The first mosque in Islamic history was built following the Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) migration to Medina. Constructed under the personal leadership and supervision of the Prophet, this mosque served as both a place of worship for the early Muslims and a communal space for other activities and gatherings. The believers organized the city and their lives around this mosque. From that time onward, the mosque has played a vital role: on the one hand, to remember Allah and worship Him, and on the other, to guide the community’s educational, social, cultural, national, and spiritual life. In tandem with the expansion and development of the Islamic world, mosques evolved into complexes—incorporating later additions such as domes, minarets, ornamentation, madrasas, soup kitchens, lodging, commercial units, and sanitation facilities—and formed the foundation of a great civilization.

The mosque construction that began during the Umayyad and Seljuk periods reached its peak under Ottoman rule. Across the lands it ruled in the east, north, west, and south, the Ottoman Empire laid the foundation for a magnificent civilization in the Islamic world by constructing mosques in the most central locations of cities—primarily through the sultan and the royal family, as well as through philanthropists and endowments. Human history, the public conscience, and these structures—some of which still stand—are the greatest witnesses to this era. The people of Anatolia, who embraced mosque construction as an act of worship and devotion, continued this tradition with even greater enthusiasm during the Republican era. As a result of these efforts, the number of mosques in our country has surpassed the 100,000 mark. Furthermore, under the leadership of the Presidency of Religious Affairs and the Turkish Religious Foundation, with the contributions of our people, mosques—each a masterpiece—have been built and opened for worship in important centers abroad, such as Tokyo, Washington, Cologne, Ashgabat, Bishkek, Baku, Tirana, Moscow, and Nicosia.