The Biggest Mosque In Southeast Asia

by Radhinal May 09, 2022 0 comments Istiqlal Mosque

The Istiqlal Mosque was designed in 1954 by Frederich Silaban, a Christian architect from North Sumatra. To build the mosque, it took 17 years. Built under Sukarno's administration, the construction was personally supervised by the president himself.

The idea for the need of a national mosque was inspired by Muslim leader KH Wahid Hashim and executed by Cokro Aminoto, then minister for religious affairs. The word Istiqlal comes from Arabic that means "Independence." The name is a reminder of Indonesia’s struggle for national Independence and the Istiqlal was built to memorialize it.