This thesis focuses on the late period mosques of architect Sinan in terms of their structural systems, the relation with their environment, and the identities of their patrons. The links amongst the role of the patron, his or her status in the state, materials used in the mosques, location choice and the spatial distribution of the mosques are researched on the bases of these six late period mosques of Sinan. In this perspective, the social background of the Ottoman Empire in the sixteenth century is the first focal point of the thesis. The relations between the decadence of the institutions, the political conditions of the Ottoman Empire and the architectural production during the last quarter of the sixteenth century are examined in the second chapter of this thesis. In the third chapter these six late period mosques as the sampling case are described in detail and evaluated in terms of their bearing systems, construction materials, the site features and the relation with their patrons. Though, being one of the favorite subjects in the Ottoman architectural history, there are many research and interpretations on Sinan&amp / #8217 / s architectural style, works on late period mosques are limited and not specifically focused. In the fourth chapter of the study these limited interpretations are brought together and evaluated in the light of the background information supplied in the previous chapter of the thesis. In this framework, the aim of this study is not only to assess the late period works of Sinan as a tool to trace his architectural process, but also to unveil the relations with the identities of the patrons and locational and structural features of the mosques.

In the United States, Mosques and Islamic centers have existed for many decades to meet the social and religious needs of Muslims. However, since Muslims are a minority in this country, they still face some problems since the practice of various Islamic laws and prohibitions sometimes are inappropriate with the Western way of life. Assessing Muslims in the American context, a key issue to consider is the degree to which Muslims may become socially integrated into the American culture. Here the role of the Islamic center, as an institution, is significant in helping Muslims to meet each other and to adjust to the realities of life in America.In general, an Islamic center involves a concentration of facilities for activities which have the characteristic of Islam. Therefore, there is no basic difference in function between a Mosque and an Islamic Center, since the Mosque traditionally is not only a house of worship, but is also the center of Islamic society and culture. The term Islamic center is used in this study to emphasize the interest in the social side of Mosque activities, in addition to religious functions, that might be more appropriate with Muslims life in the American context.The purpose of the Islamic center is to promote a better understanding of Islam and greater acceptance and appreciation of its truth, culture, and contribution to human civilization. As we know, the ethos of Islam lies not only in the connection of individual with God, but also with human relations in the social order. / Department of Architecture

The heritage of Java is the product of a complex mix of cultures that historically influenced the island: Hindu, Buddhist, Islamic, Javanese, Chinese, and Dutch. Indonesian cultural heritage is represented through many aspects of the nation; the history, the way of life, the identity which should be preserved not only for the present, but for the future. Unfortunately, Indonesian heritage faces many problems; many historic buildings have been demolished, neglected and not well maintained. Due to these facts, the effort should be done in order to save the heritage in Indonesia, and this can be achieved by maximizing the role of the community. The aim of this research is to describe the role of community participation in the religious heritage conservation management in Indonesia, and specifically looks at the case of Chinese temples and mosques in the urban coastal area of Java. The research is the result of extensive fieldwork that was carried out between 2009-2011 and both qualitative and quantitative methods were employed; survey questionnaires, observation and in-depth interviews. The final finding of the research is the model of the religious heritage management which is developed from the Chinese temples and mosques conservation strategy. The Focus Group Discussion was undertaken in the final step to get input from the stakeholders of the heritage conservation. This stage is needed to validate and verify the model before applying the model to other religious buildings. The findings of this research show the extent to which local communities are involved in temple and mosque activities and how their role is essential to the sustainability of their religious buildings. Because local community involvement still needs to be improved in Indonesia, this approach could be employed as an effective model for the conservation of other religious heritage buildings especially in Java, and hopefully later in the wider area of Indonesia.

Thesis (M.Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1982. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH. / Bibliography: p. 145-147. / by Carol Rose Schwartz. / M.Arch.

This dissertation examines five wooden hypostyle mosques built in Anatolia during the second half of the seventh/thirteenth century: the Sahip Ata Cami in Konya (656/1258) / the Ulu Camis of Afyon (671/1272) and Sivrihisar (673/1274-75) / the Ahi Serefettin Cami in Ankara (689/1289-90) / and the Esrefoglu Cami in Beysehir (696-698/1296-99). It aims primarily to explain how the condition of suzerainty prevailing after the Mongol Conquest in 641/1243 lead to the introduction of a new, wooden type of construction and caused it to proliferate. The dissertation employs a cultural-mode-of-production analysis to understand the circumstances of the type&rsquo / s introduction, with special emphasis on the place of wood in Islamic sacred building, the crisis of Islam after the Conquest, the cultural parameters of Seljuk patronage and the character of Mongol suzerainty.

This survey investigates the origin and growth of the mosque in pre-colonial West Africa emphasizing both the traditional and Islamic context. Initially the traditional West African society is observed with special emphasis on those features which were to affect the mosque. The origin of Muslim places of worship is examined, indicating the types of people and places involved. The various activities performed in the mosque and the role of the mosque personnel are seen to cover every aspect of Muslim life and to be similar to what obtained in other Muslim lands. It is discovered that because the mosque is an institution introduced from without, conflict took place between Muslims and traditional worshippers with regard to the use of places of worship. Nevertheless, the interaction between the old and the new faiths is still a remarkable feature of West African Islam.

No description available.

Concave surfaces are often considered to be detrimental or precarious in room acoustics, especially because of the impact they have on the distribution of sound energy. However, it is often difficult to avoid such surfaces in buildings with specific architectural functions. A primary example of this involves mosques, which are sacred places of worship for Muslims. In keeping with the Islamic architectural style, most mosques incorporate a symbolic centralized domed ceiling as part of their room structures. These domes are open on the bottom and coupled to the acoustic spaces below. In many cases, the lower spaces may be idealized rectangular enclosures. Owing to the distinctness and ubiquity of this basic architectural form, a thorough, fundamental analysis of such environments would be useful to the architectural acoustics community. In this study, predictions from EASE (trademark) computer models were compared to the results derived from physical scale model measurements. The scale model measurement techniques involved evaluation of impulse responses in a 1:12 scale model of Darussholah mosque, in East Java, Indonesia. A miniature human voice source was created to carry out the impulse response measurements. It was carefully evaluated to ensure that it produced adequate frequency response and directivity comparable to an actual human voice. Acoustical parameters were derived from the impulse responses. Statistical analysis using ANOVA and t-tests were used to compare results from the measurements with variations of domed ceiling configurations and other aspects of the measurement setting. Conclusions were based on these comparisons and on auralization listening tests in order to ascertain the elements that produced the most significant impact on the mosque acoustics. The analysis helps establish criteria for good acoustics in mosques and other buildings with domed ceilings.

No description available.

La thèse décrit et analyse la géographie des mosquées en Italie, un sujet d'une grande pertinence et originalité, en particulier en ce qui concerne le champ d'application des études géographiques. C'est un sujet qui a été étudiée dans d'autres pays européens, et pas seulement, alors que l'urgence en Italie est de plus en plus stricte. Une telle urgence est déterminée par les changements rapides de l'immigration qui ont touché le territoire italien. La centralité de la composante musulmane parmi les étrangers vivant en Italie est désormais une réalité, il suffit de penser à l'affirmation de l'islam comme la deuxième religion plus populaire en Italie, et il est prévu que ça se renforce au cours des prochaines générations. Sur la base de ces considérations, cette thèse retrace ce qui a été le processus de création des mosquées en Italie, à travers l'étude des cas exemplaires, et elle analyse l'impact qu'une telle présence a eu sur le territoire italien, en particulier dans les zones urbaines de Milan. Ce travail montre en effet le «processus de la manifestation visible » qu'une religion, absent du paysage italien jusqu'à il y a quelques décennies, empreinte sur le sol, d'un point de vue privilégié, au cœur de lieux de culte, les mosquées. Le cœur de ce travail reflète sur la taille de la « construction de l'espace » mis en évidence par la construction de mosquées. En fait, les conflits qui accompagnent souvent la proposition ou la création de mosquées montrent que pas tout le monde a « droit à la ville » ou à une « place » dans l'espace d'une manière égale. Et la construction de ce droit implique le partage d'un éventail d'acteurs, discours ( normatifs et de représentation mentale de l'espace ) et de dispositifs spatiaux qui mènent à la légitimité de cette présence. Les mosquées ne sont pas seulement le symbole de la présence des musulmans en Europe. Grâce à eux, on peut lire la position des musulmans dans la société italienne. La construction de mosquées devrait être la transition de l'ère d'une installation spontanée d'une minorité religieuse récemment arrivée au moment de l'institutionnalisation, de l'attribution d'un «lieu» reconnue et légitime. Par conséquent, la transition du moment de l'hospitalité, où la présence est temporaire et révocable, et l'accueil est « toléré », au «temps du droit à la ville» et de la reconnaissance. Le passage de l'islam de la sphère privé à la sphère publique. Les salles de prière dans les villes italiennes, dans ce cas précis, à Milan, qui ont toujours été des lieux précaires et résiduelles (des sous-sols, garages, etc.) celles-ci représentent les premières phases d'une installation des musulmans dans l'espace urbain. Une installation à peine visible et peu organisée et vue par les institutions et la société d'une façon presque bienveillante et curieuse, un regard exotique à la diversité, sans grandes réactions négatives. Dans cette première période, même des accords pour la construction de nouvelles mosquées ad hoc ont été effectivement atteints.La mosquée de Milan, cependant, a été fondée d'une manière presque accidentelle, et assez peu a été dit de ce sujet jusqu'à ce que son inauguration. La mosquée de Rome est, au contraire, plus le résultat de l'institutionnalisation, mais surtout des relations internationales (c'est à dire les bonnes relations entre l'Italie et le Moyen-Orient, encore plus important au cours de la crise pétrolière de 1973) plutôt que de la présence de la communauté musulmane locale. Les conflits sont plutôt déclenchés au moment de la reconnaissance et l'institutionnalisation, quand une présence que l'on croyait peut être temporaire ou accidentelle devient stable, organisée, visible et centrale. En outre, dans le même temps la minorité musulmane est dotée d'une connotation négative à la suite des événements tragiques liés au terrorisme international et les conflits qui en découlent / The thesis describes and analyzes the geography of mosques in Italy, a topic of great relevance and originality, in particular as regards the scope of geographical studies. This is a topic that has been investigated in other European countries, and beyond, while its urgency in Italy is becoming more stringent. Such an urgency is determined by the rapid immigration changes that have affected the Italian territory. The centrality of the Muslim component among foreigners living in Italy is now a reality, suffice to think to the affirmation of Islam as the second most popular religion in Italy, and it is expected to grow stronger during the next generations. On the grounds of these considerations, this thesis traces what the process of establishment of mosques in Italy was, by means of the study of case studies, and it analyzes the impact that such a presence has had upon the Italian territory, particularly in the urban context of the city of Milan. This work indeed shows the process of a visible manifestation that a religion, absent until a few decades ago in the Italian landscape, imprints upon the ground, from a privileged point of view, the places of worship, that is mosques. The heart of this work reflects the size of the "construction of space" highlighted by the construction of mosques. In fact, the heated debates that often accompany the proposal or the creation of mosques show that not everyone has equal "rights to the city" or to a "place" in space. And the construction of this right implies the sharing of a range of actors, discourses (the legal and mental representation of space) and for space leading to the legitimacy of this presence. Mosques are not only the symbol of the presence of Muslims in Europe. Through them one can read the position of Muslims in Italian society. The construction of mosques should represent the transition from an era of spontaneous settlement of a religious minority recently arrived at the time of institutionalization, with the attribution instead of a recognized and legitimate "place." Hence, the transition from the time of hospitality, in which the presence is temporary and revocable, and the welcome is "tolerated," to the "time of the right to the city" and recognition. This is the transition from the private to the public sphere of Islam. From the initial fate of the prayer rooms in the Italian cities, in this specific case in Milan, which are precarious and residual places (i.e. basements, garages, etc.). These represent the first phases of the settlement of Muslims in the urban space. A barely visible settlement and poorly organized, seen by the institutions and society in an almost benevolent and curious way, an exotic gaze towards diversity, with no major negative reactions. In this early period agreements were even actually reached for the new construction of purpose-built mosques. The mosque in Milan, however, was founded in an almost accidental manner, and rather little had been said about it until its inauguration. The Mosque of Rome is, instead, more the result of institutionalization, but mostly of international relations (i.e. the good relations between Italy and the Middle East, even more important during the 1973 oil crisis) than the presence of the local Muslim community. Conflicts are instead unleashed at the time of recognition and institutionalization, when a presence that was thought might be temporary or accidental becomes stable, organized, visible and centrally located. Furthermore, at the same time the Muslim minority is endowed with a negative connotation as a result of the tragic events relating to international terrorism and the ensuing conflicts