page_title: Conversion of non-Islamic places of worship into mosques
section_title: Syria
hierarchical_section_title: Conversion of non-Islamic places of worship into mosques / Conversion of church buildings to mosques / Syria
caption_attribution_description: English: View of the Umayyad Mosque, Damascus, Syria Français&#160;: Vue de la Grande mosquée des Omeyyades, Damas, Syrie
context_page_description: The conversion of non-Islamic places of worship into mosques occurred during the life of Muhammad and continued during subsequent Islamic conquests and under historical Muslim rule. As a result, Hindu temples, Buddhist temples, Christian churches, synagogues, and Zoroastrian fire temples were converted into mosques. The practice has led to conflicts and religious strife in various parts of the world.
  Several of such mosques in the areas of former Muslim rule have since been reconverted or become museums, such as the Parthenon in Greece, and numerous mosques in Spain such as Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba etc. Conversion of non-Islamic buildings into mosques influenced distinctive regional styles of Islamic architecture.
context_section_description: Umayyad Mosque in Damascus; built on the site of a Christian basilica dedicated to John the Baptist (Yahya), which was earlier, a Roman Pagan temple of Jupiter.
  Great Mosque of al-Nuri in Homs; initially a pagan temple for the sun god ("El-Gabal"), then converted into a church dedicated to Saint John the Baptist
  Great Mosque of Hama; a temple to worship the Roman god Jupiter, later it became a church during the Byzantine era
  Great Mosque of Aleppo; the agora of the Hellenistic period, which later became the garden for the Cathedral of Saint Helena
caption: Umayyad Mosque mosque was built on the site of a Christian basilica dedicated to John the Baptist, which was earlier a Temple of Jupiter converted into a cathedral by the Roman emperor Theodosius I
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