Rabbana As part of a khätmä, held in summer 2009 in Yantaq village, Märyäm recites du’a drawn from various surah, all beginning Rabbana! (Our Lord!) A common theme of hellfire and the Day of Judgment links the texts. Some of the assembled… Read More ›
A solo hikmät prayer, sung by Subinur to conclude a khätmä gathering held in Yantaq village in August 2009: A solo hikmät prayer, sung by Subinur Äy – ng – ng – äy Of those who enter this life, none… Read More ›
Islamic extremism, song and dance, and sonic territoriality Rachel Harris (SOAS, University of London) In her 2013 book, ‘Taming Tibet’, Emily Yeh uses the term ‘territorialisation’ to describe the process of naturalising the Tibetans’ association with the Chinese state, and… Read More ›
Recorded by Guangtian Ha. Kunming, Yunnan Province. August 2015. The rapid development of the Internet in China has made a large amount of Islamic recitations, both of the Holy Qur’an and of numerous praises of the Prophet, readily available to… Read More ›
Timothy Grose Assistant Professor of China Studies Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology The mosque in Xiahe, Gansu Province (locally referred to as the Xiahe 夏河 or Labrang 拉卜楞 Mosque), sits on the residential “outskirts” (Ch. tawa 塔哇; Tib. mtha’ba) of Labrang Monastery,… Read More ›
There are seven main mosques in Shanghai. As Shanghai has expanded many have been moved, on multiple occasions. The oldest, at over 600 years old, is far out in the south-western suburban district of Songjiang (松江区) and is the exception… Read More ›
Downtown, two mosques at the heart of the ‘old city’ are significant for their location and for their historical function (especially during the 1920s, ‘30s and ‘40s) as a conduit for Muslims from inland Chinese provinces who chose to set… Read More ›
Music of the Ordam Shrine Festival Professor Rahile Dawut (Xinjiang University) Aynur Kadir (Simon Fraser University, Canada) Rahile Dawut has been conducting ethnographic fieldwork around the Xinjiang for over 20 years, and is the world’s leading expert on Uyghur shrine… Read More ›
Urumchi Soundwalks Conducting a series of soundwalks is a good way to gauge the range and diversity of the different mosques in Urumchi and to discern, en route, the ‘keynotes,’ ‘signals’ and ‘soundmarks’ of the surrounding city. Experimenting with phone-based… Read More ›
A Young Imam Starts the Late Afternoon Prayers at Urumchi Aq Mesjit (White Mosque) The ‘White’ Mosque is well attended for the late afternoon service during the month of Ramadan, by a mostly Uyghur population. A young imam calls attendees… Read More ›