martyrdom of the third imam, hUsayn ibn ali (d.
680), who died on the battlefield of karbala in
iraq. Historically, it began in 10th-century Iraq
with tents that were erected temporarily for ashUra
observances at the beginning of Muharram, the
first month on the Islamic calendar. Later, these
observances were conducted in palaces, houses,
or open spaces. In the era of the saFavid dynasty
(1501–1722), when the name Husayniyya was
first coined, Iranian and Iraqi Shii Muslims made
it a more fixed structure attached to a house or a
self-standing building.
The idea of creating a special ritual gather-
ing place for Ashura observances subsequently
spread beyond Iraq and iran to Shii communities
in other parts of the world. As a consequence of
its growing popularity and adaptation to different
Shii localities, it became known under a variety of
other names, such as takiya (place of piety) and
zaynabiyya (in honor of Husayn’s sister Zaynab)
in Iran; matam (funeral house) in Bahrain and
Oman; and imambarah (enclosure of the Imam),
imambargah (Imam building), azakhana (mourn-
ing house), ashurkhana (Ashura house), and
taaziyakhana (condolence house) in india, ban-
gladesh, and pakistan. These constructions were
financed by donations from wealthy Muslim mer-
chants, landlords, or nobles, and by waqfs, which
were income-producing properties set aside by the
donor as perpetual endowments for the benefit of
the community. As a form of Islamic architec-
tUre, the Husayniyya assumed a variety of forms.
It does not resemble the mosqUe so much as it
does the khanqah and tekke, where Sufis gather at
appointed times to remember God and honor the
memories of mUhammad and the Sufi saints and
spiritual masters. Although some are of consider-
able size, most are modest structures.
The size and number of Husayniyyas have
been affected by the degree of prosperity in theK 320 Husayniyya
Husayniyya in Bahrain ( Juan E. Campo)