Albanian Mosque
Albanian Australian Islamic Society Mosque
Carlton Mosque
Albanian: Xhami shqiptare
Religion
AffiliationIslam
RiteSunni Islam
Ecclesiastical or organisational statusmosque
OwnershipAlbanian Australian Islamic Society (AAIS)
LeadershipPerparim Sulaj (Imam)
StatusActive
Location
Location765 Drummond Street, Carlton North 3054, Melbourne
StateVictoria
Country Australia
Geographic coordinates37°47′12″S 144°58′14″E / 37.786699°S 144.970629°E / -37.786699; 144.970629
Architecture
Typemosque
Groundbreaking1967
Completed1969
Minaret(s)1
Website
aais.org.au

The Albanian Mosque[1] (Albanian: Xhami shqiptare), also known as the Albanian Australian Islamic Society Mosque[2] and Carlton Mosque,[3] is a mosque located in Carlton North,[4] a suburb of inner Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.[5][6][7] The building contains a minaret, and community facilities.[8] Associated with the Albanian Australian community,[3] the mosque is owned by and the centre of the Albanian Australian Islamic Society (AAIS) of Victoria, whose membership numbers some 1000 people.[1][9][4] Constructed began in the mid 1960s and was completed by 1969. The mosque is the oldest in Melbourne[10][11][8] and listed on the Victorian Heritage Register.[1]

History

Street sign at Drummond St entrance pointing to mosque and AAIS location

Following the Second World War, Muslim immigrants such as Albanians migrated to Victoria and found the state lacking Islamic infrastructure.[12] Makeshift mosques belonging to previous Melbourne Muslims existed decades before, often an adapted small room for religious services, but none were long lasting.[13]

In 1961, Muslim immigrants formed the Islamic Society of Victoria (ISV) to cater for their religious needs, with Albanians comprising its largest number of donors.[14] ISV members met in an adapted small house on 1008 Drummond Street, Carlton that served for a brief period as a mosque, becoming the centre for its Islamic Community of Carlton association and of Muslim life.[15][16] In 1963, the Albanian community established an organisation named the Albanian Australian Islamic Society (AAIS).[4]

By the late 1960s, Albanians in Melbourne travelled far to the Albanian mosque in Shepparton, Victoria for Bajram (Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha) celebrations and Muslim burial services (janaza).[17] Due to wide geographical distances between both Albanian communities, phone calls were expensive and telegrams sent only when a death occurred.[17] The situation motivated the Melbourne Albanian community, who by that time were to varying degrees financially established to build a mosque within the city.[17][5][18]

Original signage above entrance door noting mosque founding and name

Fundraising was successfully undertaken by AAIS with one of its founders, Memet Zyka, a community leader seeking and receiving donations from Muslim, Catholic and Orthodox members of the Albanian community.[19][20] AAIS purchased a property at 765 Drummond Street, Carlton.[21][4] It contained a Victorian period two story house, previously the home of past Victorian Police Commissioner Thomas O'Callaghan, and an adjacent large empty plot of land.[21][4] The initial design of the mosque building was square with brownish bricks.[8] Construction began in 1967[5][1] and finished in 1969.[10][8][6]

The mosque since its establishment, apart from being a centre for Albanian religious and cultural activities has also provided assistance to other communities.[8] For instance, Albanians in the 1970s shared their mosque with newly arriving Turkish immigrants, becoming at the time an important centre for the Turkish Australian community.[22] Other arrivals, such as students from Southeast Asian countries (Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia) received assistance from the mosque.[8] In the 1970s and 1980s, a Muslim Palestinian volunteer at the mosque, Omar Hallak taught the Quran and Arabic language.[23]

In 1981, Rexhep Idrizi, became the imam at the mosque.[24][25] A minaret was added to the mosque in 1994, after permission was granted by the High Court of Australia.[8] The building underwent major renovations in 2003 resulting in the addition of a number of new facilities, the mosque exterior painted white and the installation of red carpet, to reflect the colour of the Albanian flag.[8] Dr Bekim Hasani succeeded as imam of the mosque.[26][27]


In solidarity with victims of the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings, the mosque like others in Victoria held an open day (17 March) for the public to support or acquaint themselves with Islam and Muslims.[28]

Poster marking 50 year anniversary

AAIS held a celebratory outdoor festival at the mosque on 17 November 2019 marking its 50th anniversary, attended by some 3000-4000 people.[8][29][30] It included Muslim Australians of Albanian and other backgrounds, non Muslim Australians of other faiths, political representatives (local MP Adam Bandt and City of Yarra mayor Danae Bosler), heads of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and some police officers.[31][32][11] Simultaneously, an exhibition was held inside the mosque showcasing its history.[29] For the occasion and the first time in its history, the call to prayer (adhan) was performed by Amet Balla from the mosque minaret and heard in the surrounding area through its loudspeakers.[8]

During its 50-year history, the mosque congregation, including donors has become diverse and originating from various ethnicities.[8] Imam Hasani left the mosque in 2020 to become head of sharia affairs at the Islamic Coordinating Council of Victoria (ICCV).[27][33] The current imam is Perparim Sulaj.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Albanian Mosque - Carlton North, Heritage Overlay HO326". Victorian Heritage Database. Heritage Victoria. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  2. ^ Sutton, Candace (6 January 2020). "'Lit up the room': Family's tribute to murdered couple". The Coff Coast Advocate. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  3. ^ a b Dunn, K.M. (1992). "Space to Worship: Opposition to Mosque Developments in Australia". In Hawke, David (ed.). Proceedings, Inaugural Joint Conference, New Zealand Geographical Society and Institute of Australian Geographers, Auckland, January 1992, Volume One. University of Auckland. p. 168. "Certain mosques become associated with certain ethnic or national groups; such as the Lebanese or Lakemba Mosque (Sydney) or Albanians at the Carlton Mosque (Victoria). This is because Islamic groups or associations are usually formed along lines of ethnicity or nationality."
  4. ^ a b c d e "Melbourne's First Mosque Celebrates 50 Yrs with Street Festival!". Medianet. 17 October 2019. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  5. ^ a b c Haveric 2019, p. 85.
  6. ^ a b Donohoue Clyne, Irene (1997). "Seeking Education for Muslim Children in Australia". Muslim Education Quarterly. 14 (3): 6. "the Albanian Muslim community has established two mosques, a rural mosque at Shepparton opened in 1960 and another in an inner city area of Melbourne in 1969."
  7. ^ Johns, Anthony H.; Saeed, Abdullah (2002). "Muslims in Australia: The Building of a Community". In Haddad, Yvonne Yazbeck; Smith, Jane I. (eds.). Muslim Minorities in the West: Visible and Invisible. Rowman Altamira. p. 199. ISBN 9780759116726.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Renaldi, Erwin (19 November 2019). "Masjid Pertama di Melbourne Dibangun Oleh Pendatang Asal Albania" [Melbourne's First Mosque Was Built By Albanian Migrants] (in Indonesian). ABC. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  9. ^ Haveric 2017, pp. 29-30.
  10. ^ a b Saeed, Abdullah; Prentice, Patricia (2020). Living in Australia: A Guide for Muslims New to Australia (PDF). National Centre for Contemporary Islamic Studies - University of Melbourne. p. 11.
  11. ^ a b Kajtazi, Sani (23 November 2019). "Danae Bosler - City of Yarra Mayor at 50th Anniversary of the Albanian Mosque". SBS. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  12. ^ Haveric 2017, p. 21.
  13. ^ Haveric 2019, pp. 79, 81.
  14. ^ Haveric 2019, pp. 83-84.
  15. ^ Haveric 2017, p. 29.
  16. ^ Haveric 2019, p. 84.
  17. ^ a b c Haveric 2017, p. 25.
  18. ^ Jupp, James (2001). The Australian People: An Encyclopedia of the Nation, its People and their Origins. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 166. ISBN 9780521807890.
  19. ^ Haveric 2017, pp. 30, 34-35.
  20. ^ Haveric 2019, pp. 85-86.
  21. ^ a b Haveric, Dzavid (2019). Muslims making Australia home: Immigration and Community Building. Melbourne University Publishing. p. 86. ISBN 9780522875829.
  22. ^ Kilic, Nilgun (3 December 2019). "Albanian mosque celebrates 50th year". SBS. Retrieved 5 August 2020.[permanent dead link]
  23. ^ Haveric 2017, p. 28.
  24. ^ Haveric, Dzavid (2017). "Muslim Minorities in Victoria: Building Communities and Interfaith Relations from the 1950s to the 1980s". Australian Journal of Islamic Studies. 2 (3): 30.
  25. ^ Zwartz, Barney (27 August 2005). "Inside Muslim Melbourne". The Age. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  26. ^ Renaldi, Erwin; Weedon, Alan (12 May 2019). "Ramadan is a month of self-discipline but many Muslims remain divided over festivity excesses". ABC. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  27. ^ a b Waters, Carly (28 June 2020). "Melbourne Imam helps spread COVID message". Seven News. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  28. ^ Webb, Carolyn; Pearson, Erin; Preiss, Benjamin (17 March 2017). "'We stand against hate': Thousands attend mosque open day". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  29. ^ a b Şakar, Recep (17 November 2019). "Xhamia Shqiptare në Melburn shënon 50-vjetorin e themelimit" [The Albanian Mosque in Melbourne marks the 50th anniversary of its founding] (in Albanian). Anadolu Agency. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  30. ^ Kajtazi, Sani (23 November 2019). "50th Anniversary of the Albanian Mosque, Urim Balla head of the Albanian Australian Islamic Association". SBS. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  31. ^ Şakar, Recep (17 November 2019). "Xhamia Shqiptare në Melburn shënon 50-vjetorin e themelimit - Fotografi" [The Albanian Mosque in Melbourne marks the 50th anniversary of its founding - Photographs] (in Albanian). Anadolu Agency. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  32. ^ Kajtazi, Sani (23 November 2019). "Adam Bandt - Federal Member for Melbourne at 50th Anniversary of the Albanian Mosque". SBS. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  33. ^ Renaldi, Erwin (15 July 2017). "Melbourne Muslims feel 'unfairly tarnished' by reports linking them to rising COVID-19 cases". ABC. Retrieved 6 August 2020.

External links

Mosques in Australia
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