Islam in Ireland - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The documented history of Islam in Ireland dates to the 1950s. The number of Muslims in the Republic of Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

has increased since the 1990s. although most of those are not Irish nationals.

History

The organisational history of Islam in Ireland is complex, not least because of the immense variety of ethnic backgrounds of Irish Muslims. The first Islam

Islam

Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

ic Society in Ireland was established in 1959. It was formed by students studying in Ireland and was called the Dublin Islamic Society (later called the Islamic Foundation of Ireland). At that time there was no mosque

Mosque

A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...

in Dublin. The students used their homes and later rented halls for Jum'ah (Friday) and Eid

Eid ul-Fitr

Eid ul-Fitr, Eid al-Fitr, Id-ul-Fitr, or Id al-Fitr , often abbreviated to Eid, is a Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting . Eid is an Arabic word meaning "festivity," while Fiṭr means "breaking the fast"...

(Muslim holiday) prayers. In 1976 the first mosque and Islamic Centre in Ireland was opened in a four story building at 7 Harrington Street, Dublin 8. Among those who contributed to the project of the Mosque and Islamic Centre was the late King Faisal of Saudi Arabia

Faisal of Saudi Arabia

Faisal bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud was King of Saudi Arabia from 1964 to 1975. As king, he is credited with rescuing the country's finances and implementing a policy of modernization and reform, while his main foreign policy themes were pan-Islamic Nationalism, anti-Communism, and pro-Palestinian...

. In 1981 the Ministry of Endowment and Islamic Affairs of Kuwait

Kuwait

The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...

Demography and ethnic background

According to the 2006 Irish census, there are 32,539 Muslims living in the Republic of Ireland. representing a 69% increase over the figures for the 2002 census (19.147). In 1991, the number of Muslims was below 4000 (3.873). Islam is a minority religion in Ireland, behind Roman Catholicism and members of the Church of Ireland (incl. Protestants. The 2006 census recorded the number of Roman Catholics at 3,644,965, with 118,948 Church of Ireland, including Protestants. In terms of numbers, Islam in Ireland is relatively insignificant, and although Muslims can claim to be the third largest faith group in Ireland they also lagged significantly behind those who claimed to have no religion, at 175,252, and those who did not state a religion, at 66,750.

According to the 2001 census, there are 1,943 Muslims (1,164 males 779 females) in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

.

The Muslim community in Ireland is not just small but diverse and its numbers are not determined by the country's history to the same extent as the UK and France, where the majority of Muslims are immigrants or descendants of immigrants from former colonies, or Germany and Austria, where the majority of Muslims are Turkish migrant workers and their descendants. Just over 55 per cent of Muslims were either Asian or African nationals with 30.7 per cent having Irish nationality. The census also revealed that of the 31,779 Muslims resident in Ireland at the time of the census, 9,761 were Irish nationals, less than the number of Asians (10,649) although more than the 6,909 African nationals.

The Muslim immigration in the end of the 90s was caused by the Irish economic boom

Economy of the Republic of Ireland

The economy of Ireland has transformed in recent years from an agricultural focus to a modern knowledge economy, focusing on services and high-tech industries and dependent on trade, industry and investment. In terms of GDP per capita, Ireland is ranked as one of the wealthiest countries in the...

and asylum seekers from diverse Muslim countries, But because of the economic situation in Ireland many Muslims are returning to Muslim countries and the Islamic population is decreasing rapidly with many mosques closing.

Mosques and religious centres

The mosques and Islamic cultural centres in Ireland are:

the Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland
Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland
The Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland ' is an Islamiccomplex, including a mosque, in Clonskeagh, Dublin, Ireland. It is funded by the al-Maktoum Foundation of Dubai and has a Sunni orientation.-Formation:...

http://www.riai.ie/gallery.html?type=regional&year=1997&item=3 in Clonskeagh
Clonskeagh
Clonskeagh or Clonskea , is a southern suburb of Dublin, Ireland. The district straddles the River Dodder.-Location and access:Whilst located fully within the traditional County Dublin, Clonskeagh lies partially within the administrative area of Dublin City Council but mostly in that of Dun...

, Dublin. Imam: Hussein Halawa;
the Dublin Mosque
Dublin Mosque
Dublin Mosque is a mosque on the South Circular Road, Dublin in Ireland. The building was previously in use by the Presbyterian Church in Ireland...

(run by the Islamic Foundation of Ireland
Islamic Foundation of Ireland
The Islamic Foundation of Ireland was formed in 1959 by Muslim students in Ireland. The society established the first mosque in Ireland in 1976. It also helped to establish mosques in other cities in the country. The headquarters of the foundation is currently at the Dublin Mosque and Islamic...

http://www.islaminireland.com) on the South Circular Road
South Circular Road, Dublin
The South Circular Road is a road in Dublin, Ireland, one of the longest in the city. It runs from Kilmainham in the west of the city, through Rialto and Dolphin's Barn to Portobello, near the centre. As it runs mainly through residential areas, it is used by numerous bus routes.-History:Until the...

. Imam: Yayha Al Hussein;
Al-Mustafa Islamic Cultural Centre, Dublin 15 :Imam: Dr. Umar Al-Qadri http://www.islamiccentre.ie)
Muslim Association Forum, Ireland, situated at the Islamic Foundation of Ireland
Islamic Foundation of Ireland
The Islamic Foundation of Ireland was formed in 1959 by Muslim students in Ireland. The society established the first mosque in Ireland in 1976. It also helped to establish mosques in other cities in the country. The headquarters of the foundation is currently at the Dublin Mosque and Islamic...

http://www.islaminireland.com) in Dublin and established since 1999, and acquired Charity status in 2001, as a melting pot for Muslims from African background to teach and share Islamic knowledge.
Muslim Association of Ireland http://www.mai-ireland.ie Executive Director: Dr. Khaled Suliman
Belfast Islamic Centre http://www.belfastislamiccentre.org.uk, established in 1977.
Ahlul Bayt Islamic Centre
Ahlul Bayt Islamic Centre
‎The Ahlul Bayt Islamic Centre is the main Shia Islamic centre in Ireland and is situated at Milltown Bridge, Dublin. It is commonly known as ‘Hussainia’ and was previously the only Shia Muslim Islamic centre and mosque in the whole of Ireland....

http://homepage.tinet.ie/~ahlulbyteassociation (Shi'a Muslim), in Milltown, Dublin
Turkish Irish Educational and Cultural Society Fethullah Gulen
Fethullah Gülen
Muhammed Fethullah Gülen is a Turkish preacher, author, educator, and Sufi Muslim scholar living in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania . He is the founder and leader of the Gülen movement...

in Dublin, established in 2004
Mosque to be constructed in Galway
Galway
Galway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...

of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community
Ahmadiyya Muslim Community
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is the larger of two communities that arose from the Ahmadiyya movement founded in 1889 in India by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian . The original movement split into two factions soon after the death of the founder...

. This will be the first purpose built mosque in Galway.
Dawatul Haq Islamic Cultural Centre, Galway.

In 2003, the Islamic Cultural Centre and Foras na Gaeilge

Foras na Gaeilge

Foras na Gaeilge is the governing body of the Irish language, responsible for the promotion of the language throughout the island of Ireland. Its name can be translated into English as "The Irish Language Body", although the body has no official English-language name...

joined forces to translate the Koran into Irish

Irish language

Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...

for the first time.

In September 2006 an umbrella organization, the Irish Council of Imams

Irish Council of Imams

The Irish Council of Imams is an umbrella organization for all Islamic establishments in Ireland. Its formation was announced in a press-release on September 15, 2006. It represents all 35 imams in Ireland, of both the Sunni and Shia denominations...

, was established. It represents 14 imams in Ireland, of both the Sunni and Shia traditions. It is chaired by Imam Hussein Halawa (Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland) and its deputy chairman is Imam Yahya Al-Hussein (Islamic Foundation of Ireland). Imam Dr. Umar Al-Qadri (Al-Mustafa Islamic Cultural Centre Dublin 15), Imam Salem (Cork Mosque), Imam Khaled (Galway Mosque) and Imam Ismael Khotwal (Blackpits Mosque) are among its founding members.

Muslim Students in Universities

There are several student Islamic societies (ISOC) in universities all across Ireland especially in the major universities such as UCD, TCD, UCC, NUIG, ISSNI Queen's Belfast, RCSI, DCU, DIT, IT Tralee, IT Tallaght, IT Blanchardstown, DBS.

Yearly events include regular (weekly halaqas & linguistic classes), social (Food festivals), cultural (Eid), Charity drives (Charity week), physical (sports), Academic (speakers tours, lectures, courses, conferences & seminars) Intellectual (debates) and campaigns (Islam awareness & justice)

The Federation of Students Islamic societies (FOSIS) Ireland http://ireland.fosis.org.uk/, is an umbrella organisation was established in the early millennium (~2000) whose vision is to unite, serve and represent Muslim students. It also seeks to bring these students together, to share experiences and to offer help and advice where appropriate, uniting Muslim Students to positively contribute to Irish communities.

UCD ISOC http://www.ucdisoc.com/ http://ucdisoc.wordpress.com/ was established in 1991
TCD MSA
MSA
-Organisations and businesses:*Malaysia-Singapore Airlines, the former name for Singapore Airlines and Malaysia Airlines*Maritime Safety Administration, one of two PRC Coast Guards. The other being the China Coast Guard...

http://muslim.csc.tcdlife.ie/ was established in 1998
RCSI ISOC http://isoc.wordpress.com/ was established in 1999
DIT ISOC was established in 2004
IT Tralee was established in 2008
IT Blanchardstown was established in 2009

External links

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