Mosques

Last week I visited a number of mosques, from probably the newest mosque in South Africa to a few of the oldest.

The new mosque was the Nizamiye Turkish Masjid in nearby Midrand. Completed in 2012, it is the first Ottoman style mosque in the entire Southern Hemisphere. In fact, it is a replica of the Selimiye Camil mosque in Edime, Turkey which was built in the 1570's and is now a World Heritage Site.

Nizamiye Masjid was built and entirely funded by the retired Turkish property developer Ali Katircioglu.  "Uncle Ali" as he is called was inspired in a dream to build a mosque somewhere in the world where there was not already a Turkish style mosque. He chose South Africa because of the teachings of a Turkish preacher who told him to build a mosque in Johannesburg where Nelson Mandela lived. So he did!

Not only did he fund the construction of the mosque using the best hand made tiles, stained glass and carpets imported from Turkey, but he has also provided for the mosque's upkeep and maintenance for perpetuity. Quite a gift to the Muslim population of Johannesburg! Adjacent to the mosque is a school, a small hospital, a very good Turkish restaurant and a small souk which are all self-sufficient.

A few days later I found myself back in Cape Town where I visited some of the historic mosques of the Bo-Kaap area. Bo-Kaap is the colorful and cobble-stoned Cape Malay quarter of Cape town. The original Cape Malays were Muslims who were brought to Cape Town as slaves from India, Indonesia and other parts of Africa. Their descendents settled in the Signal Hill area overlooking the commercial center of the city. Bo-kaap literally means "above Cape" Town. And even though the CT hotel where we usually stay is right in the heart of the Bo-kaap, it was an area of Cape Town I had not really explored.

Auwal Mosque

So I set out on foot and checked out a few of the mosques of Bo-Kaap.There are so many mosques! Every street seems to have at least one so I chose to visit only a few of the oldest and most historic.

Like the Auwal Mosque on Dorp Street. Built in 1794, Auwal Mosque is the oldest mosque in South Africa.

The Nurul Islam Mosque is two doors down from our hotel on Buitengragcht Street. Established in 1834, it now sends out amplified calls to prayer several times a day.

The Mosque Shafee on Upper Chiapinni Street was established in 1859.












What they all have in common is a vast completely open interior space for prayer. It reminds me of medieval cathedrals before permanent pews were integrated into their interior design. Very humbling.