Al-Azhar Mosque
الجامع الأزهر
Al-Azhar at Cairo: founded by the Fatimids as the mosque of their da'wa, then turned by the vizier Ya'qub ibn Killis in 378 into a university teaching the sciences and letters — from a pulpit reserved for the Fatimid call into one of Egypt's foremost centres of learning beside the mosques of Amr, Ibn Tulun and al-Hakim.
At a glance
- Era
- The Buyid, Fatimid and Seljuk Era · The Crusades, Ayyubids and Mamluks
- Region
- Egypt & Nile
- Review
- Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it
In space
Map: Natural Earth, public domain · places and route from the graph
Overview
Al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo was founded by the Fatimids as a mosque for their mission. In 378 AH the vizier Yaqub ibn Killis turned it into a university where the sciences and literature were taught. 1
From mission to learning
The mosque was at first limited to hosting the Fatimid mission. It later became one of the most important centres of culture in Egypt, alongside the mosques of Amr, Ibn Tulun and al-Hakim. 1
What is not covered here
An additional source is needed for the year of founding, and for a second source for 378 AH.
Connections
- Located in
- Cairo
- Related to
- Fatimid Caliphate· يعقوب بن كلس
People and things also explored
The Dar al-Hikma of Cairo· The Fatimid saddle treasury· Da'i al-Du'at — the chief missionary· The battle of the Sudan between the two palaces· Sultan al-Zahir Jaqmaq· Sultan Qansuh al-Ghawri· الموفق ابن الخلال· الجامع الأزهر
Sources
- Tarikh al-Islam — Hasan Ibrahim Hasan, p.403
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “Al-Azhar Mosque”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/building/al-azhar/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-17.