Is
there such a thing as a stereotypical mosque? Are all mosques
necessarily characterized by a minaret, a dome, and arches? Are
all mosques decorated with mosaics or stucco? From North Africa to
India, these elements are the defining features of mosque
architecture. Nevertheless, it should be noted that Islam reached
these lands largely by conquest, and this meant that the know-how
of mosque building was wholly imported. In the case of Sub-Saharan
Africa as well as China and Southeast Asia, the entry of Islam was
more gradual and was transmitted by merchants and traders. I would
argue that this partly explains why the mosque architecture of
these regions conforms less explicitly to the norms of what has
become the blueprint of the mosque.
According
to Alsayyad, the Arab conquest of the Middle East was motivated by
three aims that conform to the notion of colonialism: a divine
mission of spreading the Islamic religion; the ruling Arab elite
maintaining political power while expanding trade; and finally,
gaining profit from the resources of conquered lands. However,
Arab conquest did not always encounter confrontation; on the
contrary, as in the case of Damascus and Sicily for instance, Arab
dominion was preferable to Byzantine exploitation.
Appropriating and dismantling the religious and political buildings of earlier civilizations became common Arab practice. The symbolism associated with such transformations cannot be considered anything but colonial. The takeover of churches and their later transformation into mosques, and the construction of ruler’s palaces in the centre of new or existing cities, … represent colonial urbanism at work.
In
contrast, Islam’s penetration of Sub-Saharan Africa dates from
around the 9th century via the Saharan caravan routes. Two strands
of influence shaped Islam in West Africa: the link between the
Maghrib and the Berber-African gold-trading centers such as the
pagan Soninke state of Ghana; the other was the eastern route that
connected central Sudan—Kanem, Bornu, and the Hausa
states—with Libya, Tunisia, and Egypt. Although characterized by
regional and ethnic variety, one unifying factor in African Islam
is the predominance of the Maliki madhhab—the same school
of thought adhered to in the Maghrib. In addition to the
commercial link between the two regions, a spiritual bond existed
with North Africa. Indeed, the majority of Sufi brotherhoods in
West Africa originated from the Maghrib, but the spread of the
so-called turuq (“path” used to describe the Sufi
brotherhoods) did not happen until much later in the 18th and 19th
centuries.
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Perforations on a roof top, covered with terracotta lids in a mosque in Jenne, Mali.
As
the equivalent of masjid in various African languages
indicates, the mosque is nothing more than a place of prostration,
like its Arabic root: massallatai in Nigeria, and missidi
in Futa Diallon. By contrast, diakka in Wolof literally
means “to face east.” West African mosques vary from simple
roofless enclosures serving the function of places for communal
prayer, to magnificent buildings. It would be impossible to do
justice to the vast array of stylistic variants of mosque
architecture in West Africa; therefore, the regions covered here
are primarily Senegal and Mali.
The
style and materials of traditional mosques vary according to the
ethnic group and the local environment. The style of mosque known
as Soudanese, belonging to the area known as the Western Sudan, is
perhaps the most famed. Spanning a vast area from the River
Senegal to the Niger Bend, as well as Ghana and the Ivory Coast,
these mosques are bound by common building material—clay. Their
organic forms are typified by buttressing, the use of toron
or wooden stakes used for scaffolding during the yearly process of
resurfacing, as well as for decorative purposes, a mihrab
tower, a flat roof, and a courtyard. Pillars support the flat
roof, and the floor is usually covered with sand, on top of which
mats are laid. Illumination is evocatively achieved by holes
pierced in the ceiling. Save the massive pillars and their arches,
interiors are undecorated, yet far from austere. Rather, their
elegant simplicity attests to the lack of distraction between the
worshiper and his Creator.
Mali
was impregnated with a tradition known by the name of its dominant
group, the Mande, whence Manding. Among them, those who were
Islamized were known as Dyula or Wangara. This group covered a
large area during their migration, spanning part of Senegal,
northern Nigeria, the Upper Niger Bend, the Guinea coast, and over
to Kong in the Ivory Coast. Mande style is characterized by the
use of conical forms, particularly found on monumental entrances
of courtyard houses and mosques. Decorated with pilasters and
elements in relief alternating with voids, these façades are also
found in Dogon architecture. But apart from the close affinity
between domestic and religious architecture, additional elements
such as the phallic pylons testify to the integration of ancestral
practices with Islamic ones.
Thus
the Mande style, which has come to be associated with the
Soudanese style, was transmitted by traders who taught mystical
Islam throughout this vast region. Nowadays, however, the
transmission of the Djennenké style takes place with the
movement of master-builders whose craftsmanship is much sought
after.
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On this mosque in Ngoni, Mali, the use of plaster and cement is combined with traditional elements such as the toron and decorative pinnacles.
The
origins of the Soudanese mosque are not clear-cut: Their
monumental and fortress-like exteriors are reminiscent of the
defensive architecture of West Africa known as tata. There
may also be a relation between these mosques and domestic
architecture. The Great Mosque of Djenné typifies the Soudanese
mosque and, furthermore, it may have been the progenitor of this
type of mosque architecture. Although it was rebuilt under the
aegis of the French administration in 1907, the craftsmen, as well
as the building technology, are more local than French. This vast
mosque dominates the market place from its raised platform. Like
its relatives, the mosque is characterized by the use of
buttressing, pinnacles, and attached pillars—all of which are
punctuated by the toron spikes.
Unlike
many other Soudanese mosques, the ceiling of Djenné’s great
mosque is very high. The western side of the mosque opens onto a
large courtyard, at the rear of which the women’s galleries are
situated, one on each side of the entrance.
This
mosque has become almost iconic in terms of West African mosque
architecture, and numerous village mosques in the surrounding area
emulate the Djenné mosque, albeit on a miniature scale. Dominated
by their minaret tower, courtyard, and flat roof from where the
Adhan is called, yet each mosque has its own distinctive
character.
Relatives
of the Soudanese mosques in Mali can be found in the Futa Toro in
northeastern Senegal. Here, dwellings are generally preceded by a
wooden veranda or mud porch, typical of all Tukolor housing in the
area. This structure is echoed in the sacred enclosure around Futa
mosques, consisting of a projecting straw roof supported by posts,
whose function is to accommodate the overflow of worshipers and
protect them from the sun. As for the central and coastal area of
Senegal, the influence of colonialism left its mark on mosque
building and the mosques of Saint Louis, Gorée, and Dakar
(Blanchot) are all equipped with a front porch defined by arcades
with pointed arches. Furthermore, the paired square towers
flanking the triangular pediment of the façade recall church
architecture.
The
Contemporary Urban Mosque Phenomenon
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The technique of toron and decorative pinnacles is also used in Sindegue, Mali.
Sub-Saharan
Africa has been a stage accommodating a wide range of disparate
influences: ethnic, religious, political, and not least, artistic.
It is not surprising, therefore, to find great variety in mosque
architecture. Moreover, it would be wrong to represent West
African mosque architecture as consisting solely of mud
structures. Since the 1960s, mosque construction has boomed in
many parts of the world. The experience of European colonialism
brought new political systems as well as a new vocabulary of
building methods. The introduction of cement was to transform
traditional construction techniques considerably. In addition, the
revolution of the transport system also contributed to the
infiltration of new styles from North Africa and the Middle East
as well as from Brazil.
Indeed,
the phenomenon of repatriated slaves from Brazil to the Bight of
Benin at the beginning of the 19th century, gave rise to so-called
Afro-Brazilian architecture. Repercussions of this eclectic
architecture that mixes Christian baroque styles with Islamic
motifs can be found as far afield as Senegal.
New
construction materials also mean new styles. The use of square
minaret towers, domes, and other decorative devices such as
crenellations, arcades, and stained glass are now commonplace in
West Africa. Yet the incorporation of these imported elements is
far from being a colonizing process; rather, it is a case of
marking the spiritual link with the founder of a particular tariqah’s
motherland. These are, therefore, architectural quotations that
have not been imposed. In the case of the Great Mosque of Dakar,
by contrast, the building was a gift from King Hassan II of
Morocco, and was built with Moroccan traditional materials and
mostly by Moroccan craftsmen.
Modernization
has mainly affected the coastal and most urbanized areas. Indeed,
the Futa Toro region in Senegal, or the spiritual capital of the
Mourids, Touba, illustrate the phenomenon of economic migration,
which results in mosques being rebuilt in cement by the returnees,
or by the money they send home. The inevitable result is that the
original style is entirely transformed to conform to the minaret
and dome standard encountered elsewhere in the Muslim world, and
the local knowledge of mosque building is thus eroded.
Internationalization:
A New Form of Colonization?
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The dome-like mihrab tower of the Mosque of Ba Sounnou Sacko in the town of Segou Sikoro is pierced with toron stakes like the old mosque of Bamako, which is no longer extant.
Contemporary
mosques are often more innovative in their designs, breaking the
mold of established architectural traditions and gleaning
inspiration from further afield—the Gulf States and Madinah in
Saudi Arabia. As these countries are often the patrons of such
mosques, it is not surprising that their style is more Middle
Eastern than African. This trend is not restricted to Africa;
rather it is a global phenomenon, stressing the victory of the
international mosque over the variety of local traditions and
techniques that have mirrored, for centuries, different
expressions of Islamic culture. This is not to say that
traditional mosques will entirely die out and be replaced by
rather anonymous concrete structures. In many regions, the
expertise of the masons is still very much alive. Many buildings
in Djenné, for instance, are currently being restored under the
sponsorship of European funds.
Perhaps
the time will come when Muslims relearn to appreciate the roots of
their architectural traditions—intrinsic parts of Islamic
culture—in order to reassociate the link between built form and
the environment, evident in the practice of architecture in West
Africa.
**Kafia
Cantone holds an
MA in African Studies from the School of Oriental and African
Studies (SOAS), London, and is currently working on a PhD on West
African mosques. You can reach her at bridge@islamonline.net.
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