. 1 In the very early 1900s; Muslims used private homes, fire stations, abandoned churches and warehouses as a mosque. 2 Dar Al-Islam in New Mexico designed by Hassan Fathy , a leading Architect in the Muslim world. The idea behind Dar al-Islam was first conceived by Abdullah Durkee, after a chance meeting Saudi businessman Sahl Kabanni in Makkah In 1979. Both men discussed the possibility of a seed community for American Muslim who are seemingly cut off from the mainstream tradition of their religion. 2 Within the parameters of Islamic design there is great room for innovation. Our perceptions of Islamic architecture are bound by age-old traditions that have little to do with the intent and purpose for which they were built; we must understand that a change in structure will never harm the spirit behind the building. Over the years the premise behind building mosques has undergone an evolution. Centuries ago, a mosque was an announcement of the arrival of Islam in a conquered land; it was a statement of the invader and the subsequent rulers, a sign of power and authority, so it needed to be unique, it needed to speak of the lands from which it came, not necessarily blending in with the new environment, so as to seem a trifle aggressive. Later, as Islam entered the region from the east with a view to expansion, the mosque took a friendlier face. Hence we can see triangular structures in Indonesia and mosques in China resembling pagodas. The mosques in Egypt differ from the mosques in Indonesia, those in the subcontinent are different from those in Morocco. But there has been no specifically American design for a mosque. This thesis deals with the regional diversity which produces changes in the visible form of mosques. Chapter 1 explains component parts of mosque. In its capacity as a house of worship, the mosque has a standardized assembly of component Parts, subject to minor variations depending on whether a particular building is a small village sanctuary intended largely for individual prayer a congregational or district mosque, or the principal Friday mosque in any city. Chapter 2 covers the brief architectural history of mosque. As Islam quickly spread westwards across North Africa to Spain and eastwards as far as the coastal areas around the China Sea. In the areas into which it expanded indigenous populations used a wide variety of building materials, including mud brick, timber and 3 stone, depending on the raw materials available locally. Each region thus had its own traditional and craft, related skills and building methods, and these local factors, combined with extreme differences in climate, gave rise from the beginning to highly disparate styles, many of which were of course influenced by contact with existing local cultures. But Mosque architecture in North America has been a product of transplantation, reflecting an extreme case of nostalgia; the design is lifted almost whole from the mother country (Saudi Arabia). We should have an American mosque, a happy blend between architectural tradition and innovation for a new culture environment Chapter 3 takes up the question of space, place and public gathering in the mosque. Traditional Muslim societies, a set of rigorous, male-formulated rules restricts the use of the mosque by women. These rules may be negligible in America because laws govern use of a public space, and other planning specifications must be met. 4 THE COMPONENT PARTS OF MOSQUE The first mosque was the house of the Prophet Muhammad in Medina. This was a simple rectangular enclosure containing rooms for the Prophet and his wives and a shaded area on the southern side of the courtyard that could be used for prayer in the direction of Mecca. This building became the model for subsequent mosques, which had the same basic courtyard layout with a prayer area against the qibla wall. An early development of this basic plan was the provision of shade on the other three sides of the courtyard. The roofs were supported by columns made of wood. Several features that were later to become standard features of mosques were introduced at an early stage. The first is the minbar (pulpit), which was used by Muhammad to give sermons; the second is a prayer niche called a mihrab, in the qibla wall. The minaret, a tower-like structure and the most conspicuous feature of mosques in many Muslim societies, has the least liturgical significance. Its purpose of calling the faithful to prayer is now redundant with the advent of electronic public address systems. Like the minaret, the domed mosque is also a later innovation. Thus the primary feature of a mosque is a qibla wall facing Mecca. Sultan Hasan Mosque, mihrab and minbar, Damascus Mosque, mihrab and minber, Cairo, Egypt Syria 5 Mosques are multi-function public spaces where various worship activities are performed through various modes of use. Three distinct religious activities are performed in the mosque, either separately or in conjunction with one another. One is performing prayers individually or in a group led by a leader or Imam. The second is attending a preaching being delivered on its own or in conjunction with Friday prayers. The third is to listen or to recite some verses from the Holy Qu’ran. 6 FORMAL TYPOLOGY OF THE MOSQUE The Hypostyle Mosque It typically features a large courtyard and a low covered sanctuary. The sanctuary roof may be flat or pitched. In either case, it will be supported by many columns or arcades that are regularly spaced. This type of mosque was common in the western part of the Islamic world. Hypostyle prayer hall of Cordoba Mosque Interior view of prayer hall Exterior view of Cordoba Mosque 7 The Iwan Mosque Here the prayer hall entrance is an iwan, or up to four iwans, surrounding a courtyard. It was the most popular type in the medieval period, and remained dominant in Iran.

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