Space-making and religious transformation: Mosque building in the Netherlands

The realization of mosques and other religious accommodation in the Netherlands and elsewhere in Europe has been analyzed predominantly as a history of integration and emancipation of Muslim migrants into society (see eg Landman 1992; Metcalf 1996; Sunier 1996; Naylor & Ryan 2002; Shadid & Van Koningsveld 2008). Places of worship, especially when they have been built for this purpose,‘objectify’religious presence (Amiraux 2001; Cesari 2001; Dunn 2001; Eickelman 1989; Landman & Wessels 2005; Lindo 1999; Rath et al. 1996). The appearance of mosques (and mandirs, churches, synagogues, temples and gurdwaras for that matter) typically reflects the political and social climate at the time of their construction.