Minaret

Minaret comes through French (minaret) from Turkish (minare), from the Arabic manarah meaning lighthouse or place of light, from the root n-w-r (light)[1]. The literal sense suggests a tower from which light or signal is given. In Islamic architecture the minaret is the tower historically used for the call to prayer (adhan) issued by the muezzin[2].

while often iconic, the minaret is historically and regionally variable in form and use.

Minarets historically served the practical function of providing an elevated position from which the muezzin could call the community to prayer five times daily. The call (adhan) is structured: a sequence of declarations including the testimony that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is the messenger of God, an invitation to prayer, and a call to success. Modern mosques often use amplified sound systems with the call broadcast from the minaret or from the mosque proper, with the human voice of the muezzin still preferred over recording in most traditions.

Minaret design varies enormously by region and period. Square towers (common in North Africa and Spain), cylindrical towers (common in Ottoman tradition), spiral minarets (most famously at Samarra), and other forms reflect distinct architectural traditions. The number of minarets at a mosque also varies; the Great Mosque of Mecca has nine, the Blue Mosque in Istanbul has six (unusual), and many mosques have one or two.

Minarets have become iconic markers of mosque presence on the urban landscape. In some contexts this visibility has been contested. Some European countries have debated or implemented restrictions on minaret construction, treating the visible minaret as a political symbol as much as a religious feature. These debates are themselves topics of religious studies and political science scholarship.

In some Muslim-majority countries, the call to prayer from minarets defines the rhythm of daily urban life. In Muslim-minority contexts, the call is often limited to inside the mosque to avoid neighbor objections.

Minaret studies has been a productive area in Islamic art and architecture. Jonathan Bloom's Minaret: Symbol of Islam offers a comprehensive study[2]. The political and cultural dimensions of minarets in contemporary contexts continue as topics of social science research.

• Minaret: Symbol of Islamby Jonathan M. Bloom
  book
• Islamic Architecture: Form, Function, and Meaningby Robert Hillenbrand
  book