Finding the Architectural Pattern of Chinese Mosques (Case Study: The Great Mosque of Xian)

Document Type : Original Research Article

Authors

1 Ph.D. Student in Architecture, Faculty of Architecture, College of Fine Arts, University of Tehran, Iran.

2 Ph.D. in Architecture Conservation, Art University of Isfahan, Iran.

Abstract

The land of China has always been one of the main civilizations of the East. This country has never been part of the Muslim realm or even had a government with the Islamic religion. However, from the beginning of the formation of Islamic civilization until today, Chinese Muslims have had a special place, such as masque. Architecture is one of the most prominent relics of human civilization, and in this regard, valuable works have been created in Chinese Muslim civilization. There is a question here that where has the architectural model of Chinese mosques come from, considering the civilization that Muslims have created through economic or cultural relations leading to the transmission of Islam and the formation of Chinese mosques; To answer this question, one of the perfect examples of Chinese Mosques called the Great Mosque of Xian has been reviewed. In the present study, to discover the architectural pattern of this mosque, the characteristics of the early Islamic mosques and the pre-Islamic architecture of China have been compared. The present article is based on the premise that the architectural model of Chinese Mosques has been derived from its ancient temples. The adopted research method is a case study analysis, and interpretations are based on the features of the selected sample of ‘Medina Mosque’, from the early Islamic mosques, and the ‘Confucius Nanjing Temple’ from the native architecture of China in pre-Islamic times. The comparative study of the Great Mosque of Xian with early Chinese mosques and temples shows that the architectural pattern of this mosque is derived from the traditional Chinese temples and its influence from Islamic mosques is limited to the building direction the presence of Mihrab, changing the function of traditional architectural spaces and using Islamic architectural scripts in traditional decorations of the target building.

Keywords

References

Andrianawati, A. & Lestari, N. L. (2019). Acculturation of Chinese and Islamic Culture at the Interior of the Ronghe Mosque. 6th Bandung Creative Movement International Conference in Creative Industries. Bandung, Indonesia.
Del Medico, C. (2017). Traditional Hui Mosques in Northern China. European Research Center for Chinese Studies, (1), 1-14.
Dizani, E. (2014). Formal Structure in Muslim Ritual Buildings. Journal of Art & Civilization of the Orient, 1(2), 12-17.
Dizani, E. (2017). Finding the Patterns of Indian Mosques Architecture. Bagh-e Nazar. 14(48), 82-69.
Gao, X., Ma, X., Wang, K., Huang, P., Mi, X. & Liu, K. (2019). Comparative study on the Choice of Muslim Migrant Residence in Xian and Lanzhou Cities, China. International Journal of Science Studies, 7(6), 133-144.
Gardner, H. (1995). Art through Times (M. T. Faramarzi, Trans.). Tehran: Naghsh-e Jahan.
Hagras, H. (2017). An ancient mosque in Ningbo, China “Historical and Architectural study”. Journal of Islamic Architecture, 4(3), 102-113.
Hagras, H. (2019a). Xian Daxuexy alley Mosque: Historical and Architectural study. Egyptian Journal of Archaeological and Restoration Studies “EJARS”, (9), 97-113. 
Hagras, H. (2019b). The Ming court as patron of the Chinese Islamic Architecture: the case study of the Daxuexi Mosque in Xian. Shedet Issue, (6), 134-158.
Hoteit, A. (2015). Contemporary architectural trends and their impact on the symbolic andspiritual function of the mosque. International Journal of Current Research, 7(03), 13547-13558.
Huajuexiang Mosque. (n.d.). Retrieved May 14, 2017, from, https://archnet.org/sites/3973/.
Kadoi, Y. (2018). Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt. China’s Early Mosques. Abstracta Iranica [Online], (40-41), 1-3.
Pirnia, M. H. (2010). Sabkshenasi-ye Me’mari-ye Iran [The styles of Iranian Architecture]. Tehran: Soroush-e Danesh.
Qurrat ul Ain, A. (2015). Everyday life of a chinese muslim: Between religious retention and material acculturation. Journal for the Study of Religions and Ideologies, 14(40), 209-235.
The Guidebook of Xian Great Mosque (brochur). (2010).
Wain, A. (2016). Islam in China: The Hān Kitāb Tradition in the Writings of Wang Daiyu, Ma Zhu and Li u Zhi: with a Note on Their Relevance for Contemporary Islam. Islam and Civilisational Renewal,  7(1), 27-46.
MANZAR, the Scientific Journal of landscape
Volume 13, Issue 56
October 2021
Pages 58-65

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics