Mosque of the Companions
| Mosque of the Companions | |
|---|---|
مَسْجِد ٱلصَّحَابَة | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Islam |
| Ecclesiastical or organisational status | Mosque |
| Status | Active |
| Location | |
| Location | Massawa |
| Country | Eritrea |
Location of the mosque in Eritrea | |
Interactive map of Mosque of the Companions | |
| Coordinates | 15°36′43″N 39°28′50″E / 15.61194°N 39.48056°E |
| Architecture | |
| Type | Mosque |
| Dome | 1 |
The Mosque of the Companions (Arabic: مَسْجِد ٱلصَّحَابَة, romanized: Masjid aṣ-Ṣaḥābah; Tigrinya: መስጊድ ሰሓባ, romanized: masǝgid saḥābā), also known as the Ras Medre Mosque,[1] is an open-air mosque in Massawa, Eritrea, located on a small island off the Red Sea coast. According to local tradition, the mosque dates from the early 7th century CE and is believed by some to be the first mosque in Africa.[2]
History
Local Muslims generally believe that Massawa, particularly the small island known as Ras Medr off the city's coast,[3] was the place where the Companions (Arabic: الصحابة, romanized: Ṣaḥābah) of the Islamic prophet Muhammad landed in Africa when they fled persecution by non-Muslims in the Hejazi city of Mecca, present-day Saudi Arabia.[4] According to Richard J. Reid, the mosque may have been constructed in the 620s or 630s by members of Muhammad's family among this group.[2]
The present-day site consists of an open-air prayer area (a musalla) with a free-standing stone structure that consists of a mihrab and an attached minbar that resembles a miniature minaret.[1] This latter feature is very similar to one found in the nearby Mosque of Sheikh Hammali, built in the Ottoman period, which suggests that the structure also dates from this period or later.[1][5]
See also
References
- ^ a b c Cantone, Cleo (2022). "A Historiography of Sub-Saharan African Mosques: From colonialism to modernity". In Østebø, Terje (ed.). Routledge Handbook of Islam in Africa. Routledge. pp. 72–73. ISBN 978-1-000-47172-4.
- ^ a b Reid, Richard J. (2012). A History of Modern Africa: 1800 to the Present. John Wiley & Sons. p. 106. ISBN 978-0-470-65898-7.
- ^ Miran, Jonathan (2009). Red Sea Citizens: Cosmopolitan Society and Cultural Change in Massawa. Indiana University Press. pp. 168 (see also 170, 190). ISBN 978-0-253-22079-0.
- ^ Miran, Jonathan (2021). "Massawa". In Fleet, Kate; Krämer, Gudrun; Matringe, Denis; Nawas, John; Rowson, Everett (eds.). Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three. Brill. ISBN 9789004161658.
- ^ For the Sheikh Hammali Mosque, see: Cresti, Federico (1990). "Alcune Note Storiche Su Massaua, Con Particolare Riferimento Ad Un Complesso Religioso Islamico: La Moschea Dello Šayḫ Hammāli". Africa: Rivista trimestrale di studi e documentazione dell'Istituto italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente. 45 (3): 410–431. ISSN 0001-9747. JSTOR 40760538.
External links
Media related to Mosque of the Companions, Massawa at Wikimedia Commons
- "as-Sahaba Mosque - Madain Project". madainproject.com. Retrieved September 26, 2024.