The Great Mosque of Kairouan
Kairouan, Tunisia
The Great Mosque of Kairouan in Tunisia, the oldest mosque in North Africa's Maghreb and one of Islam's most revered sanctuaries, its ninth-century form preserved within an eighth-century founding.
The Great Mosque of Kairouan was founded in 670 CE when Kairouan was established as the Muslim base in Ifriqiya, and its present form, the ninth-century reconstruction under the Aghlabids, made it the architectural model for mosques across the Maghreb and Andalusia. Its minaret, its vast prayer hall with its forest of columns, and its sundial are among the oldest functioning elements of any mosque in the Islamic west, and the mosque ranks in the tradition's own lists among the holiest sites of Islam, the fourth or fifth most sacred depending on the school.
Kairouan itself was a center of Islamic learning for centuries, its scholars drawing students from across the Muslim world, and the city's decline left the mosque as the principal surviving monument. Non-Muslim visitors may enter outside prayer times, with dress codes and local etiquette applying, and the mosque's continued religious life means visits are guests of the congregation.
Visiting
The mosque is in the medina of Kairouan, Tunisia; entry for non-Muslims is outside prayer times, and a modest dress code applies. Local guides are available; the Tunisian tourism authority carries the city's listings.
Photo: [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Great_Mosque_of_Kairouan), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Associated traditions & practices
Visitor stories