Al-Zaytuna Mosque

One legend states that it was called "Mosque of Olive" because it was built on an ancient place of worship where there was an olive. Another account, transmitted by the 17th century Tunisian historian Ibn Abi Dinar, This ancillary legend related to the discovery of the saint's relics is widespread in Sicily, however it is connected to other Saints as well. In 1402 king Martin I of Sicily requested the return of Saint Olivia's relics from the Berber Caliph of Ifriqiya Abu Faris Abd al-Aziz II, who refused him. == History ==

Foundation Al-Zaytuna was the second mosque to be built in Ifriqiya and the Maghreb region after the Mosque of Uqba in Kairouan. The exact date of building varies according to different sources and interpretations. The 11th-century writer Al-Bakri wrote that Ubayd Allah ibn al-Habhab, the Umayyad governor of Ifriqiya, built a Friday mosque () in Tunis in . Modern historians have been divided over the exact date of construction and on whether it should be attributed to Ibn al-Habhab or to Ibn al-Nu'man. One supporting argument is that it is unlikely the city of Tunis remained a long time without a mosque after its conquest in . Aghlabid reconstruction The mosque owes its current overall form to a reconstruction under the Aghlabids, the dynasty that ruled Ifriqiya on behalf of the Abbasid caliphs in the 9th century. The work was begun during the reign of emir Abu Ibrahim Ahmad and completed in 864–865. As a result, the mosque's layout is also very similar to the Mosque of Uqba in Kairouan, which was also rebuilt by the Aghlabids earlier in the same century. Other repairs and restorations were carried at multiple points during this era. == Scholarship and the University ==

There is little information about teaching at the Zaytuna Mosque prior to the 14th century. During this time there were most likely courses being offered voluntarily by ulama (Islamic legal scholars), but not in an organized manner. The flourishing university attracted students and men of learning from all parts of the known world at the time. Along with disciplines theology – such as exegesis of the Qur'an (tafsir) – the university taught fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), Arabic grammar, history, science and medicine. One of its famous libraries, al-Abdaliyah, included a large collection of rare manuscripts that attracted scholars from abroad. In 2012, after the Tunisian revolution and in response to a court petition by a group of Tunisian citizens, the mosque's former educational offices were reopened and it was declared an independent educational institution once again. == Architecture ==

General layout The al-Zaytuna Mosque covers an area of and has nine entrances. The mihrab itself was redecorated in later periods and most of the prayer hall's decoration, apart from the antique columns, dates from the 13th century onward. The stucco decoration around the mihrab dates largely from 1638, and the stuccowork on the imposts of the columns dates from 1820. Inside the mihrab is a marble plaque covered in gold leaf and carved with an Aghlabid Kufic inscription with religious formulas such as the shahada. The minbar (pulpit) next to the mihrab is one of the oldest existing minbars after the minbar of Kairouan, though only some of its side panels are still originals from the Aghlabid period, with the others dating from later renovations. The latest pieces date from 1583 in the early Ottoman period. The minbar is smaller than the Kairouan minbar, measuring 2.53 by 3.30 metres. The wooden panels are carved with a variety of geometric and stylized vegetal motifs. File:L'entrée principale du Grande mosquée d'Ezzitouna.jpg|Bab al-Bahu, the central entrance to the prayer hall, and its dome (Qubbat al-Bahu) File:La Grande Mosquée de la Zitouna, Tunis 21 septembre 2013 (05).jpg|Interior of the prayer hall File:La Grande Mosquée de la Zitouna, Tunis 21 septembre 2013 (08).jpg|View of the area around the mihrab File:La Grande Mosquée de la Zitouna, Tunis 21 septembre 2013 (09).jpg|The mihrab of the mosque File:محراب جامع الزيتونة المعمور.jpg|alt=Marble plaque in the mihrab, with Arabic inscription and gold leaf, from the Aghlabid period (9th century)|Marble plaque in the mihrab, with Arabic inscription and gold leaf, from the Aghlabid period File:Dome of the Zitouna Mosque.jpg|Exterior view of the dome in front of the mihrab ==See also==