Muezzin

For the 2009 Turkish film, see Müezzin.

Jean-Léon Gérôme. A Muezzin Calling from the Top of a Minaret the Faithful to Prayer (1879)

An Ottoman Muezzin proclaims the Adhan after their victory during the Siege of Esztergom (1543).

A muezzin (/muːˈɛzɪn/; Turkish: müezzin from Arabic: مؤذن‎, mu’aḏḏin), or muzim, is the person appointed at a mosque to lead, and recite, the call to prayer (adhan) for every event of prayer and worship in the mosque. The Muezzin's post is an important one, as he is the one responsible for each call to prayer. The community depends on him for accurate prayer schedules (salat, Turkish namaz).

Historically a muezzin would have recited the adhan or call to prayer by the minarets in order to be heard by those around the mosque. Now, mosques often have loudspeakers mounted on the top of the minaret and the muezzin will use a microphone allowing the call to prayer to be heard at great distances without climbing the minaret.

Description

The professional muezzin is chosen for his good character, voice and skills to serve at the mosque; he however is not considered a cleric, but in a position rather comparable to a Christian sexton. When calling to prayer, the muezzin faces the Qiblah, the direction of the Ka'bah in Mecca, while he recites the adhan. During the worship service, the muezzin in some mosques stands on a special platform (called the müezzin mahfili in Turkish), which is opposite the imam's minbar and gives responses during the imam's sermon, the khutbah.

The call of the muezzin is considered an art form, reflected in the melodious chanting of the adhan. In most modern mosques, electronic amplification aids the muezzin in his task.

History

The institution of the muezzin has existed since the time of Muhammad. The first muezzin was Bilal ibn Ribah, who walked the streets to call the believers to come to prayer. Although many of the customs associated with the muezzin remained undecided at the time of Muhammad's death, including which direction one should choose for the calling, where it should be performed, and the use of trumpets, flags or lamps, all of these are elements of the muezzin's role during the adhan.

After minarets became customary at mosques, the office of muezzin in cities was sometimes given to a blind man, who could not see down into the inner courtyards of the citizen's houses and thus could not violate privacy.

Notable muezzins

• Bilal ibn Ribah
• Rahim Moazzen Zadeh Ardabili
• Ali Ahmed Mulla

See also

• Salah
• Schulklopfer (the Jewish equivalent)
• Loudspeakers in mosques
• Mosque

References

• David A. King (1996). "On the Role of the Muezzin and the Muwaqqit in Medieval Islamic Society". Tradition, transmission, transformation: Proceedings of two conferences on pre-modern science held at the University of Oklahoma (Brill): 285–346. ISBN 90-04-10119-5. 

External links

• "Cairo to use computerised call to prayer after complaints over tuneless muezzin", 13 Aug 2010
• "Muslim preachers given call-to-prayer singing lessons", 11 May 2010