Masjid al-Qiblaṫayn (Arabic: مَـسْـجِـد الْـقِـبْـلَـتَـيْـن), also known as Labo-qibla mosque is a mosque in Zeila, situated in the northwestern Awdal region of Somalia. It is a historic Islamic structure located in the ancient port town of Zeila (also spelled Saylac) in the Awdal region of northwestern Somalia. The edifice, now largely in a ruinous condition, is characterised by its distinctive dual mihrabs (prayer niches), one oriented north toward Mecca and the other northwest toward Jerusalem, which reflect early transitions in qibla (direction of prayer) practices in Islam.
The mosque’s nomenclature and architectural form attest to its significance in the region’s early Islamic history and maritime cultural exchanges, and local traditions associate its foundation with the early spread of Islam along the East African coast in the medieval period. Although precise dating is debated, it is regarded as among the oldest mosques in Africa and is an important archaeological and religious heritage site that embodies the longstanding presence of Muslim worship and community life in the Horn of Africa. The site also contains the tomb of a local religious figure, Sheikh Babu Dena, further underscoring its role as a locus of spiritual and communal identity.
Though now mostly in ruins, the edifice features two mihrabs: one oriented to the north toward Mecca, and the other oriented to the northwest toward Jerusalem. The mosque, which translates to "Mosque of the two Qiblahs", probably dates its construction to the 7th century CE, shortly after the Abyssinian Hijrah (هِـجْـرَة) of Muslims to what was the Aksumite Kingdom in Abyssinia.
circa 870–750 BCE
If it's true that this dates from the 600s, then it could be the oldest standing mosque in the country by at least a few centuries. It's also an international rarity as an ancient double mihrab. Only few of the features of the old mosque remain standing including an arch on the right with the 2 square windows and the columns with the rosettes intact and a bent minaret. Another mosque, also known as the Masjid Qiblatayn, is located in the city of Medina.
circa 870–750 BCE
The construction of this Mosque is deeply tied to the History of Islam in Somalia. In Zeila, a Dir city, the mosque Masjid al-Qiblatayn is known as the site of where early companions of the Prophet, and the local Somalis, established a mosque shortly after the first Migration to Abyssinian. By the 7th century, a large-scale conversion to Islam was taking place in Somalia, first spread by the Dir clan family, from their construction of this mosque, to the rest of the nation afterwards.
circa 870–750 BCE
Islam in the Sub-saharan Africa
Zeila existed before the Islam spread in Sub-saharan African. The two Mehrab (Qiblatayn) Mosque is the evidence of these argument, because Qiblatayn’s one direction faced Mecca and one facing Jerusalem and early Muslims praying toward Jerusalem and some historians claim that Prophet Muhammed’s family (reference to the migrants) may have travelled through Saylac to Aksum in the mid 7th century CE.
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The Madain Project is an online archive of Abrahamic History and Archaeology.
Abrahamic History & Archaeology is the study of history and archaeology with respect to the three Abrahamic Faiths without considering the religious and theological aspects. The goal of Abrahamic History is to understand how and why the religious doctrines and behaviours have evlovled and changed over time. Searching for patterns in the evolution of significant cultural events such as the development of farming, the emergence of cities, or the collapse of major civilizations for clues of why and how these have influenced the three major Abrahamic religions.
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