Sidi Arif Mosque
Encyclopedia
The Sidi Arif Mosque ' onMouseout='HidePop("95230")' href="/topics/Arabic_transliteration">transliterated
: Masjid al-Aarif) is one of the largest mosque
s in Sohag Governorate. It was built for the first time at the 14th century and was reconstructed several times; the last one was in 1968 and being renewed in 1998 for the last time. At the corners of the facade are two minarets, and the roof is crowned by a dome. Inside the five-naves mosque the bases of the piers and the walls were lined with red granite. The ceiling is painted ornamentally; in its middle is an elongated light dome. The southeastern half is lit by chandeliers. At the end there are the prayer niche (mihrab) with simple ornaments and to the right of it the wooden pulpit (minbar). A Mamluk
prince's cemetery is situated inside the mosque next to the cemetery of the famous Murad Bey
, who fled from Cairo after the Cairo Citadel
genocide in the beginning of Muhammad Ali of Egypt
era to settle down in Mamluk
-controlled area of Jirja (now Sohag).
The real name of the Arif bellah who the mosque was named after him is still mysterious to know because the term Arif
was used by Sufi authors like Abu Abd al–Rahman al–Sulami (d. 1021) to mean "a gnostic, mystic; a seeker of marifa (spiritual knowledge)", similar in meaning to the terms salik, zahid, faqir, etc.
The mosque is situated in the southern side of the city of Sohag near the main railway station and it is in the entrance of the famous old market(Souq) of Sohag, The Souk El-Qisareya .
celebrate the birth day Mulid of El-Arif, and come visit Sohag in large numbers to visit the cemetery of El-Arif inside the mosque.
Arabic transliteration
Different approaches and methods for the romanization of Arabic exist. They vary in the way that they address the inherent problems of rendering written and spoken Arabic in the Latin alphabet; they also use different symbols for Arabic phonemes that do not exist in English or other European...
: Masjid al-Aarif) is one of the largest 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...
s in Sohag Governorate. It was built for the first time at the 14th century and was reconstructed several times; the last one was in 1968 and being renewed in 1998 for the last time. At the corners of the facade are two minarets, and the roof is crowned by a dome. Inside the five-naves mosque the bases of the piers and the walls were lined with red granite. The ceiling is painted ornamentally; in its middle is an elongated light dome. The southeastern half is lit by chandeliers. At the end there are the prayer niche (mihrab) with simple ornaments and to the right of it the wooden pulpit (minbar). A Mamluk
Mamluk
A Mamluk was a soldier of slave origin, who were predominantly Cumans/Kipchaks The "mamluk phenomenon", as David Ayalon dubbed the creation of the specific warrior...
prince's cemetery is situated inside the mosque next to the cemetery of the famous Murad Bey
Murad Bey
Murad Bey was an Egyptian Mamluk chieftain , cavalry commander and joint ruler of Egypt with Ibrahim Bey. He was of Georgian origin having been born in Tbilisi....
, who fled from Cairo after the Cairo Citadel
Cairo Citadel
The Saladin Citadel of Cairo is a medieval Islamic fortification in Cairo, Egypt. The location, on Mokattam hill near the center of Cairo, was once famous for its fresh breeze and grand views of the city...
genocide in the beginning of Muhammad Ali of Egypt
Muhammad Ali of Egypt
Muhammad Ali Pasha al-Mas'ud ibn Agha was a commander in the Ottoman army, who became Wāli, and self-declared Khedive of Egypt and Sudan...
era to settle down in Mamluk
Mamluk
A Mamluk was a soldier of slave origin, who were predominantly Cumans/Kipchaks The "mamluk phenomenon", as David Ayalon dubbed the creation of the specific warrior...
-controlled area of Jirja (now Sohag).
The real name of the Arif bellah who the mosque was named after him is still mysterious to know because the term Arif
Arif
Arif is a common male given name in various Muslim countries, such as Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bosnia and Herzegovina, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan and Turkey.-Sufi philosophy:...
was used by Sufi authors like Abu Abd al–Rahman al–Sulami (d. 1021) to mean "a gnostic, mystic; a seeker of marifa (spiritual knowledge)", similar in meaning to the terms salik, zahid, faqir, etc.
The mosque is situated in the southern side of the city of Sohag near the main railway station and it is in the entrance of the famous old market(Souq) of Sohag, The Souk El-Qisareya .
Tourism
Every year the people of Sohag and also a big number of the people of Upper EgyptUpper Egypt
Upper Egypt is the strip of land, on both sides of the Nile valley, that extends from the cataract boundaries of modern-day Aswan north to the area between El-Ayait and Zawyet Dahshur . The northern section of Upper Egypt, between El-Ayait and Sohag is sometimes known as Middle Egypt...
celebrate the birth day Mulid of El-Arif, and come visit Sohag in large numbers to visit the cemetery of El-Arif inside the mosque.