Masjid Al Noor – monument to light

in Christchurch. ‘‘It’s always been a lowkey, quiet community that kept to itself ... A lot of them had been trying to get away from the violence in the Middle East.’’

Muslims have lived in Christchurch as long as the city has existed. The first Muslims known to have come to New Zealand were from India and settled in Cashmere in the

1850s. Muslims remained a small part of the predominantly Pa¯ keha¯ , Christian city until the 1970s.

By 1981, there were nearly

500 Muslims in Canterbury, many of them university students.

The first communal space for Muslims to congregate was a house in Tuam St, bought in 1981. It wasn’t large enough for the growing number of migrants, so work began on construction of a new building in Deans Ave, on what was then the site of a horse stable.

The mosque’s development was community led and largely relied on member donations, as well as a $460,000 donation from the Saudi Kingdom.

It was driven by a small group; among them was Dr Muhammad Nabi, originally from Bangladesh, who died many years ago but was vital to its establishment, his wife, Shabiba, said on Sunday.

When the Masjid Al Noor was completed in August 1985, it was the southernmost mosque in the world, and likely further from Mecca than any other. It was the only mosque in the South Island and the second in New Zealand.

Great care was taken with its construction, according to a 2016 thesis authored by Abdullah Drury about the history of South Island Muslims. The interior was carefully designed and laden with symbolism. Inscriptions were prepared by a calligrapher from Sudan and placed on walls and windows; the interior was otherwise largely bare.

As with any other religion, Islam has sub-cultures among its adherents – Muslims from more than 40 countries were regular members of the mosque in 2014.

Throughout the 1990s, more Muslims migrated to Canterbury, many as refugees from Somalia and Afghanistan.

Despite the rising Muslim population, comprising many different cultural and racial groups, the Masjid Al Noor remained the only mosque in Christchurch. Despite occasional tensions, there was never a schism.

‘‘In many respects, the [Christchurch] Muslim community resembled an extended family or perhaps a clan or a tribe: sometimes functional, sometimes