Sheikh Karimul Makhdum Mosque

The Sheikh Karimul Makhdum Mosque is located in Barangay Tubig Indangan, Simunul, Tawi-Tawi, the Philippines.^[1] The current mosque building dates from the 1960’s. Four old mosque pillars found within the mosque are from the 17th century. According to local lore, the original mosque, built in the indigenous sacred Moro pagoda architectural style, was established in 1380, making it the oldest mosque in the Philippines and in Southeast Asia.^[2]

Sheikh Karimul Makhdum Mosque
Masjid Sheikh Karimul Makhdum
Religion
Affiliation	Sunni Islam
Sect	Sufi
Year consecrated	1380
Location
Location	Simunul, Tawi-Tawi, Philippines
Geographic coordinates	4.8980533°N 119.84924509999996°E / 4.8980533; 119.84924509999996
Architecture
Type	Islamic
Completed	1960s (current building)
National Historical Landmarks
Official name: Sheik Karimol-Makhdum Mosque
Designated	August 13, 1998

History

Historical marker installed in 2009

According to local folklore, it was built by a Syrian Arab trader and Sunni Sufi scholar named Sheikh Karimul Makhdum in 1380. The architecture of the original mosque would likely have been the indigenous Moro pagoda-style. Old wooden pillars have been found within the current mosque grounds. Some theorize that the wooden pillars were either the pillars of the original 1380 pagoda mosque, or a later old wooden mosque built centuries after the pagoda mosque was ruined.^[3]

Scholarly studies from the National Museum of the Philippines later confirmed that the pillars found within the present mosque date back to the 17th century.^[4] The four 17th-century pillars are regarded as sacred as they are at least 400 years old and are the oldest known Islamic artifacts in the entire Philippines.^[5]

The current mosque building was constructed in the 1960s, after most of the prior structure was burned down in 1941 during the Japanese occupation in World War II. Unfortunately, the architecture used for the current building was of the Arabic onion-dome style, and not the traditional sacred pagoda style of the Moro people. In recent years, some scholars, leaders, and locals have supported initiatives to rebuild the mosque following their traditional Moro pagoda-style.^[6]

Cultural status

Historical marker stating that the mosque was declared as a National Historical Landmark

The mosque has been declared as a National Historical Landmark by the National Historical Commission^[7][8] and a National Cultural Treasure by the National Museum.

The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (formerly the NHC) unveiled a historical marker at the mosque in November 7, 2023.^[9][10][11]

See also

• Makhdum Karim
• Islam in the Philippines
• List of the oldest mosques