Masjid Al-Abrar

Al-Abrar Mosque
مسجد الأبرار
Kūchu Paḷḷi (குச்சுப் பள்ளி)
Masjid Al-Abrar is located in Singapore
Masjid Al-Abrar
Location in Singapore
Religion
AffiliationSunni Islam
Location
Location192 Telok Ayer Street Singapore 068635
CountrySingapore
Coordinates1°16′49″N 103°50′50″E / 1.2802922°N 103.8473097°E / 1.2802922; 103.8473097
Architecture
TypeMosque
StyleIndo-Islamic architecture
FounderHadjee Puckery Mohamed Khatib bin Shaik Mydin
Established1827
Completed1910 (Reconstructed 2003)
Designated as NHL
Designated19 November 1974; 51 years ago (19 November 1974)
Reference no.10

The Al-Abrar Mosque (Malay: Masjid Al-Abrar; Jawi: مسجد الأبرار) is a historic mosque located along Telok Ayer Street in Chinatown, Singapore. It was built in 1827 by Indian Muslim immigrants and later gazetted as a national monument of Singapore in 1974. It is one of two Islamic heritage sites along Telok Ayer Street, the other being the Nagore Durgha.

Etymology

The mosque is known as Masjid Al-Abrar, with "Al-Abrar" being an Arabic word that refers to people of righteousness and piety, as well as being the plural form of the word "Barr" which refers to piety itself. In the Tamil language, the mosque is known as the Kūchu Paḷḷi, which literally means "hut mosque."

History

In 1827, Tamil immigrants from South India, known as the Chulias, built the Al-Abrar Mosque along Telok Ayer Street on land that was endowed under waqf by an Indian Muslim merchant named Hadjee Puckery Mohamed Khatib bin Shaik Mydin. The structure took the form of a wattle-and-daub hut and was later replaced by a brick mosque that was built between 1850 and 1855. It was one of two mosques in the area established by the Chulias, the other being the Jamae Mosque along South Bridge Road that was completed in the 1830s. After the independence of Singapore, both mosques fell under the purview of the Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS).

A religious celebration held inside the mosque.

The Al-Abrar Mosque was gazetted as the tenth national monument of Singapore on 19 November 1974. Haji Mohamed Yusoff, a secretary of the mosque's committee, rebuilt the mosque into a larger two-storey structure in 1986 that was able to accommodate nine hundred worshippers. Then in 1996, the mosque acquired a neighbouring two-storey shophouse which was converted into an extension of the main mosque building.

Architecture

The design of the building is based on Indo-Islamic architecture with two tall minarets at the front.

The building was built along a row of shophouses, and the frontage incorporated a five-foot way (1.524 m) that connects the walkway of the other shophouses.

Transportation

As is the case with the other national monuments along the same street, the Al-Abrar Mosque is within walking distance from the Telok Ayer MRT station on the Downtown Line.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Rashith, Rahmah (29 September 2016). "A spiritual refuge on a bustling street". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  2. ↑ Al-Ḥajjāj, Muslim. "Kitāb al-Ādāb" [The Book of Manners]. Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim (in Arabic). p. 2141 – via Wikisource.
  3. ↑ Ibn Kathir (2000). Tafsīr al-Qurʼān al-ʻAẓīm. Vol. 8 (Abridged ed.). Riyadh: Darussalam Publishers. pp. 350–355.
  4. 1 2 Arshad, Sapurah (12 July 1986). "Masjid Al-Abrar akan diperluas" [Al-Abrar Mosque will be expanded]. Berita Harian (in Malay). p. 3. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  5. 1 2 Keys, Peter (10 January 1982). "Classic in design, rich in history". The Straits Times. p. 10. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  6. ↑ Liu, Gretchen (1996). In Granite and Chunam: The National Monuments of Singapore. Singapore: Landmark Books. pp. 99–100. ISBN 9789813065031.
  7. 1 2 Lee, G.B. (2002). The Religious Monuments of Singapore: Faiths of Our Forefathers. Singapore: Landmark Books. pp. 87–88. ISBN 9789813065628.
  8. ↑ Ng, Kai (19 October 2023). "Al-Abrar Mosque". AsiaOne. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  9. ↑ "Al-Abrar Mosque at Telok Ayer Street, before 1984". National Library Board. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  10. ↑ "Key man behind mosque's growth". The Straits Times. 17 September 2000. p. 46. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  11. ↑ Ismail, Nizam (22 June 1996). "Masjid al-Abrar beli rumah kedai $2j" [Al-Abrar Mosque buys $2mil shophouse]. Berita Harian (in Malay). p. 2. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  12. 1 2 "Al-Abrar Mosque". Roots. National Heritage Board. Archived from the original on 11 August 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2026.