Culture & Heritage

Jareesh, maqshush announced as Saudi Arabia’s national dishes

  The Saudi Culinary Arts Commission has announced the ‘National & Regional Dishes Narratives’ initiative – a national initiative which seeks to identify and celebrate local dishes in Saudi culture across various regions in the Kingdom. In addition to identifying a national dish, the initiative will also include a study of the dishes that best represent each region of the …

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TRADITIONAL CUSTOMS OF THE MEMONS OF SRI LANKA

The Memons of Sri Lanka like the Bohras are a highly cultured community of Indian origin. They are Sunni Muslims following the Hanafi school of Muslim Law who originated from Western India, especially from the Kathiawad Peninsula before making our beloved country their home. Their settlement here took place during the British colonial period when they arrived here as textile …

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Mosque Tour – AT KATTANKUDY’S AL AQSA MOSQUE

The Grand Mosque Tour held at Kattankudy’s Al Aqsa Mosque was a resounding success with around 500 visitors of other faiths participating in the event. The Mosque Tour organised by the Centre for Islamic Studies Harmony Center in association with the Trustees of Al Aqsa Mosque and local organisers involved a host of activities including a Guided Tour of the …

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Ali Haydar Pasha: The last Ottoman emir of Mecca By Yusuf Selman Inanc

  Ali Haydar was part of the Zawi Zayd clan within the Sharif dynasty that ruled over Mecca for centuries (Kronik Kitap) Arab aristocrat’s career saw him serve as an Ottoman lawmaker and the empire’s go-to man in the Hejaz region Ottoman sovereignty over the Muslim holy city of Mecca began in 1517 after the conquest of the Mamluk Empire under Sultan Selim …

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THE RAWUTTAR- A LITTLE KNOWN LOCAL MUSLIM COMMUNITY

There is said to have existed in certain areas like Matale, a little community of South Indian Muslims known as Rawuttar. These folk evidently formed a sizeable community in Matale until about the 1960s before gradually declining in numbers probably due to migration as well as intermarriage and assimilation into the Moorish fold. They are said to have been relatively …

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