What exactly is the Muslim architecture? It seems like a simple question. However, the issue has posed a lot of debate among scholars. The discussion is about whether Islamic architecture refers to unique architectural features such as vault, dome or arch, or does it imply that only Muslims design, build, and occupy these buildings. Scholars who have explored Islamic art and design have argued in many ways on this topic. Some scholars view Islamic architecture as religious buildings while others view Islamic architectures as categorization of the secular buildings that are used daily by any Islamic individual. The answer to this complex question lies in this article. The aim, in this case, is to explore the world of Islamic architecture with its unique contribution to the architectural and religious landscape. Throughout the explorative journey into this unique world, the discussion will address the origins and history of Islamic architecture. Further, part of the discussion will be on how Islamic architecture developed into its style.
Islamic architecture and History
By definition, Islamic architecture is a building tradition of the Muslim population of the Middle East and in any country where the religion is dominating (Matthews, 2019). Islamic architecture includes religious buildings intended for worship by Muslims and secular buildings built in a predominately Islamic region or used by Muslims. Muslim architecture has a rich historical foundation. What is often referred to as Islamic architecture stems from Christian, Persian, and Indian roots. More specifically, the architectural forms and styles came mostly from the Byzantine and Sassanian Empires (Binici&Kapur, 2016). The first building was architecture by the Greek architect in the Islamic empire. In this sense, most of the building that was dominating Islamic art by then had borrowed from the West Asia or the Late Roman empire-building such a Hagia Sophia because they were under the architecture of the Greeks. During their architectural work, the Greek could experiment some new form with the Islamic world and thus came up with unique old building such as Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem. However, things began to change when the New Arab rulers came in and stamped their authorities (Van Liere, 2018). They wanted their new territories and thus came up with new architecture. They build Mosques such as Kairoum in Tunisia differently, as shown in the picture below.
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The Caliphs brought the beauty and decoration of these buildings. These people wanted beautiful places such as Universities and Mosques, mostly in Baghdad. The reason for this was because Baghdad was in the Sassanian Empire, and was the capital city where most of the operations were carried out among these individuals (Binici&Kapur, 2016). It was at this point that the culture of the Sasanian Empire hugely influenced Islamic architect. The building at this point was very different from those built by the Greeks, and an example was the Mosque at Samarra shown in the picture below.
In the end, the Islamic world was disintegrated, and so was their architecture. However, they are two unique ways of architectural design that have traveled with the Islamic people all that long. These are the blend between the Greek and the Sassanian architectures. Though these people have traveled and use different unique forms of architectures, the foundation of these unique building still lies on the Geek and the Sassanian architecture design.
Building Types
There are numerous types of building where the Islamic showcase their architecture and its uniqueness in the Muslim world. These buildings, in addition to their uniqueness, also serve many purposes in the Islamic world. Islamic architecture can include buildings used by Muslims for religious (Binici & Kapur, 2016). These architectural structures are unique with regards to features and shape. People can also use the buildings for secular purposes, and these types of structures are predominate Islamic region. The most famous building type in Islamic architecture is the mosque. Among the Islamic religion, the mosque is at the center of culture and society. Not only is it a sacred space intended for worship, but it is also a place for a lively discussion about topics relevant to daily life. Prophet Muhammad's house was the first masque among the Islamic religion. The building had unique architectural features which contained many basic designs that were that had a massive influence on the subsequent Mosques (Van Liere, 2018).
There are two types of mosque among these people, all of which are unique. The first one is the congregational mosque, and the second one is the smaller size that suits a particular ethnic group. "The hypostyle mosque became one of the main styles to emerge. It has a courtyard surrounded by colonnades on three sides. A covered sanctuary at the far end of the courtyard showcases a directional wall that shows a religious practitioner which way to pray" (Espejo et al., 2017). The image below portrays an example.
Historically, the Islamic considers schools as their next important building after the Mosque. Education centers are very important among these individuals and thus are separated from the mosques. Historically, the architectural type or the education centers among the Muslims started as houses of teachers to eventually incorporate functions such as lecture halls, libraries, residences, baths, and a courtyard. They have unique designs which also resemble those of mosque but are different based on the functions as shown in the image bellow
On the other hand, Secular buildings among the Islamic people include residential structures ranging from palaces to simple houses. "Architecturally, there was much focus placed on the separation between private and public space. Houses were inwardly focused dwellings with the private spaces devoted to family life. Palaces included many public spaces for meetings" (Espejo et al., 2017). Other than these, there are numerous public buildings which also have unique architectural designs. Such structure includes public bathhouses, as well as buildings intended for travelers who wanted to rest.
Typical features
Islamic architectures have the following features. First, they are hidden and are sometimes known as the architecture of the veil. Further, Muslims build these architectures around the courtyard, and they only show a wall with no window to the outside street. They do this to protect the family from the outsiders and from the environmental hazards, which is common in most of the Islamic territories. For most of these buildings, the concentration on the interior rather than the outside of a building - the common Islamic courtyard structure provides a space that is both outsides and yet within the building (Van Liere, 2018). See the interior architecture of the Muslim Mosque.
Most of these architectures do not have dominating directions. Color and decoration are always critical to these architectures; however, people reserve the decoration for the inside. Other than that, there are also unique elements such as the Dome, which covers the top of prayer halls and the mimbar. Others are minaret, which is a visual tower for calling people for prayer, Dikka, or a place for delivering a royal message. Mihrab or a semi-circular niche in the wall of the mosque, Sahn or a courtyard combined by ablution areas and an arch are other dominating features among these architectures. The decorative elements include geometric patterns, islimi, and calligraphy. Other decorative elements among this architecture are lights and water (Matthews, 2019).
Islamic architecture is an integration of unique elements and design to come up with unique buildings. These individuals value their places of worship as well as learning centers. They also value other civil places, and for this reason, their architectures are full of decorative elements that have a rich historical background, as discussed in this article.
References
Binici, H., &Kapur, S. (2016). The physical, chemical, and microscopic properties of masonry mortars from Alhambra Palace (Spain) in reference to their earthquake resistance. Frontiers of Architectural Research , 5 (1), 101-110.
Espejo, P. C., León, J. G., La Spina, V., & Del Toro, J. F. (2017). The Islamic wall of Mula (Spain): 3D reconstruction, restoration, and musicalization. In Vernacular and Earthen Architecture: Conservation and Sustainability (pp. 429-434). CRC Press.
Matthews, H. (2019). Islamic Architecture: Miracles of Structure, Space, and Surface.
Van Liere, K. (2018). Admiration and Awe: Morisco Buildings and Identity Negotiations in Early Modern Spanish Historiography by Antonio Urquízar-Herrera. Bulletin of the Comediantes , 70 (1), 179-182.
