Dictionary of islamic architecture

See also:
Bahrain, Oman, Qatar
Further reading:
A.Coles and J.Jackson, ‘A windtower house in Dubai’, 
Art
and Archaeology Research Papers,
1975.
W.Dostal, 
The Traditional Architecture of Ras al-Khaimah,
Dubai 1983.
S.Kay, ‘Richness of style in UAE mosques’, 
Arts and the
Islamic World,
3(4), 1985–6.
S.Kay and D.Zandi, 
Architectural Heritage of the Gulf,
Dubai 1991.
A.al-Tajir, ‘Traditional architecture of the UAE’, 
Arts and
the Islamic World
3(4): 68ff. , 1985–6.
United States of America (USA)
Islamic architecture in America can be divided into
three distinct types, buildings for Muslim Ameri-
cans, Orientalist buildings built by non-Muslims to
evoke the spirit of the Orient, and buildings in the
Spanish-American style which recalls the Mudéjar
architecture of Spain.
American cities with large Muslim populations
include New York, Chicago, Detroit and Los
Angeles, all of which have several mosques. The
architecture of these mosques generally reflects the
ethnic origin of the main Muslim group in the area,
thus there are Albanian mosques in the four cities
with large Albanian populations. In recent times
the influx of students from oil-rich countries into
colleges in the United States has led to a number of
mosques being built on campuses. One of the most
ambitious projects is the headquarters of the Islamic
Society of North America (ISNA) at Plain-fields,
Indiana, begun in 1975. Although not yet complete,
the centre will eventually include a mosque,
accommodation for 500 students, a refec-tory, a
library for 100,000 volumes and recreational
facilities. Another notable Islamic student centre is
that of the University of Arkansas at Johesboro
financed by a patron from Saudi Arabia. The main
building of the centre is a mosque with a small
courtyard and a square-shafted minaret. There is a
separate women’s section or gallery on the upper
floor which is reached by external and internal
staircases. The building is faced in dark and light
coloured brick and the façade is decorated with a
calligraphic brick frieze. Both the Arkansas and the
Indiana centres are undoubtedly modern buildings
which reflect traditional Islamic architecture. By
contrast the Dar al-Salam centre at Abiquiu in New
Mexico, designed by the Egyptian architect Hassan
Fathy, is built with traditional materials and
techniques. The complex consists of a mosque,
madrassa and several accommodation blocks, all
built out of mud brick known locally as adobe (from
the Arabic al-toub). The building is covered with
barrel vaults and domes and decorated with
crenellations and carved woodwork. As well as
Defensive tower, UAE. Note lower part of tower is filled with sand
(after Kay and Zandi)
United States of America (USA)

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being a religious centre Dar al-Salam will also
function as a centre for traditional architecture and
technology.
Orientalist architecture in the USA is primarily a
feature of the early twentieth century and is a product
of the incredible wealth of America combined with
cinema-inspired fantasy (e.g. 
The Thief
of Baghdad).
This can be seen in the numerous cinemas built in
the Moorish palace style with names like the
Alhambra. The most complete examples of this
Islamic fantasy architecture is the city of Opa-Locka
conceived as ‘the Baghdad of south Florida’. The
buildings have horseshoe-shaped windows,
minarets, domes and crenellations. The most
important building is the city hall, built as a fortified
citadel with thick crenellated enclosure walls. This
building is covered with five large domes and framed
by four minarets (three small cylindrical towers and
one huge octagonal tower). Other Islamic-style
buildings in the city include the railway station, the
archery club, the archaeological museum and the
Opa Locka hotel.
The discovery of the New World and the
expulsion of Muslims from Spain occurred in the
same year, 1492. The result was that a large number
of Muslims converted to Christianity and emigrated
to the New World where their skills were used in
the development of New Spain. Mudéjar (forced
Muslim converts to Christianity) style architecture
in America is found mostly in Mexico and Central
America, although it can also be seen in the south
and west of the USA in Texas, New Mexico and
California.