Reimagining Women's Spaces in Mosques: Creating Women Friendly Worship Environment in Qatari Neighborhoods

Abstract

The design of women's prayer spaces in mosques has evolved throughout Islamic history, creating a significant point of contention among architectural and religious scholars. While historical sources suggest that mosques traditionally accommodated Muslim women without segregation practices, many contemporary mosques have introduced barriers that restrict women’s access to prayer spaces, resulting in considerable variations in accessibility, spatial distribution and inclusivity over time. This thesis investigates women’s prayer spaces through a historical, philosophical, and cultural evaluation of mosque designs. This study aims to analyse the architectural development of mosques across various Muslim countries to inform the creation of an improved women-friendly prayer space design for a Qatari neighbourhood. The research methodology involves a comparative case study analysis of mosques in the Middle East and Southeast Asia, including Oman, Egypt, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and Turkey. The data collection methods include site observations, architectural plan analysis, and evaluation of design elements and spatial configurations related to women's prayer areas. The findings reveal several recurring themes, such as the marginalisation of women's spaces in terms of size, accessibility, and quality compared to men's areas. Major obstacles in contemporary women’s spaces include the lack of visual connections with the imam, insufficient prayer spaces, poor entrance placements, and a failure to address women's religious and social requirements. However, dynamic contemporary mosque architecture, such as the Al-Islah Mosque of Singapore, creates inclusive spaces, whereas many Gulf region mosques maintain spatial restrictions to limit female use of their facilities. The proposed design of this study delivers a women-friendly mosque for a Qatari neighbourhood by establishing equal accessibility while improving space organisation and functional performance standards. The design brings together distinct prayer halls and versatile areas with facilities that welcome children to create an inviting space which promotes spiritual engagement across the entire community. The analysis concludes that restructuring mosque architecture becomes vital to promote better spiritual experiences for women while upholding their position in religious communities and applying modern building practices. The development of mosques through inclusive architectural solutions will create gender-responsive designs which fulfil the current requirements of contemporary Muslim communities and respect the Islamic values of justice and human dignity.

Date of Award	2025
Original language	American English
Awarding Institution	HBKU College of Islamic Studies