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137-599: The Grand Mosque was constructed between 1994 and 2007 and was inaugurated in December 2007. The building complex measures approximately 290 by 420 m (950 by 1,380 ft), covering an area of more than 12 hectares (30 acres), excluding exterior landscaping and vehicle parking. The main axis of the building is rotated about 12° south of true west, aligning it in the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca , Saudi Arabia . The project

274-500: A Bulgar ruler called Kuber led a group of largely Christians called Sermesianoi , who were his subjects, and they settled in the region of Pelagonia . They may have consisted of Bulgars, Byzantines, Slavs and even Germanic tribes. There is no more information of Kuber's life. Presian 's reign apparently coincides with the extension of Bulgarian control over the Slavic tribes in and around Macedonia. The Slavic tribes that settled in

411-626: A United Macedonia . With the Bled agreement , in 1947 Bulgaria formally confirmed the envisioned unification of the Macedonian region, but postponed this act until after the formation of the future Federation. It was the first time it accepted the existence of a separate Macedonian ethnicity and language. After the Tito–Stalin split the region of Pirin Macedonia remained part of Bulgaria and later

548-444: A kingdom (later, region ) named after the ancient Macedonians . Their name, Μακεδόνες ( Makedónes ), ultimately derives from the ancient Greek adjective μακεδνός ( makednós ), meaning 'tall' or 'taper', which shares the same root as the adjective μακρός ( makrós , 'long, tall, high') in ancient Greek. The name is believed to have originally meant either 'highlanders' or 'the tall ones', possibly descriptive of

685-690: A Christian origin that explicitly mentions the Kaaba, and confirms the idea that not just the Arabs but certain Christians as well, associated the site with Ibrahim in the seventh century. This is the second dateable text mentioning the Kaaba, first being some verses from the Quran . Saudi archeologist Mohammed Almaghthawi discovered some rock inscriptions mentioning the Masjid al-Haram and the Kaaba, dating back to

822-589: A Greek carpenter from the same ship, called Baqum (باقوم Pachomius). Financial constraints during this rebuilding caused Quraysh to exclude six cubits from the northern part of the Kaaba. This portion is what is currently known as Al-Hateem الحطيم or Hijr Ismail حجر اسماعيل. Muhammad's Isra' is said to have taken him from the Kaaba to the Masjid al-Aqsa and heavenwards from there. Muslims initially considered Jerusalem as their qibla, or prayer direction, and faced toward it while offering prayers; however, pilgrimage to

959-568: A bid to become the alliance's 30th member. On 30 July, the parliament of Macedonia approved plans to hold a non-binding referendum on changing the country's name , which took place on 30 September. Ninety-one percent of voters voted in favour with a 37% turnout, but the referendum was not carried because of a constitutional requirement for a 50% turnout. On 6 February 2019, the permanent representatives of NATO member states and Macedonian Foreign Affairs Minister Nikola Dimitrov, signed in Brussels

1096-417: A boycott, leaving the final decision with parliament to ratify the result. Parliament approved of the name change on 19 October, reaching the required two-thirds majority needed to enact constitutional changes. The vote to amend the constitution and change the name of the country passed on 11 January 2019 in favour of the amendment. The amendment entered into force on 12 February, following the ratification of

1233-480: A brief Norman occupation in the 1080s. In the early 13th century, a revived Bulgarian Empire gained control of the region. Plagued by political difficulties, the empire did not last, and the region came once again under Byzantine control in the early 14th century. In the 14th century, it became part of the Serbian Empire . Skopje became the capital of Tsar Stefan Dušan 's empire. Following Dušan's death,

1370-487: A broad range of languages, including Arabic, English, French, Italian, Spanish, German, and Korean. For two years running, it was voted the world's second favourite landmark by TripAdvisor . The Grand Mosque has been a significant destination for visiting foreign leaders during official state visits to the UAE . Notable visitors include, the then US Vice President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi . The mosque

1507-541: A different historical context and cultural heritage. In August 2017, what was then the Republic of Macedonia signed a friendship agreement with Bulgaria, aiming to end the "anti-Bulgarian ideology" in the country and to solve the historical issues between the two. Under the Prespa agreement , signed with Greece on 17 June 2018, the country agreed to change its name to the Republic of North Macedonia and stop public use of

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1644-787: A group of Muslims towards Mecca with the intention of performing the Umrah , but was prevented from doing so by the Quraysh. He secured a peace treaty with them, the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah , which allowed the Muslims to freely perform pilgrimage at the Kaaba from the following year. At the culmination of his mission, in 630 CE, after the allies of the Quraysh, the Banu Bakr, violated the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, Muhammad conquered Mecca . His first action

1781-576: A pair of ram's horns were recorded to be inside the Kaaba. The pair of ram's horns were said to have belonged to the ram sacrificed by Ibrahim in place of his son Ismail as held by Islamic tradition. During its history, the Black Stone at the Kaaba has been struck and smashed by a stone fired from a catapult , it has been smeared with excrement, stolen and ransomed by the Qarmatians and smashed into several fragments. al-Azraqi provides

1918-503: A region of central Albania and western North Macedonia with its capital at Manastir or present-day Bitola . Rumelia Eyalet was abolished in 1867 and that territory of Macedonia subsequently became part of vilayets of Manastir , Kosova and Selanik until the end of Ottoman rule in 1912. With the beginning of the Bulgarian National Revival in the 19th century, many of the reformers were from this region, including

2055-590: A reintroduction of anti-Bulgarian measures. Bulgarian teachers and clergy were expelled, Bulgarian language signs and books removed, and all Bulgarian organisations dissolved. Also after the Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine , the Strumica region was annexed to Serbian Macedonia in 1919. The Serbian government pursued a policy of forced Serbianisation in the region, which included systematic suppression of Bulgarian activists, altering family surnames, internal colonisation, exploiting workers, and intense propaganda. To aid

2192-482: A way of putting pressure on Greece as well as for the purposes of domestic identity-building. Statues of Alexander the Great and Philip of Macedon have been erected in several cities across the country. Additionally, many pieces of public infrastructure, such as airports, highways, and stadiums were renamed after Alexander and Philip. These actions were seen as deliberate provocations in neighbouring Greece, exacerbating

2329-660: A weak successor appeared, and power struggles between nobles divided the Balkans once again. These events coincided with the entry of the Ottoman Turks into Europe. The Kingdom of Prilep was one of the short-lived states that emerged from the collapse of the Serbian Empire in the 14th century, which was seized by the Ottomans at the end of the same century. Gradually, all of the central Balkans were conquered by

2466-470: Is considered to be the largest example of marble mosaic in the world.The exterior and interior are adorned with white marble, giving the mosque a serene and majestic appearance. The marble is inlaid with precious stones like lapis lazuli, red agate, amethyst, abalone shell, and mother of pearl. Marble used in the construction included: To compare, the King Faisal Mosque of Sharjah , formerly

2603-554: Is disputed whether Allah and Hubal were the same deity or different. According to a hypothesis by Uri Rubin and Christian Robin, Hubal was only venerated by Quraysh and the Kaaba was first dedicated to Allah, a supreme god of individuals belonging to different tribes, while the pantheon of the gods of Quraysh was installed in the Kaaba after they conquered Mecca a century before Muhammad's time. Imoti contends that there were numerous such Kaaba sanctuaries in Arabia at one time, but this

2740-489: Is integrated as part of the organic design. In total, three calligraphy styles — Naskhi , Thuluth and Kufic — are used throughout the mosque and were drafted by Mohammed Mandi Al Tamimi of the UAE, Farouk Haddad of Syria and Mohammed Allam of Jordan . Kaaba The Kaaba , sometimes referred to as al-Ka'ba al-Musharrafa , is a stone building at the center of Islam 's most important mosque and holiest site ,

2877-453: Is predominantly made from wool (originating from New Zealand and Iran). There are 2,268,000,000 knots within the carpet and it took approximately two years to complete. The Grand Mosque has seven imported chandeliers from the company Faustig in Munich, Germany that incorporate millions of Swarovski crystals . The largest chandelier is the second largest known chandelier inside a mosque,

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3014-532: The Encyclopedia of Islam , Wensinck identifies Mecca with a place called Macoraba mentioned by Ptolemy . G. E. von Grunebaum states: "Mecca is mentioned by Ptolemy. The name he gives it allows us to identify it as a South Arabian foundation created around a sanctuary." In Meccan Trade and the Rise of Islam , Patricia Crone argues that the identification of Macoraba with Mecca is false and that Macoraba

3151-605: The Blagoevgrad Province in southwestern Bulgaria. North Macedonia is a landlocked country that is geographically clearly defined by a central valley formed by the Vardar river and framed along its borders by mountain ranges. The terrain is mostly rugged, located between the Šar Mountains and Osogovo , which frame the valley of the Vardar river. Three large lakes— Lake Ohrid , Lake Prespa and Dojran Lake —lie on

3288-659: The Bulgarian Army . The Bulgarian authorities, under German pressure, were responsible for the round-up and deportation of over 7,000 Jews in Skopje and Bitola . Harsh rule by the occupying forces encouraged many Vardar Macedonians to support the Communist Partisan resistance movement of Josip Broz Tito after 1943, and the National Liberation War ensued. In Vardar Macedonia, after

3425-516: The Bulgarian coup d'état of 1944 , the Bulgarian troops, surrounded by German forces, fought their way back to the old borders of Bulgaria. Under the leadership of the new Bulgarian pro-Soviet government, four armies, 455,000 strong in total, were mobilised and reorganised. Most of them re-entered occupied Yugoslavia in early October 1944 and moved from Sofia to Niš , Skopje and Pristina with

3562-661: The Cyrillic script . After Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria , the Byzantines took control of East Bulgaria. Samuil was proclaimed Tsar of Bulgaria . He moved the capital to Skopje and then to Ohrid, which had been the cultural and military centre of southwestern Bulgaria since Boris I's rule. Samuil re-established Bulgarian power, but after several decades of conflicts, in 1014, the Byzantine Emperor Basil II defeated his armies, and within four years

3699-675: The Internal Thracian Revolutionary Organisation (ITRO). In the early years of the organisation, membership eligibility was exclusive to Bulgarians, but later it was extended to all inhabitants of European Turkey regardless of ethnicity or religion. The majority of its members were Macedonian Bulgarians . In 1903, IMRO organised the Ilinden–Preobrazhenie Uprising against the Ottomans , which after some initial successes, including

3836-512: The Jireček Line , Latin spread to some extent in Macedonia. Slavic tribes settled in the Balkan region including North Macedonia by the late 6th century AD. They were led by Pannonian Avars . The Slavs settled on places of earlier settlements and probably merged later with the local populations to form mixed Byzantine-Slavic communities. Historical records document that in c.  680

3973-632: The Kaaba seven times counterclockwise, known as Tawaf (Arabic: طواف , romanized:  tawaaf ), is a Fard (obligatory) rite for the completion of the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages. The area around the Kaaba where pilgrims walk is called the Mataaf. The Kaaba and the Mataaf are surrounded by pilgrims every day of the Islamic year , except the 9th of Dhu al-Hijjah , known as the Day of Arafah , on which

4110-605: The Kingdom of Macedonia in the fourth century BC. The Roman Republic conquered the region in the second century BC and made it part of its larger province of Macedonia . The area remained part of the Byzantine Empire , but was often raided and settled by Slavic tribes beginning in the sixth century of the Christian era. Following centuries of contention between the Bulgarian , Byzantine, and Serbian Empires , it

4247-611: The Kingdom of Yugoslavia , due to the implemented policy of Serbianisation of the local Slavic-speakers. The name "Macedonia" was adopted officially for the first time at the end of the Second World War by the new Socialist Republic of Macedonia , which became one of the six constituent countries of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia . After the breakup of Yugoslavia , this federal entity declared independence and changed its official name to

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4384-493: The Masjid al-Haram in Mecca , Saudi Arabia . It is considered by Muslims to be the Baytullah (Arabic: بَيْت ٱللَّٰه , lit.   'House of God') and is the qibla (Arabic: قِبْلَة , direction of prayer ) for Muslims around the world. The current structure was built after the original building was damaged by fire during the siege of Mecca by Umayyads in 683 CE . In early Islam , Muslims faced in

4521-530: The Miladinov brothers , Rajko Žinzifov , Joakim Krčovski , Kiril Pejčinoviḱ and others. The bishoprics of Skopje, Debar , Bitola , Ohrid , Veles , and Strumica voted to join the Bulgarian Exarchate after it was established in 1870. Several movements whose goals were the establishment of an autonomous Macedonia, which would encompass the entire region of Macedonia, began to arise in

4658-675: The Ohrid–Debar uprising against the Serbian rule. Within a few days the rebels captured the towns of Gostivar, Struga and Ohrid, expelling the Serbian troops. According to the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace report, a Serbian army of 100,000 regulars suppressed the uprising. Many were killed and tens of thousands refugees fled to Bulgaria and Albania. During the First World War , most of today's North Macedonia

4795-717: The Ottoman Empire and remained under its domination for five centuries as part of the province or Eyalet of Rumelia . The name Rumelia ( Turkish : Rumeli ) means "Land of the Romans" in Turkish, referring to the lands conquered by the Ottoman Turks from the Byzantine Empire. Over the centuries, Rumelia Eyalet was reduced in size through administrative reforms, until by the 19th century it consisted of

4932-684: The Paeonians allies of Troy . In the late 6th century BC, the Achaemenid Persians under Darius the Great conquered the Paeonians , incorporating what is today North Macedonia within their vast territories. Following the loss in the Second Persian invasion of Greece in 479 BC, the Persians eventually withdrew from their European territories, including from what is today North Macedonia. Philip II of Macedon absorbed

5069-520: The Republic of North Macedonia , is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe . It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the north. It constitutes approximately the northern third of the larger geographical region of Macedonia . Skopje , the capital and largest city, is home to a quarter of

5206-677: The Vardar Banovina of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO) promoted the concept of an Independent Macedonia in the interwar period . Its leaders—including Todor Alexandrov , Aleksandar Protogerov , and Ivan Mihailov —promoted independence of the Macedonian territory split between Serbia and Greece for the whole population, regardless of religion and ethnicity. The Bulgarian government of Alexander Malinov in 1918 offered to give Pirin Macedonia for that purpose after World War I , but

5343-663: The Vergina Sun . It retained the demonym "Macedonian", but clarified this as distinct from the Hellenistic Macedonian identity in northern Greece. The agreement included removal of irredentist material from textbooks and maps in both countries, and official UN recognition of the Slavic Macedonian language . It replaced the bilateral Interim Accord of 1995. The withdrawal of the Greek veto, along with

5480-601: The World Bank 's definitions and has undergone considerable economic reform since its independence in developing an open economy . It is a developing country , ranked 82nd on the Human Development Index ; and provides social security , a universal health care system, and free primary and secondary education to its citizens. The state's name derives from the Greek word Μακεδονία ( Makedonía ),

5617-537: The Yugoslav Wars of the early 1990s. A few very minor changes to its border with Yugoslavia were agreed upon to resolve problems with the demarcation line between the two countries. It was seriously destabilised by the Kosovo War in 1999, when an estimated 360,000 ethnic Albanian refugees from Kosovo took refuge in the country. They departed shortly after the war, and Albanian nationalists on both sides of

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5754-526: The Zurah pilgrimage site was the precursor to the Kaaba. Prior to Islam, the Kaaba was a holy site for the various Bedouin tribes throughout the Arabian Peninsula . Once every lunar year, Bedouin people would make a pilgrimage to Mecca. Setting aside any tribal feuds, they would worship their gods in the Kaaba and trade with each other in the city. Various sculptures and paintings were held inside

5891-464: The accession protocol of North Macedonia into NATO. The protocol was then ratified on 8 February by the Greek parliament, thus completing all the preconditions for putting into force the Prespa agreement. Subsequently, on 12 February the Macedonian government announced the formal activation of the constitutional amendments which effectively renamed the country as North Macedonia and informed accordingly

6028-593: The hatīm was a remnant of the foundations of the Abrahamic Kaaba, and that Muhammad himself had wished to rebuild it so as to include it. The Kaaba was bombarded with stones in the second siege of Mecca in 692 , in which the Umayyad army was led by al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf . The fall of the city and the death of 'Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr allowed the Umayyads under 'Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan to finally reunite all

6165-422: The people . According to linguist Robert S. P. Beekes , both terms are of pre-Greek substrate origin and cannot be explained in terms of Indo-European morphology. According to linguist Filip De Decker, Beekes's arguments are insufficiently supported. Apart from the theme of Macedonia , the name "Macedonia" was largely forgotten as a geographical denomination through the Byzantine and Ottoman eras but

6302-409: The "Republic of Macedonia" in 1991. Prior to June 2018, the use of the name "Macedonia" was disputed between Greece and the then-Republic of Macedonia . The Prespa agreement of June 2018 saw the country change its name to the "Republic of North Macedonia" eight months later. A non-binding national referendum on the matter passed with 90% approval but did not reach the required 50% turnout amidst

6439-403: The Black Stone in its place. According to Ishaq's biography, Muhammad's solution was to have all the clan elders raise the cornerstone on a cloak, after which Muhammad set the stone into its final place with his own hands. The timber for the reconstruction of the Kaaba was purchased by Quraysh from a Greek ship that had been wrecked on the Red Sea coast at Shu'aybah. The work was undertaken by

6576-460: The Bulgarian Army, representatives of the Serbian intelligentsia were deported or executed. According to Paul Mojzes the aim of the Bulgarian government was to create pure Bulgarian territories by denationalising the non-Bulgarian Slavic population of Macedonia. After the capitulation of Bulgaria and the end of the First World War, the area returned under Belgrade control as part of the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes and saw

6713-459: The Bulgarian Communist Party revised its view of the existence of a separate Macedonian nation and language. In December 1944, the Anti-fascist Assembly for the National Liberation of Macedonia (ASNOM) proclaimed the People's Republic of Macedonia as part of the People's Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. ASNOM remained an acting government until the end of the war. The Macedonian alphabet was codified by linguists of ASNOM, who based their alphabet on

6850-408: The Byzantines restored control over the Balkans (modern-day North Macedonia was included into a new province, called Bulgaria ). The rank of the autocephalous Bulgarian Patriarchate was lowered due to its subjugation to Constantinople and it was transformed into the Archbishopric of Ohrid . By the late 12th century, Byzantine decline saw the region contested by various political entities, including

6987-469: The Great Powers did not adopt this idea because Serbia and Greece opposed it. In 1924, the Communist International (Comintern) suggested that all Balkan communist parties adopt a platform of a " United Macedonia " but the suggestion was rejected by the Bulgarian and Greek communists. IMRO followed by starting an insurgent war in Vardar Macedonia, together with Macedonian Youth Secret Revolutionary Organization , which also conducted guerrilla attacks against

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7124-420: The Islamic possessions and end the long civil war. In 693 CE, 'Abd al-Malik had the remnants of al-Zubayr's Kaaba razed, and rebuilt it on the foundations set by the Quraysh. The Kaaba returned to the cube shape it had taken during Muhammad's time. Its basic shape and structure have not changed since then. During the Hajj of 930 CE, the Shi'ite Qarmatians attacked Mecca under Abu Tahir al-Jannabi , defiled

7261-489: The Islamic year AH  1439 (2017/2018  CE ). The literal meaning of the word Ka'bah ( Arabic : كعبة ) is cube . In the Qur'an, from the era of the life of Muhammad , the Kaaba is mentioned by the following names: According to historian Eduard Glaser , the name "Kaaba" may have been related to the southern Arabian or Ethiopian word " mikrab ", signifying a temple. Author Patricia Crone disputes this etymology. Historian Patricia Crone has cast doubt on

7398-436: The Kaaba on the day of the conquest, ordered all the pictures erased except that of Maryam: Shihab (said) that the Prophet (peace be upon him) entered the Kaaba on the day of the conquest, and in it was a picture of the angels (mala'ika), among others, and he saw a picture of Ibrahim and he said: "May Allah kill those representing him as a venerable old man casting arrows in divination (shaykhan yastaqsim bil-azlam)." Then he saw

7535-462: The Kaaba was considered a religious duty though its rites were not yet finalized. During the first half of Muhammad's time as a prophet while he was at Mecca, he and his followers were severely persecuted which eventually led to their migration to Medina in 622 CE. In 624 CE, Muslims believe the direction of the qibla was changed from the Masjid al-Aqsa to the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, with the revelation of Surah 2 , verse 144. In 628 CE, Muhammad led

7672-427: The Kaaba was officially dedicated to Hubal , a Nabatean deity, and contained 360 idols which probably represented the days of the year. However, by the time of Muhammad's era, it seems that the Kaaba was venerated as the temple of Allah, the High God. Once a year, tribes from all around the Arabian Peninsula would converge on Mecca to perform the Hajj pilgrimage, which was a mark of the widespread conviction that Allah

7809-449: The Kaaba was the first masjid on Earth, and the second was Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem. Abu Dhar narrated: I said, "O Allah's Apostle! Which mosque was first built on the surface of the earth?" He said, "Al-Masjid-ul-Haram (in Mecca)." I said, "Which was built next?" He replied "The mosque of Al-Aqsa (in Jerusalem)." I said, "What was the period of construction between the two?" He said, "Forty years." He added, "Wherever (you may be, and)

7946-441: The Kaaba was thought to be at the center of the world, with the Gate of Heaven directly above it. The Kaaba marked the location where the sacred world intersected with the profane; the embedded Black Stone was a further symbol of this as a meteorite that had fallen from the sky and linked heaven and earth. According to Sarwar, about 400 years before the birth of Muhammad, a man named 'Amr bin Luhayy, who descended from Qahtan and

8083-433: The Kaaba, the floor is made of marble and limestone . The interior walls are clad with tiled, white marble halfway to the roof, with darker trimmings along the floor. The floor of the interior stands about 2 m (6 ft 7 in) above the ground area where tawaf is performed. The wall directly adjacent to the entrance of the Kaaba has six tablets inlaid with inscriptions, and there are several more tablets along

8220-486: The Kaaba. A statue of Hubal (the principal idol of Mecca) and statues of other pagan deities are known to have been placed in or around the Kaaba. Apart from the paintings of pagan idols decorating the walls, which were destroyed at the behest of Muhammad after his conquest of Mecca , there were also paintings of angels , of Ibrahim holding divination arrows , and of Isa ( Jesus ) and his mother Maryam ( Mary ), which Muhammad spared. Undefined decorations, money and

8357-412: The Mosque was renovated. In 1916, after Hussein bin Ali had launched the Great Arab Revolt , during the Battle of Mecca between Arab and Ottoman forces, the Ottoman troops bombarded the city and hit the Kaaba, setting fire to the protective veil. This incident was later exploited by the propaganda of the Great Arab Revolt to attempt to demonstrate the impiety of the Ottomans and the legitimacy of

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8494-468: The North, Kosovo (159 km or 99 mi) to the northwest, Bulgaria (148 km or 92 mi) to the east, Greece (228 km or 142 mi) to the south, and Albania (151 km or 94 mi) to the west. It is a transit way for shipment of goods from Greece, through the Balkans, towards Eastern, Western and Central Europe and through Bulgaria to the east. It is part of the larger region of Macedonia , which also includes Greek Macedonia and

8631-420: The Prespa agreement and the Protocol on the Accession of North Macedonia to NATO by the Greek Parliament . Despite the renaming, the country is unofficially referred to as "Macedonia" by most of its citizens and most local media outlets. North Macedonia geographically roughly corresponds to the ancient kingdom of Paeonia , which was located immediately north of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia . Paeonia

8768-443: The Serbian administrative and army officials there. In 1923 in Stip, a paramilitary organisation called Association against Bulgarian Bandits was formed by Serbian chetniks , IMRO renegades and Macedonian Federative Organization (MFO) members to oppose IMRO and MMTRO. On 9 October 1934, IMRO member Vlado Chernozemski assassinated Alexander I of Yugoslavia . The Macedonist ideas increased in Yugoslav Vardar Macedonia and among

8905-452: The U.A.E. The mosque is large enough to accommodate over 40,100 worshippers, while the main prayer hall can hold over 7,000. There are two smaller prayer halls, with a capacity of 1,500 each, one of which is the women's prayer hall. There are four minarets on the four corners of the courtyard which rise about 107 m (351 ft) in height. The courtyard , with its floral design, measures about 17,000 m (180,000 sq ft), and

9042-457: The United Nations and its member states. In March 2020, after the ratification process by all NATO members was completed, North Macedonia acceded to NATO , becoming the 30th member state. The same month, the leaders of the European Union formally gave approval to North Macedonia to begin talks to join the EU. On 17 November 2020, Bulgaria refused to approve the European Union's negotiation framework for North Macedonia, effectively blocking

9179-424: The Zamzam Well with the bodies of pilgrims and stole the Black Stone, taking it to the oasis in Eastern Arabia known as al-Aḥsāʾ , where it remained until the Abbasids ransomed it in 952 CE. After heavy rains and flooding in 1626, the walls of the Kaaba collapsed and the Mosque was damaged. The same year, during the reign of Ottoman Emperor Murad IV , the Kaaba was rebuilt with granite stones from Mecca, and

9316-431: The blocking of the further country's accession path. The EU's intention regarding the country's accession seems unclear, excluding desire to maintain its geopolitical influence here, countering the Chinese and Russian impact in the Western Balkans. On 25 September 2024, the EU announced the separation of Albania from North Macedonia on the EU accession path, due to the disputes between North Macedonia and Bulgaria. Following

9453-403: The border took up arms soon after in pursuit of autonomy or independence for the Albanian-populated areas of Macedonia. A conflict took place between the government and ethnic Albanian insurgents, mostly in the north and west of the country, between February and August 2001. The war ended with the intervention of a NATO ceasefire monitoring force. Under the terms of the Ohrid Agreement ,

9590-542: The ceiling. The ceiling itself is of a darker colour, similar in hue to the lower trimming. The Bāb ut-Tawbah —on the right wall (right of the entrance) opens to an enclosed staircase that leads to a hatch, which itself opens to the roof. Both the roof and ceiling (collectively dual-layered) are made of stainless steel -capped teak wood . North Macedonia in Europe  (dark grey)  –  [ Legend ] North Macedonia ( / ˌ m æ s ɪ ˈ d oʊ n i ə / MASS -ih- DOH -nee-ə ), officially

9727-423: The city of Mecca." The Asatir book was likely compiled in the 10th century CE, though Moses Gaster suggested in 1927 that it was written no later than the second half of the 3rd century BCE. The Qur'an contains several verses regarding the origin of the Kaaba. It states that the Kaaba was the first House of Worship for mankind, and that it was built by Ibrahim and Ismail on Allah's instructions: Verily,

9864-567: The claim that Mecca was a major historical trading outpost. Other scholars such as Glen Bowersock disagree and assert that it was. Crone later on disregarded some of her theories. She argues that Meccan trade relied on skins, hides, manufactured leather goods, clarified butter, Hijazi woollens, and camels. She suggests that most of these goods were destined for the Roman army, which is known to have required colossal quantities of leather and hides for its equipment. According to Islamic cosmology ,

10001-577: The cloth covering the structure, known as the Kiswah (Arabic: كسوة , romanized:  Kiswah , lit.   'Cloth'), is changed. However, the most significant increase in their numbers is during Ramadan and the Hajj , when millions of pilgrims gather for Tawaf. According to the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah , 6,791,100 external pilgrims arrived for the Umrah pilgrimage in

10138-675: The conservative VMRO-DPMNE party, stormed the Macedonian Parliament in response to the election of Talat Xhaferi, an ethnic Albanian and former National Liberation Army commander during the 2001 conflict, as the Speaker of the Assembly. Upon its coming to power in 2006, but especially since the country's non-invitation to NATO in 2008, the VMRO-DPMNE government pursued a policy of " Antiquisation " ("Antikvizatzija") as

10275-526: The country's population of 1.83 million. The majority of the residents are ethnic Macedonians , a South Slavic people . Albanians form a significant minority at around 25%, followed by Turks , Roma , Serbs , Bosniaks , Aromanians and a few other minorities. The region's history begins with the kingdom of Paeonia . In the late sixth century BC, the area was subjugated by the Persian Achaemenid Empire , then incorporated into

10412-421: The day-to-day operations and serves as a center of learning and discovery through its educational cultural activities and visitor programs. The library, located in the northeast minaret, serves the community with classic books and publications addressing a range of Islamic subjects: sciences , civilization , calligraphy , the arts , and coins, including some rare publications. The collection comprises material in

10549-478: The decision, the EU opened negotiations on the first chapters with Albania separately on October 15, 2024. North Macedonia has a total area of 25,436 km (9,821 sq mi). It lies between latitudes 40° and 43° N , and mostly between longitudes 20° and 23° E (a small area lies east of 23°). North Macedonia has some 748 km (465 mi) of boundaries, shared with Serbia (62 km or 39 mi) to

10686-645: The design and worked on developing it, Basem Barghouti, Moataz Al-Halabi, and Imad Malas. The mosque's architect Yusef Abdelki took inspiration from a number of sources: the Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi Mosque in Alexandria , designed by Mario Rossi in the 1920s; the Badshahi Mosque in Lahore , Pakistan ; and other references of Persian , Mughal , and Indo-Islamic architecture . The dome layout and floorplan of

10823-437: The dispute and further stalling the country's EU and NATO applications. The policy has also attracted criticism domestically, as well as from EU diplomats, and, following the Prespa agreement, it has been partly reversed after 2016 by the new SDSM government of North Macedonia. Moreover, per Prespa agreement both countries have acknowledged that their respective understanding of the terms "Macedonia" and "Macedonian" refers to

10960-593: The dispute was resolved with an agreement that the country should rename itself "Republic of North Macedonia". This renaming came into effect in early 2019. North Macedonia is also a member of NATO , the Council of Europe , the World Bank , OSCE , CEFTA , BSEC and the WTO . Since 2005, it has also been a candidate for joining the European Union . North Macedonia is an upper-middle-income country according to

11097-404: The first House (of worship) appointed for mankind was that at Bakkah (Makkah), full of blessing, and a guidance for mankind. Behold! We gave the site, to Ibrahim, of the (Sacred) House, (saying): "Associate not anything (in worship) with Me; and sanctify My House for those who compass it round, or stand up, or bow, or prostrate themselves (therein in prayer)." And remember Ibrahim and Ismail raised

11234-464: The first and second centuries of Islam. One of them reads as follows: God suffices and wrote Maysara bin Ibrahim Servant of the Kaaba (Khadim al-Kaaba). Juan Cole is of the opinion that the inscription is likely from the second century A.H. ( c.  718 –815 CE). During Muhammad's lifetime (570–632 CE), the Kaaba was considered a holy site by the local Arabs. Muhammad took part in

11371-645: The first is the Šar Mountains that continues to the West Vardar/Pelagonia group of mountains ( Baba Mountain , Nidže , Kožuf and Jakupica ), also known as the Dinaric range . The second range is the Osogovo – Belasica mountain chain, also known as the Rhodope range . The mountains belonging to the Šar Mountains and the West Vardar/Pelagonia range are younger and higher than the older mountains of

11508-506: The following narrative on the authority of his grandfather: I have heard that there was set up in al-Bayt (referring to the Kaaba) a picture ( Arabic : تمثال , romanized :  Timthal , lit.   'Depiction') of Maryam and 'Isa. ['Ata'] said: "Yes, there was set in it a picture of Maryam adorned ( muzawwaqan ); in her lap, her son Isa sat adorned." In her book Islam: A Short History , Karen Armstrong asserts that

11645-681: The forming of the Kruševo Republic , was crushed with much loss of life. The uprising and the forming of the Kruševo Republic are considered the cornerstone and precursors to the eventual establishment of the Macedonian state. The leaders of the Ilinden uprising are celebrated as national heroes in North Macedonia. The names of IMRO revolutionaries like Gotse Delchev , Pitu Guli , Dame Gruev and Yane Sandanski were included into

11782-639: The foundations of the House (With this prayer): "Our Lord! Accept (this service) from us: For Thou art the All-Hearing, the All-knowing." Ibn Kathir , in his famous exegesis ( tafsir ) of the Quran, mentions two interpretations among the Muslims on the origin of the Kaaba. One is that the temple was a place of worship for mala'ikah ( angels ) before the creation of man. Later, a house of worship

11919-470: The general direction of Jerusalem as the qibla in their prayers before changing the direction to face the Kaaba, believed by Muslims to be a result of a Quranic verse revelation to Muhammad . According to Islam, the Kaaba was rebuilt several times throughout history, most famously by Ibrahim and his son Ismail , when he returned to the valley of Mecca several years after leaving his wife Hajar ( Hagar ) and Ismail there upon Allah 's command. Circling

12056-590: The geography starts with a speculation about the origin of the Muslim sanctuary in Arabia: Regarding the K'bta (Kaaba) of Ibrahim, we have been unable to discover what it is except that, because the blessed Abraham grew rich in property and wanted to get away from the envy of the Canaanites, he chose to live in the distant and spacious parts of the desert. Since he lived in tents, he built that place for

12193-754: The government agreed to devolve greater political power and cultural recognition to the Albanian minority. The Albanian side agreed to abandon separatist demands and to recognise all Macedonian institutions fully. In addition, according to this accord, the NLA were to disarm and hand over their weapons to a NATO force. However the Macedonian security forces had two more armed confrontations with Albanian militant groups, in 2007 and 2015 respectively. Inter-ethnic tensions flared in Macedonia in 2012, with incidents of violence between ethnic Albanians and Macedonians. In April 2017, about 200 protesters - reportedly mostly from

12330-538: The implementation of this policy, some 50,000 Serbian army and gendarmerie were stationed in present-day North Macedonia. By 1940 about 280 Serbian colonies (comprising 4,200 families) were established as part of the government's internal colonisation program (initial plans envisaged 50,000 families settling in present-day North Macedonia). In 1929, the Kingdom was officially renamed the Kingdom of Yugoslavia , and divided into provinces called banovinas . South Serbia, including all of present-day North Macedonia, became

12467-465: The largest mosque in Sharjah and country, measures 10,000–12,000 m (110,000–130,000 sq ft). The carpet in the hall is considered by many to be the world's largest carpet made by Iran's Carpet Company and designed by Iranian artist Ali Khaliqi. It measures 5,627 m (60,570 sq ft), and was made by around 1,200-1,300 carpet knotters. The weight of this carpet is 35 ton and

12604-752: The late 19th century; the earliest of these was the Bulgarian Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Committees , later becoming Secret Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organization (SMARO). In 1905 it was renamed the Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organization (IMARO), and after World War I the organisation separated into the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO) and

12741-677: The left diaspora in Bulgaria during the interwar period. They were supported by the Comintern. In 1934, the Comintern issued a special resolution in which for the first time directions were provided for recognising the existence of a separate Macedonian nation and Macedonian language. During World War II, Yugoslavia was occupied by the Axis powers from 1941 to 1945. The Vardar Banovina was divided between Bulgaria and Italian-occupied Albania. Bulgarian Action Committees were established to prepare

12878-585: The lyrics of the national anthem of the state of North Macedonia " Denes nad Makedonija " ("Today over Macedonia"). The major national holiday of North Macedonia, the Republic Day , is celebrated on 2 August, Ilinden (St. Elijah day), the day of the Ilinden uprising. Following the two Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913 and the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire , most of its European-held territories were divided between Greece, Bulgaria and Serbia. Almost

13015-1002: The mosque was inspired by the Badshahi Mosque. Its archways are quintessentially Moorish , and its minarets classically Arab. In a joint-venture between Italian contractors Impregilo and Rizzani de Eccher , more than 3,000 workers and 38 sub-contracting companies were conscripted in its construction. The mosque was completed under a second contract by a Joint Venture between ACC and Six Construct (part of Belgian company BESIX Group ) between 2004 and 2007. Natural materials were chosen for much of its design and construction due to their long-lasting qualities, including marble stone, gold , semi-precious stones , crystals and ceramics . Artisans and materials came from many countries including Syria , especially from Damascus and Aleppo , and some other countries such as India , Italy , Germany , Turkey , Pakistan , Malaysia , Iran , China , United Kingdom , New Zealand , North Macedonia and

13152-529: The north, encompassing partially Dardania and the whole of Paeonia; most of the country's modern boundaries fell within the latter, with the city of Stobi as its capital. Roman expansion brought the Scupi area under Roman rule in the time of Domitian (81–96 AD), and it fell within the Province of Moesia . Whilst Greek remained the dominant language in the eastern part of the Roman empire, especially south of

13289-573: The official start of accession talks with this country. The explanation from the Bulgarian side was: no implementation of the friendship treaty from 2017, state-supported hate speech, minority claims, and an "ongoing nation-building process" based on historical negationism of the Bulgarian identity, culture and legacy in the broader region of Macedonia . The veto received condemnation by intellectuals from both states and criticism from international observers. Protests broke out in July 2022 , organized by

13426-453: The opposition parties, over the French proposal for the accession of North Macedonia to the EU . The accession talks for the accession of North Macedonia to the EU officially began in the same month, after the French proposal was passed by the Assembly of North Macedonia. The 2023 European Commission Progress Report has cited the unfulfilled constitutional changes, as the primary reasons for

13563-478: The other walls. Along the top corners of the walls runs a black cloth embroidered with gold Qur'anic verses. Caretakers anoint the marble cladding with the same scented oil used to anoint the Black Stone outside. Three pillars (some erroneously report two) stand inside the Kaaba, with a small altar or table set between one and the other two. Lamp -like objects (possible lanterns or crucible censers ) hang from

13700-529: The perpetually warring tribes, Mecca was declared a sanctuary where no violence was allowed within 30 km (20 mi) of the Kaaba. This combat-free zone allowed Mecca to thrive not only as a place of pilgrimage, but also as a trading center. In Samaritan literature, the Samaritan Book of the Secrets of Moses ( Asatir ) states that Ismail and his eldest son Nebaioth built the Kaaba as well as

13837-494: The phase of the moon. The 96 columns in the main prayer hall are clad with marble and inlaid with mother of pearl , one of the few places where one can see this craftsmanship. The 99 names (qualities or attributes) of God ( Allah ) are featured on the Qibla wall in traditional Kufic calligraphy, designed by the prominent UAE calligrapher — Mohammed Mandi Al Tamimi. The Qibla wall also features subtle fibre-optic lighting, which

13974-528: The phonetic alphabet of Vuk Stefanović Karadžić and the principles of Krste Petkov Misirkov . During the civil war in Greece (1946–1949), Macedonian communist insurgents supported the Greek communists. Many refugees fled to the Socialist Republic of Macedonia from there. The state removed "Socialist" from its name in 1991 when it peacefully seceded from Yugoslavia. The new republic became one of

14111-708: The picture of Maryam, so he put his hands on it and he said: "Erase what is in it [the Kaaba] in the way of pictures except the picture of Maryam." After the conquest, Muhammad restated the sanctity and holiness of Mecca, including its Great Mosque (Masjid al-Haram), in Islam. He performed the Hajj in 632 CE called the Hujjat ul-Wada' ("Farewell Pilgrimage") since Muhammad prophesied his impending death on this event. The Kaaba has been repaired and reconstructed many times. The structure

14248-496: The pilgrimage including doing naked circumambulation. A king named Tubba' is considered the first one to have a door be built for the Kaaba according to sayings recorded in Al-Azraqi 's Akhbar Makka . The interpretation that pre-Islamic Arabs once practiced Abrahamic religions is supported by some literary evidence, being the prevalence of Ishmael , whose God was that of Abraham , in pre-Islamic Arab culture. Writing in

14385-556: The prayer time becomes due, perform the prayer there, for the best thing is to do so (i.e. to offer the prayers in time)." Sahih al-Bukhari : Volume 4, Book 55, Hadith Number 585 While Abraham was building the Kaaba, an angel brought to him the Black Stone which he placed in the eastern corner of the structure. Another stone was the Maqam Ibrahim , the Station of Abraham, where Abraham stood for elevation while building

14522-458: The reconstruction of the Kaaba around 600 C.E., after its structure was weakened by a fire, and then damaged by a subsequent flood. Sources including Ibn Ishaq 's Sirat Rasūl Allāh , one of the biographies of Muhammad (as reconstructed and translated by Guillaume), as well as Al-Azraqi 's chronicle of Mecca, describe Muhammad settling a quarrel between the Meccan clans as to which clan should set

14659-669: The region for the new Bulgarian administration and army. The committees were mostly formed by former members of IMRO and Macedonian Youth Secret Revolutionary Organization (MYSRO, but some IMRO (United) former members also participated. As leader of the Vardar Macedonian communists, Metodi Shatorov ("Sharlo") switched from the Yugoslav Communist Party to the Bulgarian Communist Party and refused to start military action against

14796-681: The region of Macedonia converted to Christianity around the 9th century during the reign of Tsar Boris I of Bulgaria . The Ohrid Literary School became one of the two major cultural centres of the First Bulgarian Empire, along with the Preslav Literary School . Established in Ohrid in 886 by Saint Clement of Ohrid on the order of Boris I, the Ohrid Literary School was involved in the spreading of

14933-425: The regions of Upper Macedonia (Lynkestis and Pelagonia) and the southern part of Paeonia ( Deuriopus ) into the kingdom of Macedon in 356 BC. Philip's son Alexander the Great conquered the remainder of the region and incorporated it in his empire , reaching as far north as Scupi , but the city and the surrounding area remained part of Dardania . After the death of Alexander, Celtic armies began to bear down on

15070-400: The revolt as a holy war. The Kaaba is depicted on the reverse of 500 Saudi riyal and 2000 Iranian rial banknotes. The Kaaba is a cuboid -shaped structure made of stones . It is approximately 15 m (49 ft 3 in) high with sides measuring 12 m (39 ft 4 in) × 10.5 m (34 ft 5 in) wide (Hawting states 10 m (32 ft 10 in). Inside

15207-413: The signing the friendship agreement with Bulgaria, resulted in the European Union on 27 June approving the start of accession talks , which were expected to take place in 2019, under the condition that the Prespa deal was implemented. On 5 July, the Prespa agreement was ratified by the Macedonian parliament with 69 MPs voting in favour of it. On 12 July, NATO invited Macedonia to start accession talks in

15344-578: The six republics of the Yugoslav federation. Following the federation's renaming as the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1963, the People's Republic of Macedonia was likewise renamed the Socialist Republic of Macedonia. North Macedonia officially celebrates 8 September 1991 as Independence day ( Macedonian : Ден на независноста , Den na nezavisnosta ), with regard to the referendum endorsing independence from Yugoslavia . The anniversary of

15481-475: The source: Diodorus puts the temple too far north for it to have been Mecca. Christian church father Arnobius , in around 300 CE, referred to "an unshapen stone" worshiped in an unspecified location in Arabia. This short Nestorian (Christian origin) chronicle written no later than the 660s CE covers the history up to the Arab conquest and also gives an interesting note on Arabian geography. The section covering

15618-434: The southern borders, bisected by the frontiers with Albania and Greece. Ohrid is considered to be one of the oldest lakes and biotopes in the world. The region is seismically active and has been the site of destructive earthquakes in the past, most recently in 1963 when Skopje was heavily damaged by a major earthquake, killing over 1,000. North Macedonia also has scenic mountains. They belong to two different mountain ranges:

15755-461: The southern regions, threatening the kingdom of Macedon. In 310 BC, they attacked the area, but were defeated. The Romans established the province of Macedonia in 146 BC. By the time of Diocletian , the province had been subdivided between Macedonia Prima ("first Macedonia") on the south, encompassing most of the kingdom of Macedon, and Macedonia Salutaris (meaning "wholesome Macedonia", known also as Macedonia Secunda , "second Macedonia") on

15892-692: The start of the Ilinden Uprising ( St. Elijah 's Day) on 2 August is also widely celebrated on an official level as the Day of the Republic . Robert Badinter , as the head of the Arbitration Commission of the Peace Conference on Yugoslavia , recommended EC recognition in January 1992. On 15 January 1992, Bulgaria was the first country to recognise the independence of the republic. Macedonia remained at peace through

16029-698: The strategic task of blocking the German forces withdrawing from Greece. The Bulgarian army would reach the Alps in Austria, participating in the expulsion of the Germans to the west, through Yugoslavia and Hungary. Compelled by the Soviet Union with a view towards the creation of a large South Slav Federation , in 1946 the new Communist government, led by Georgi Dimitrov , agreed to give Bulgarian Macedonia to

16166-541: The structure. The Black Stone and the Maqam Ibrahim are believed by Muslims to be the only remnant of the original structure made by Abraham as the remaining structure had to be demolished and rebuilt several times over history for its maintenance. After the construction was complete, God enjoined the descendants of Ismail to perform an annual pilgrimage: the Hajj and the Qurban , sacrifice of cattle. The vicinity of

16303-468: The temple was also made a sanctuary where bloodshed and war were forbidden. According to Islamic tradition, over the millennia after Ismail's death, his progeny and the local tribes who settled around the Zamzam well gradually turned to polytheism and idolatry. Several idols were placed within the Kaaba representing deities of different aspects of nature and different tribes. Several rituals were adopted in

16440-602: The territory that was to become North Macedonia was annexed by Serbia conforming to the treaty of peace concluded at Bucharest. However, Strumica region was passed to Bulgaria. Following the partition, an anti-Bulgarian campaign was carried out in the areas under Serbian and Greek control. As many as 641 Bulgarian schools and 761 churches were closed by the Serbs, while Exarchist clergy and teachers were expelled. The use of all Macedonian dialects and standard Bulgarian were proscribed. IMRO, together with local Albanians, organised

16577-451: The third largest in the world, and has a 10 m (33 ft) diameter and a 15 m (49 ft) height. The pools along the arcades reflect the mosque's columns, which become illuminated at night. The unique lighting system was designed by lighting architects Speirs and Major Associates to reflect the phases of the moon. Beautiful bluish gray clouds are projected in lights onto the external walls and get brighter and darker according to

16714-701: The whole police structure, enforcing the Bulgarisation of the region. According to Robert Gerwarth , the Bulgarian denationalisation policy, including its paramilitary aspect, was almost identical in its intent and execution to the Serbian policy that preceded it. Bulgarian language was to be exclusively used, Serbian Cyrillic was forbidden, Serbian priests were arrested and deported, Serbian-sounding names had to be changed to Bulgarian ones, school teachers were brought from Bulgaria while Serbian books were taken from schools and libraries and publicly destroyed. Adult males were sent to labour camps or forced to join

16851-473: The worship of God and for the offering of sacrifices. It took its present name from what it had been, since the memory of the place was preserved with the generations of their race. Indeed, it was no new thing for the Arabs to worship there, but goes back to antiquity, to their early days, in that they show honor to the father of the head of their people. This is an early record from the Rashidun caliphate , of

16988-504: Was a town in southern Arabia in what was then known as Arabia Felix . A recent study has revisited the arguments for Macoraba and found them unsatisfactory. Based on an earlier report by Agatharchides of Cnidus , Diodorus Siculus mentions a temple along the Red Sea coast, "which is very holy and exceedingly revered by all Arabians". Edward Gibbon believed that this was the Kaaba. However, Ian D. Morris argues that Gibbon had misread

17125-518: Was again ruled by Bulgaria; and in 1945 it was established as a constituent state of communist Yugoslavia , which it remained until its peaceful secession in 1991 . The country became a member of the United Nations (UN) in 1993, but as a result of a dispute with Greece over the name "Macedonia" , it was admitted under the provisional description "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (abbreviated as "FYR Macedonia" or "FYROM"). In 2018,

17262-639: Was built on the location and was lost during the flood in Nuh ( Noah )'s time and was finally rebuilt by Ibrahim and Ismail as mentioned later in the Quran. Ibn Kathir regarded this tradition as weak and preferred instead the narration by Ali ibn Abi Talib that although several other temples might have preceded the Kaaba, it was the first Bayt Allah ('House of God'), dedicated solely to him, built by his instruction, and sanctified and blessed by him, as stated in Quran 22:26–29. A hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari states that

17399-507: Was built under the guidance and supervision of Sheikh Zayed, who was buried here after his death in 2004. It features 82 domes, more than 1,000 columns, 24-carat-gold gilded chandeliers and the world's largest hand-knotted carpet. The main prayer hall is dominated by one of the largest chandeliers. The mosque was designed under the management of the Syrian architect Youssef Abdelke, and three other architectural designers from Syria who completed

17536-567: Was inhabited by the Paeonians , whilst the northwest was inhabited by the Dardani and the southwest by tribes known historically as the Enchelae , Pelagones , and Lyncestae ; the latter two are generally regarded as Molossian tribes of the northwestern Greek group, whilst the former two are considered Illyrian . The headwaters of the Axios river are mentioned by Homer as the home of

17673-545: Was launched by the late president of the U.A.E., Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan , who wanted to establish a structure that would unite the cultural diversity of the Islamic world with the historical and modern values of architecture and art. In 2004, Sheikh Zayed died and was buried in the courtyard of the mosque. Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Center (SZGMC) offices are located in the west minarets . SZGMC manages

17810-566: Was part of the Bulgarian occupied zone of Serbia after the country was invaded by the Central Powers in the fall of 1915. The region was known as the "Military Inspection Area of Macedonia" and was administered by a Bulgarian military commander. A policy of Bulgarisation of the region and its population was immediately initiated, during the period the IMRO arose from a clandestine organisation to serve as gendarmerie, taking control of

17947-425: Was part of the Ottoman Empire from the mid-14th until the early 20th century, when, following the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913, the modern territory of North Macedonia came under Serbian rule. During the First World War , the territory was ruled by Bulgaria. After the end of the war, it returned to Serbian rule as part of the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes . During the Second World War , it

18084-411: Was revived by Bulgarian and Greek nationalist movements from the early 19th century onwards. It was revived only in middle of the century, with the rise of nationalism in the Ottoman Empire . In the early 20th century the region was already a national cause, contested among Bulgarian, Greek, and Serbian nationalists. During the interwar period the use of the name "Macedonia" was prohibited in

18221-444: Was severely damaged by a fire on 3 Rabi' I 64 AH (Sunday 31 October 683 CE), during the first siege of Mecca in 683 in the war between the Umayyads and 'Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr , an early Muslim who ruled Mecca for many years between the death of ʿAli and the consolidation of power by the Umayyads . 'Abdullah rebuilt it to include the hatīm . He did so on the basis of a tradition (found in several hadith collections ) that

18358-407: Was the king of Hijaz , placed an idol of Hubal on the roof of the Kaaba. This idol was one of the chief deities of the ruling Quraysh tribe. The idol was made of red agate and shaped like a human, but with the right hand broken off and replaced with a golden hand. When the idol was moved inside the Kaaba, it had seven arrows in front of it, which were used for divination . To maintain peace among

18495-487: Was the only one built of stone. The others also allegedly had counterparts of the Black Stone. There was a "Red Stone", in the Kaaba of the South Arabian city of Ghaiman; and the "White Stone" in the Kaaba of al-Abalat (near modern-day Tabala ). Grunebaum, in Classical Islam , points out that the experience of divinity of that period was often associated with the fetishism of stones, mountains, special rock formations, or "trees of strange growth." Armstrong further says that

18632-436: Was the same deity worshipped by monotheists. At this time, the Muslims would perform the Salat prayer facing Jerusalem, as instructed by Muhammad, and turning their backs on the pagan associations of the Kabah. Alfred Guillaume , in his translation of the Ibn Ishaq 's seerah , says that the Kaaba itself might be referred to in the feminine form. Circumambulation was often performed naked by men and almost naked by women. It

18769-514: Was to remove statues and images from the Kaaba . According to reports collected by Ibn Ishaq and al-Azraqi , Muhammad spared a painting of Mary and Jesus , and a fresco of Ibrahim. Narrated Abdullah: When the Prophet entered Mecca on the day of the conquest, there were 360 idols around the Kaaba. The Prophet started striking them with a stick he had in his hand and was saying, "Truth has come and Falsehood has vanished..." (Qur'an 17:81) Al-Azraqi further conveys how Muhammad, after he entered

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