The Second Jeddah
Pilgrims gathered here before sailing to Mecca.
CEphoto, Uwe Aranas — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Adam Jones from Kelowna, BC, Canada — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Richard Horvath — CC BY-SA 3.0 · CEphoto, Uwe Aranas — CC BY-SA 3.0
One of Penang's oldest and most storied mosques, built in 1808 on land given by Tengku Syed Hussain Al-Aidid, an Acehnese nobleman of Arab descent who had founded a Muslim settlement here in 1792. The quarter became the island's centre of Islamic learning, frequented by traders from the Malay Archipelago, Arabia and India, and produced Penang's first Mufti and first Kadi. In the nineteenth century the quarter was called the Second Jeddah, because pilgrims from the region gathered here before sailing to Mecca, and in the Hajj season the street filled with pilgrims and their families. It is a story Arab visitors read with particular feeling: a Jeddah in the heart of a Malaysian island. The mosque is known for its Arab-style minaret topped by an Acehnese roof, surrounded by old houses that survive from the original Muslim quarter, with the burial ground of its founder Tengku Syed Hussain and his family beside it. Entry is free; non-Muslims visit outside prayer times in modest dress. It stands in the heart of UNESCO-listed George Town, a few minutes' walk from the Kapitan Keling Mosque and Khoo Kongsi. Make it a stop on your old-town walk, and pray here if the time comes.
Pilgrims gathered here before sailing to Mecca.
Founded by an Acehnese noble of Arab descent.
Arab style under an Acehnese roof.
Lebuh Acheh, historic George Town
Khoo KongsiYou enter from a narrow lane and suddenly face a wide stone square with the most1 minute walk4.3
Kapitan Keling MosqueFounded by Muslim traders from South India in the early nineteenth century, a fe4 minutes walk4.7
Clan Jetties (Chew Jetty)Villages of wooden houses on stilts over the sea, linked by narrow boardwalks, b6 minutes walk4.2
Little India, George TownA lively quarter in the heart of George Town, fragrant with spices and incense a6 minutes walk
Pinang Peranakan MansionA green mansion on Church Street built in the late nineteenth century by Chung K9 minutes walk4.6Because pilgrims from the Malay Archipelago gathered here before boarding ships to Mecca, making it the region's great Hajj staging post, crowded with pilgrims and families every season.