The Gen Miskit () is a

Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

, located in the district of Dhadimagu, in

Fuvahmulah Fuvahmulah (Dhivehi language, Dhivehi: ފުވައްމުލައް) is an island (atoll) in the Maldives. It is under Maldives' administrative division of Gnaviyani Atoll, Gnaviyani (or Nyaviyani) Atoll. The island is the second southernmost admini ...

, on the Gnaviyani Atoll, in the

Maldives The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as the Maldive Islands, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in South Asia located in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is southwest of Sri Lanka and India, abou ...

. Built in and before 1378, it is one of the oldest mosques in the Maldives. The mosque is made of coral stone and was built straight after the conversion to Islam. The mosque is not facing towards the

Qibla The qibla () is the direction towards the Kaaba in the Great Mosque of Mecca, Sacred Mosque in Mecca, which is used by Muslims in various religious contexts, particularly the direction of prayer for the salah. In Islam, the Kaaba is believed to ...

Overview

The Gen Miskit is located in the district of Dhadimagu at the northern end of

. It's now a revered site for its historical significance to the island. It's the first mosque that the residents of the island did their

Friday prayer Friday prayer, or congregational prayer (), is the meeting together of Muslims for communal prayer and service at midday every Friday. In Islam, the day itself is called ''Yawm al-Jum'ah'' (shortened to ''Jum'ah''), which translated from Arabic me ...

and

Eid prayers Eid prayers, also referred to as Salat al-Eid (), are holy holiday prayers in the Islamic tradition. The literal translation of the word "Eid" in Arabic is "festival" or "feast" and is a time when Muslims congregate with family and the larger ...

. There are disputes whether Gemmiskiy is the oldest mosque in the Maldives and in Fuvahmulah, media reports and residents say that it is the oldest. However, in a

monograph A monograph is generally a long-form work on one (usually scholarly) subject, or one aspect of a subject, typically created by a single author or artist (or, sometimes, by two or more authors). Traditionally it is in written form and published a ...

written by H.C.P. Bell, Fuvahmulah had four mosques prior to Gen Miskit. It is really uncertain. There has been some concern about the extinction of the mosque due to lack of maintenance by the Fuvahmulah City Council.

Features

The mosque has a communal well, a rectangular ancient circular bath known as ‘''Genmiskiy Veyo''’ and a cemetery with enclosed shrines “''ziyaarat''” of revered religious figures.

Shrine

A place constructed with sandstone and protected by bricks. It is also said that the person who built the mosque, Addu's Meedhoo Abu Bakr Naib Kaleygefaanu, is buried at and Ah Naib Al-Hafiz Abubakr, potentially the first proselytizer of Islam in the island.

Veu

Gemmiskiy Veu or Veyo is a rectangulat bath that is adjacent to the Southeastern wall of the mosque that has waters going down into the waters. It shares similarities with the baths in

monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which m ...

in Pokna and

Anuradhapura Anuradhapura (, ; , ) is a major city located in the north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central Province, Sri Lanka, North Central Province and the capital of Anuradhapura District. The city lies north of the cur ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

Well

The well is crafted from sandstones and has unique stories about it. It is said by the residents of the island that the water tastes really sweet and each corner of the well has a unique taste.

Gallery

Shrine in Gen Miskit.jpg, The shrine, at the mosque Gen Miskit Veyo.jpg, Veyo, at the mosque Grave at Gen Miskit.jpg, An unmarked grave, at the mosque

Notes

References

{{Mosques in the Maldives 14th-century mosques in Asia Sunni mosques in the Maldives Sufi mosques