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Vol. 12 No. 1 (2027)
Advance Online Publication (Forthcoming Articles)

Articles

Reconsidering Possible Macassan Prayer Structures in Northern Australia: Port Essington and Raffles Bay

https://doi.org/10.55831/ajis.v12i1.993

Published 29.09.2026

Dzavid Haveric
Charles Sturt University

Abstract

The pre- and early colonial makeshift mosques on the periphery of northern Australia represent a novel subject. They are part of a lost Islamic tradition within ancient Aboriginal lands. These makeshift mosques could only have existed through the presence of Muslims, for whom mosque construction was a fundamental requirement for communal worship. In Islam, building a mosque is considered a highly meritorious act. Tracing the cross-cultural history of the First Nations peoples and the early Macassan settlers, this research provides valuable context for understanding the now-vanished makeshift mosques in Australia. Initially, Islam in Australia was facilitated by Macassan traders and Sufis. This study focuses on the sacred buildings by analysing architectural literature, comparing makeshift mosques with regional counterparts and early church buildings, considering the work of skilled Macassan builders, reviewing early colonial paintings, a Yolngu sketch of a makeshift mosque, Yolngu-Macassan narratives regarding Macassan huts and shelters, other Aboriginal and Javanese remarks, and reports of the old Javanese bamboo-bush mosque in Mackay. Collectively, these sources suggest the possibility that Macassans used temporary prayer structures or adapted communal spaces for worship in northern Australia. This article highlights the often-overlooked makeshift mosques in Port Essington and Raffles Bay, aiming to preserve their legacy within Australian history.

Keywords

mosques, Australian Muslims, Macassans, builders, makeshift mosques

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Author Biography

Dzavid Haveric

Dr Dzavid Haveric (PhD Vic Uni., MA Deakin Uni.) is an Adjunct Research Fellow at Charles Sturt University - Centre for Islamic Studies and Civilisation, and a Research Associate at the Museum Victoria - Humanities Department. He has worked as a Project Officer and Program Assistant at the Parliament of the World's Religions (Melbourne) within the Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC). He was a Research Assistant and Project Worker at the Institute for Community, Ethnicity and Policy Alternatives (ICEPA), Victoria University. He also worked as a reporter at the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) Radio Program for the Bosnian Community. He is the author of a number of books. 

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