Islam in Maryland
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There are around 70,000 Muslims in Maryland in the
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as of December 1992, according to the American Muslim Council. This is the tenth highest number of
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
s of all
U.S. states In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
, representing 1.4% of the Muslim population in the country, as well as 1.4% of the total population of
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
, at the time of the report.


History


Early Nation of Islam influence

As thousands of African Americans moved into Baltimore in the early 20th century to seek new opportunities, as part of the African American Great Migration, there was a rise of African American religious movements. One such movement was the
Nation of Islam The Nation of Islam (NOI) is a religious and political organization founded in the United States by Wallace Fard Muhammad in 1930. A black nationalist organization, the NOI focuses its attention on the African diaspora, especially on African ...
, a Black-oriented form of Islam, separate from mainstream Islam, founded in
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in 1930. It was in 1947, following the release of Nation of Islam leader
Elijah Muhammad Elijah Muhammad (born Elijah Robert Poole; October 7, 1897 – February 25, 1975) was an African American religious leader, black separatist, and self-proclaimed Messenger of Allah, who led the Nation of Islam (NOI) from 1934 until his de ...
from prison, that a Nation of Islam mosque was established in Baltimore, on Ensor Street. The mosque grew quickly in the late 1940s and early 1950s, outgrowing its space and moving multiple times, before moving to its current location at 514 Wilson Street in the late 1950s. It was designated Temple No. 6. On June 26, 1960, Elijah Muhammad spoke to over a thousand people during a visit. The mosque served 3,000 local members at the time.


Transition to Sunni Islam

Following the death of Elijah Muhammad in 1975, the Nation of Islam transitioned to Sunni Islam, and in accordance, the mosque was renamed to Masjid Muhammad, and renovations were made. The influence of the mosque resulted in Baltimore mayor Kurt Schmoke renaming Wilson Street to Islamic Way, and naming May 7 Islamic Community Day, in 1989. The mosque was later renamed to Masjid Al-Haqq, its current name, in 1994. Another early mosque was Masjid As-Saffat, founded in Baltimore in 1971. It is home to the Islamic Community School, established in 1977 by a group of Muslim women to provide an Islamic education for their children. The
Islamic Society of Baltimore The Islamic Society of Baltimore (ISB) is a Muslim community center located in Catonsville, Baltimore County, Maryland, consisting of Masjid Al-Rahmah, Al-Rahmah School, and several other services. The society was founded in 1969 by three Muslim ...
, originating in 1969 as a weekly congregation at
Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...
, constructed a mosque in 1982, Masjid Al-Rahmah, and opened the Al-Rahmah School in 1987. The number of Muslims in Baltimore and its suburbs around this time was estimated to be 3,000–5,000, with higher estimates being up to 15,000, as well as 40,000 Muslims in the Baltimore–Washington region. A 2001 estimate placed the number of Muslims in Maryland at 50,000. In 2000, the Islamic Society of Frederick planned the construction of a mosque along with a Muslim cemetery, which would be the first mosque in Frederick County and the first Muslim cemetery in Maryland. The land they wanted to build the mosque on, however, was off-limits for development, and their appeal to the county commissioners to connect to the county water and sewer lines, which saw over 200 Muslim families present, was met with a tie vote, barring their ability to build a mosque. On March 5, 2016, the Gwynn Oak Islamic Community, consisting of around 60 families in the Howard ParkGwynn Oak communities in Baltimore, opened Masjid Al Ihsan. The construction of the mosque was a six year endeavor due to city zoning rules and building regulations. It is the first mosque built from the ground-up in Baltimore. On April 15–16, 2017, 20,000 Muslims attended the 42nd annual
ICNA Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) is an Islamic North American grassroots umbrella organization. History ICNA is an offshoot of the Muslim Students' Association (MSA), and was founded by immigrants from South Asia. In 1971, a number of Sou ...
-MAS convention at the Baltimore Convention Center, which had been held in Baltimore since 2015. Many sessions addressed Islamophobia, such as "Combating Islamophobia", "Asserting Your Rights Under Trump Presidency", and "Working through Challenging Times".


Mosques


Al-Madina Masjid
a mosque in Woodlawn * Baitur Rehman Mosque, an Ahmadiyya mosque in Silver Spring
Dar Al-Taqwa Islamic Center
a mosque in Ellicott City *
Diyanet Center of America Diyanet Center of America (DCA) is a non-profit organization funded by the Turkish government that is based in Lanham, Maryland, serving the needs of the Muslim community in the Washington metropolitan area. The center holds regular Friday congre ...
, a mosque and community center in Lanham
Gwynn Oak Islamic Community
a mosque in the Gwynn Oak neighborhood of Baltimore
Idara-E-Jaferia
a
Shia Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...
mosque and Islamic education center in Burtonsville * Imam Mahdi Islamic Education Center of Baltimore, a mosque and Islamic education center in
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Islamic Center of Maryland
a mosque in
Gaithersburg Gaithersburg ( ), officially the City of Gaithersburg, is a city in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. At the time of the 2020 U.S. Census, Gaithersburg had a population of 69,657, making it the ninth-largest location in the state. Ga ...
*
Islamic Society of Baltimore The Islamic Society of Baltimore (ISB) is a Muslim community center located in Catonsville, Baltimore County, Maryland, consisting of Masjid Al-Rahmah, Al-Rahmah School, and several other services. The society was founded in 1969 by three Muslim ...
, an Islamic center in
Catonsville Catonsville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 41,567 at the 2010 census. The community lies to the west of Baltimore along the city's border. Catonsville contains the majority of th ...
serving around 3,000 people, site of former president
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
's first presidential visit to a U.S.
mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

Islamic Society of the Washington Area
a mosque in Fairland * Islamic Society of Western Maryland, a mosque in Hagerstown *Masjid Bait-us-Samad, an Ahmadiyaa mosque in Rosedale
Masjid Fatima
a mosque in Catonsville
Masjid Us Salaam
a mosque in downtown Baltimore *Muslim Community Cultural Center of Baltimore, a mosque in Baltimore


See also

*
Al Huda School (Maryland) Al Huda School is a private Islamic school located in College Park, Maryland. It first opened in September 1995 with elementary students in Kindergarten through second grade. In Fall 2007, the high school opened. Currently, it has grades K-12, wi ...
*
Minaret of Freedom Institute The Minaret of Freedom Institute is an Islamic libertarian organization established in 1993 and based in Bethesda, Maryland. It is dedicated to educating both Muslims and non-Muslims.


References


External links


Islamic Society of BaltimoreIslamic Center of Maryland
{{Islam in the Americas