{{Short description|Mosque in Kobe, Hyōgo, Japan}} {{Use mdy dates|date=July 2025}} {{Infobox religious building | name = Kobe Mosque | native_name = 神戸モスク | native_name_lang = ja | image = Kobe mosque01 2816.jpg | image_upright = 1.4 | alt = | caption = | map_type = Japan Hyogo Prefecture | map_size = 250px | map_alt = | map_relief = yes | map_caption = | mapframe = yes | coordinates = {{Coord|34|41|46|N|135|11|16|E|type:landmark_region:JP|display=inline,title}} | coordinates_footnotes = | religious_affiliation = Islam | locale = | location = 2-25-14 Nakayamate Dori, Chuo-ku, Kōbe-shi, Hyōgo Prefecture | deity = | rite = | sect = | tradition = | festival = <!-- or | festivals = --> | cercle = | sector = | municipality = | district = | territory = | prefecture = | state = | province = | region = | country = | administration = | consecration_year = | organisational_status = Mosque<!-- or | organizational_status = --> | functional_status = Active | heritage_designation = | ownership = | governing_body = | leadership = | bhattaraka = | patron = | religious_features_label = | religious_features = | architect = Jan Josef Švagr | architecture_type = | architecture_style = Indo-Islamic | founded_by = | creator = | funded_by = | general_contractor = | established = | groundbreaking = | year_completed = 1935 | construction_cost = | date_demolished = <!-- or | date_destroyed = --> | facade_direction = | capacity = | length = | width = | width_nave = | interior_area = | height_max = | dome_quantity = | dome_height_outer = | dome_height_inner = | dome_dia_outer = | dome_dia_inner = | minaret_quantity = 2 | minaret_height = | spire_quantity = | spire_height = | site_area = | temple_quantity = | monument_quantity = | shrine_quantity = | inscriptions = | materials = | elevation_m = <!-- or | elevation_ft = --> | elevation_footnotes = | nrhp = | designated = | added = | refnum = | footnotes = | website = https://www.kobemosque.com/ }} The '''Kōbe Mosque''' ({{langx|ja|神戸モスク|Kōbe Mosuku}}), also known as the '''Kōbe Muslim Mosque''' ({{langx|ja|神戸ムスリムモスク|Kōbe Musurimu Mosuku}}, is a mosque located in Kōbe, in the Hyōgo Prefecture of Japan. Founded in October 1935, it is Japan's first mosque.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Penn, M |title=Islam in Japan |url=http://www.asiaquarterly.com/content/view/168/ |journal=Harvard Asia Quarterly |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070202212653/http://www.asiaquarterly.com/content/view/168/ |archive-date=2007-02-02 |volume=10 |number=1 |edition=Winter |date=2006 |access-date=February 26, 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ajar |first=Seno Budhi |date=2023-10-13 |title=The Impact of Historic Mosque Tourism Development on the Conservation of Historical Mosque Buildings in Japan and Indonesia |url=https://migrationletters.com/index.php/ml/article/view/4612 |journal=Migration Letters |language=en |volume=20 |issue=7 |pages=952–968 |doi=10.59670/ml.v20i7.4612 |doi-broken-date=12 July 2025 |issn=1741-8992}}</ref> Its construction was funded by donations collected by the Islamic Committee of Kōbe from 1928.{{efn|Aga Khan III was a major contributor. He facilitated a meeting between the then East Pakistan Prime Minister and the Emperor of Japan to discuss the building of a mosque in Japan. The Emperor offered land for the mosque's construction.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kobemosque.org/History%20English.htm |title=History |work=Kobe Mosque Official Website |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070120120052/http://www.kobemosque.org/History%20English.htm |archive-date=2007-01-20 |access-date=February 26, 2007 }}{{self-published-inline|date=July 2025}}</ref>}} The mosque was confiscated by the Imperial Japanese Navy in 1943, survived air raids in 1945, and withstood the Great Hanshin earthquake of 1995.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Gunardi |first1=Yudhi |last2=Barliana |first2=M. Syaom |date=2021-06-29 |title=Disaster Response Mosque: A Mosque as a Center for the Rescue of the Ummah |url=https://ejournal.upi.edu/index.php/JoDiE/article/view/35853 |journal=Journal of Development and Integrated Engineering |language=en |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=43–54 |doi=10.17509/jodie.v1i1.35853 |issn=2798-2165 |doi-access=free}}</ref> It is located in the Kitano-cho foreign district of Kobe, one of the city's best-known tourist areas which features many old western style buildings.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-11-16 |title=Japan’s first mosque in Kobe |url=https://en.abna24.com/news/792371/Japan-s-first-mosque-in-Kobe |access-date=2025-10-27 |website=ABNA English |language=en}}</ref>
The mosque was built in traditional Indo-Islamic style by the Czech architect Jan Josef Švagr (1885–1969), the architect of a number of Western religious buildings throughout Japan.
{{As of|2024}}, it was one of 113 mosques in Japan.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Japan home to a growing Muslim presence as it embraces change |url=https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14903765 |date= |access-date=2024-03-31 |website=The Asahi Shimbun |language=en}}</ref>
==History== <!-- Deleted image removed: thumb|Kobe Mosque, post-World War II bombings in 1945, remained resilient, embodying hope amid destruction. --> The Kobe Mosque's construction, initiated by the Islamic Committee of Kobe in 1928, overcame financial and logistical hurdles. However, it was confiscated by the Imperial Japanese Navy in 1943 during World War II but survived the 1945 air raids largely unscathed.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |date=2024-03-29 |title=Retro Japan: Mosque in Kobe serves as spiritual center, symbol of multicultural coexistence |url=https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20240329/p2a/00m/0et/021000c |access-date=2024-03-31 |work=Mainichi Daily News |language=en}}</ref> The mosque was damaged during the Great Hanshin earthquake of 1995 but did not completely collapse.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Kotani |first1=Hitomu |last2=Okai |first2=Hirofumi |last3=Tamura |first3=Mari |date=2023-12-01 |title=Activities and roles of mosques in Japan after the recent major earthquakes: A comprehensive study |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590061723000248 |journal=Progress in Disaster Science |volume=20 |article-number=100297 |doi=10.1016/j.pdisas.2023.100297 |bibcode=2023PrDS...2000297K |issn=2590-0617|hdl=2433/285721 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> Due to its endurance, it has also been called the "Miracle Mosque."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Alfarra |first=Jehan Alfarra |date=November 28, 2020 |title=Discover Kobe Mosque, Japan |url=https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20201128-discover-kobe-mosque-japan/}}</ref>
==Architecture== Constructed in 1935 by the Takenaka Corporation,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-04-24 |title=Islam in Japan: First Muslims and first mosque |url=https://www.amust.com.au/2023/04/islam-in-japan-first-muslims-and-first-mosque/ |access-date=2024-03-31 |website=AMUST |language=en-AU}}</ref> the mosque has a reinforced concrete structure. Its architectural style is a fusion of traditional Asian-Turkish influences<ref name=":0" /> and was designed by architect Jan Josef Švagr.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last1=Acri |first1=Andrea |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DIDRDwAAQBAJ&dq=the+Kobe+Mosque+japan+Jan+Josef+%C5%A0vagr%2C&pg=PA334 |title=Imagining Asia(s): Networks, Actors, Sites |last2=Ghani |first2=Kashshaf |last3=Jha |first3=Murari K. |last4=Mukherjee |first4=Sraman |date=2019-10-23 |publisher=ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute |isbn=978-981-4818-86-5 |language=en}}</ref>
Located at 2 Nakayamate Douri, Chuo-Ku, the mosque spans three levels above ground and one underground level.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kobe Mosque welcomes Ramadan: Embracing diversity in the month of reflection |url=https://www.arabnews.jp/en/features/article_117529/ |access-date=2025-10-13 |website=Arab News Japan |language=en}}</ref> Its roofing comprises a combination of flat roofs and domes with wooden structures and copper roofing. The walls are finished with exposed-aggregate.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Al Fozan |url=https://mosqpedia.org/en/mosque/802 |access-date=2024-03-31 |website=mosqpedia.org |archive-date=March 31, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240331234843/https://mosqpedia.org/en/mosque/802 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
== Gallery == <gallery> File:Kobe Mosque in 1936.jpg|An aerial view of the mosque in 1936, showcasing its early architectural grandeur and historical significance File:Kobe Kobe-Moschee Innen Gebetsraum 1.jpg|The prayer hall File:Svagr in Japan Unknown Date.jpg|Architect (Jan Josef Švagr; 7 September 1885 – 26 March 1969) of Kobe Mosque in Japan </gallery>
==See also== {{stack|{{portal|Islam|Japan}}}} *Islam in Japan *List of mosques in Japan
== Notes == {{noteslist}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category-inline}} * {{Official website|http://kobe-muslim-mosque.com/}}
{{Mosques in Japan}} {{Authority control}}
Category:1935 establishments in Japan Category:20th-century mosques in Japan Category:Buildings and structures in Kobe Category:mosque buildings with minarets in Japan Category:Mosques completed in 1935 Category:Mosques in Japan Category:Religious buildings and structures in Hyōgo Prefecture Category:Tourist attractions in Kobe