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'{{Short description|Mosque under construction in Tirana City, Tirana County, Albania}} '''The Namazgah Mosque''' (''[[Albanian language|Albanian:]] Xhamia e Namazgjasë; English: Mosque of Prayer'') or '''the Great Mosque of Tirana''' (''[[Albanian language|Albanian:]] Xhamia e Madhe e Tiranës'') '''is the biggest mosque in the Balkans.''' It opened on the 10th of October 2024 (10.10.2024) by the Turkish president (''[[Recep Tayyip Erdoğan]]'') and the Albanian prime-minister ''([[Edi Rama]]).'' A ceremony took place in the garden of the Mosque where [[Recep Tayyip Erdoğan|president Erdoğan]] and [[Edi Rama|prime-minister Rama]] held speaches. {{Infobox religious building | name = Namazgah mosque of Tirana | native_name = Xhamia e Namazgjase | native_name_lang = Albanian (shqip) | image = Great Mosque of Tirana (2020).jpg | image_upright = | alt = | caption = The Namazgjah mosque during construction | religious_affiliation = Islam | tradition = | sect = Sunni islam | district = Zona 1 | prefecture = | province = Tirana county | region = Tirana, Albania | deity = | rite = | festival = | organisational_status = | ownership = The Turkish government | governing_body = | leadership = | bhattaraka = | patron = | consecration_year = | functional_status = | religious_features_label = | religious_features = | location = Tirana city, Albania | locale = | municipality = Tirana | cercle = | state = | country = Albania | map_type = Albania | map_size = 220px | map_alt = | map_relief = yes | map_caption = | grid_name = | grid_position = | sector = | territory = | administration = | coordinates = {{Coord|41|19|32|N|19|49|27|E|type:landmark_region:AL|display=inline,title}} | coordinates_footnotes = | heritage_designation = | architect = | architecture_type = Sunni mosque | architecture_style = Classic Turkish Style(Ottoman) | founded_by = | creator = | funded_by = | general_contractor = | established = | groundbreaking = | year_completed = 2024 | construction_cost = | date_demolished = | facade_direction = | capacity = 5000 people inside | length = | width = | width_nave = | interior_area = | height_max = | dome_quantity = | dome_height_outer = | dome_height_inner = | dome_dia_outer = | dome_dia_inner = | minaret_quantity = | minaret_height = | spire_quantity = | spire_height = | site_area = | temple_quantity = | monument_quantity = | shrine_quantity = | inscriptions = | materials = | elevation_m = <!-- or |elevation_ft= --> | elevation_footnotes = | nrhp = | designated = | added = | refnum = | delisted1_date = | website = | module = <!-- for embedding other infobox templates --> | footnotes = }} == History == After the fall of communism in Albania, in 1991, [[Islam in Albania|Muslim Albanians]] often complained about being discriminated against. While two cathedrals ([[Eastern Orthodoxy|Eastern Orthodox]] and [[Catholic Church|Catholic]]) were built, as of 2016 Muslims in Albania still had no central mosque and had to pray in the streets. In 1992, then president, [[Sali Berisha]], laid the first stone of the [[mosque]] to be constructed near Namazgah square, close to the Albanian parliament. Construction was delayed after the speaker of parliament, [[Pjetër Arbnori]], contested the plans.<ref name="balkan">{{cite web |date=22 November 2010 |title=New Mosque Plan Catches Albania Muslims Off Guard |url=http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/new-mosque-proposal-surprises-albanian-muslims |access-date=January 4, 2015}}</ref> The decision of building the mosque was taken in 2010, by then mayor of Tirana, [[Edi Rama]]. Construction started in 2014. [[File:Great-Mosque-of-Tirana-2018.jpg|thumb|left|As seen from the top of the Pyramid of Tirana]] The building of the mosque is considered necessary because there are only eight mosques in the city, down from 28 in 1967. During [[Islamic holidays]], the [[Skanderbeg Square]] is filled with Muslim worshipers, because the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]]-era [[Et'hem Bey Mosque]], currently Tirana's principal mosque, has a capacity of only 60 persons. Rain makes [[Friday prayer|Friday sermons]] impossible.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://jetzt.sueddeutsche.de/texte/anzeigen/590804/Balancieren-in-Tirana|title=Balancieren in Tirana|author=Nadia Pantel|work=jetzt.de – [[Süddeutsche Zeitung]]|date=January 2, 2015|access-date=January 4, 2015}}</ref> The mosque will have four [[Minaret|minarets]], each 50 meters high, while the central [[dome]] will have a height of 30 meters. The first floor of the mosque will include a cultural center and other facilities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.albanianscreen.tv/pages/news_detail/61717/ENG|work=Albanian Screen TV|title=Namazgja mosque, Berisha: The denied right was made just|date=April 20, 2013|access-date=January 4, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150104210235/http://news.albanianscreen.tv/pages/news_detail/61717/ENG|archive-date=January 4, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> The mosque is being constructed on a 10,000-square-meter parcel of land near Albania's parliament building and will have the capacity for up to 5,000 people to pray at one time within the mosque.<ref name= Hurriyet >{{cite web|title=Turkey's mosque project in Albania on schedule, says engineer| date=March 2016 |url=http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkeys-mosque-project-in-albania-on-schedule-says-engineer--.aspx?pageID=238&nID=95880&NewsCatID=354|publisher=Hurriyet|access-date=17 March 2016}}</ref> The financing for the mosque's construction partly came from the main state-run Turkish Muslim organisation [[Presidency of Religious Affairs|Diyanet]].<ref name= Economist>{{cite journal|title= Mosqued objectives:Turkey is sponsoring Islam abroad to extend its prestige and power|url=https://www.economist.com/news/europe/21688926-turkey-sponsoring-islam-abroad-extend-its-prestige-and-power-mosqued-objectives/|journal=Economist|access-date=23 January 2016}}"</ref> In 2015, Turkish president [[Recep Tayyip Erdoğan]] visited [[Albania]] for the [[Cornerstone|inauguration]] ceremony of the mosque.<ref name= Economist/> ==See also== * [[Islam in Albania|Namazgah Mosque]] * [[Madrasa of Tirana]] == References == {{reflist}} == External links == {{commons category|Great Namazgâh Mosque of Tirana}} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20141218063526/http://tiranagrandmosque.com/ Official Website] (Albanian and English) {{Mosques in Albania}} {{Tirana}} [[Category:Proposed mosques]] [[Category:Mosques in Tirana]] [[Category:21st-century mosques]] [[Category:Albania–Turkey relations]] [[Category:Grand mosques|Tirana]] [[Category:Mosque buildings with domes]]'