Panel
2. From Oceanic Crossroads: Empires, Networks and Histories
Some of the Malabar mosques are among the oldest mosques in South Asia. Their construction appears to be connected to the first merchant communities settled in the region because of trade, who had converted to Islam and put down roots over the course of the following centuries. At the same time, these structures differ considerably from those found in other areas of South Asia and generally display unique formal elements. They seem to be the result of a remarkable combination of artistic vocabularies apparently borrowed from other Muslim regions and fused with elements drawn from local and Southeast Asian vernacular and temple architecture. The Indian Ocean trade network that brought Islam to these shores also contributed to defining the identity of the first Islamic communities, which seems to be reflected in architectural choices.
Nevertheless, the mosques’ originality and historical value is today jeopardised by increasing demolition and reconstruction work. The change in artistic vocabulary that is remodelling architectural complexes and structures in the region, is probably attributable to an anxiety to link the origins and identity of the communities of Malabar to the heart of the Islamic lands. Modern communities, seem to respond to the need to redefine and consolidate the construction of their own religious identity, in some way trying to contrast the dimension of a peripheral region and a peripheral Islam. The paper aims to address the tensions between structure and agency by analysing the transformation of architectural vocabularies, recognising its efficacy in narrating the communities identity.
Sara Mondini
University of Gent, Belgium