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{{short description|Islamic architectural feature}}
{{Italic title}}
[[File:GreatMosqueofKairouanTunisia.jpg|thumb|right|260px|Large ''sahn'' of the [[Mosque of Uqba]], surrounded by ''[[Riwaq (arcade)|riwaq]]'' ([[arcade (architecture)|arcade]]s), in [[Tunisia]].]]
{{Arab culture}}
A '''''sahn''''' ({{langx|ar|صَحْن}}, ''{{Transliteration|ar|ṣaḥn}}''), is a [[courtyard]] in [[Islamic architecture]], especially the formal courtyard of a mosque.<ref name=":24">{{Cite book |title=The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=9780195309911 |editor-last=Bloom |editor-first=Jonathan M. |language=en |chapter=Mosque |editor-last2=Blair |editor-first2=Sheila S.}}</ref><ref name=":16">{{Cite book|last=Petersen|first=Andrew|title=Dictionary of Islamic architecture|publisher=Routledge|year=1996|isbn=9781134613663|pages=247}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The Mosque|url=https://www.metmuseum.org/learn/educators/curriculum-resources/art-of-the-islamic-world/unit-one/the-mosque|access-date=2020-11-23|website=metmuseum.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Davies |first=Nikolas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=krlTS0XWkLwC&pg=PA327 |title=Dictionary of Architecture and Building Construction |last2=Jokiniemi |first2=Erkki |publisher=Routledge |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-136-41025-3 |pages=327 |language=en}}</ref> Most traditional [[mosque]]s have a large central ''sahn'', which is surrounded by a ''[[Riwaq (arcade)|riwaq]]'' or [[arcade (architecture)|arcade]] on all sides.

==Etymology==
The word ''sahn'' (صَحْن) means a courtyard in [[Arabic]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bandyopadhyay |first1=Soumyen |last2=Sibley |first2=Magda |title=The Distinctive Typology of Central Omani Mosques: Its Nature and Antecedents. |journal=Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies |date=July 2002 |volume=33 |issue=33 |pages=99–116 |jstor=41223756 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41223756 |access-date=5 March 2021}}</ref> But more commonly it means "plate", "dish".<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.almaany.com/ar/dict/ar-ar/%D8%B5%D9%8E%D8%AD%D9%92%D9%86/ |title=Almaany (Arabic dictionary) |access-date=2024-09-21}}</ref>

==Form==
The courtyard (''sahn'') of a mosque normally precedes and gives access to the interior prayer hall that stands on the ''[[qibla]]'' side (the side corresponding to the direction of prayer).<ref name="EI2" /><ref name=":24" /> Most mosque courtyards contained a public fountain where Muslims performed ''[[wudu]]'', a ritual ablution (purification) [[Fard|required]] before [[Salah|prayer]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Mosque |url=https://www.metmuseum.org/learn/educators/curriculum-resources/art-of-the-islamic-world/unit-one/the-mosque |website=The Metropolitan Museum of Art |access-date=5 March 2021}}</ref> The courtyard could be paved with stones or sometimes planted with trees.<ref name="EI2">{{Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition|volume=6|article=Masd̲j̲id (I. In the central Islamic lands)|last1=Pedersen|first1=J.|first2=R.|last2=Hillenbrand|pages=644–688}}</ref>

Historically, because of the warm Middle Eastern climate, the courtyard also served as overflow to accommodate the larger number of worshippers that came during [[Friday prayer]]s.<ref name="EI2" /> However, the hot climate could also make the outdoor space uncomfortable. As a result, [[Arcade (architecture)|arcades]] (rows of arches) that supported roofed galleries, known as [[Riwaq (arcade)|''riwaq''s]], were usually added around the other three sides in addition to the prayer hall side.<ref name="EI2" />

== History ==
The first well-described mosque in Islamic history, the [[Prophet's Mosque]] in [[Medina]], initially consisted of a rectangular open-air enclosure, to which a roofed area supported by columns was soon added. In the 7th and 8th centuries, the mosque was expanded to become a [[hypostyle]] building with a central courtyard.<ref name=":24" />

Other major early mosques, such as the [[Great Mosque of Kufa]],<ref name=":0522">{{Cite book |last=Tabbaa |first=Yasser |title=Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three |publisher=Brill |year=2007 |isbn=9789004161658 |editor-last=Fleet |editor-first=Kate |location= |pages= |language=en |chapter=Architecture |editor-last2=Krämer |editor-first2=Gudrun |editor-last3=Matringe |editor-first3=Denis |editor-last4=Nawas |editor-first4=John |editor-last5=Rowson |editor-first5=Everett}}</ref> the [[Great Mosque of Damascus]] (early 8th century), the [[Great Mosque of Cordoba]] (late 8th century), and the [[Great Mosque of Kairouan]] (early 9th century) all included courtyards as well.<ref name=":24" /> Initially, some of these courtyards – including those in the mosques of Cordoba, of Kairouan, and [[al-Zaytuna Mosque|of Tunis]] – were not lined with [[riwaq (arcade)|riwaq]]s (roofed arcades), but these soon became a standard feature for shade.<ref name="EI2" /> While these examples were all hypostyle mosques, courtyards also remained a feature in later types of mosques. The four-iwan layout, common in [[Iranian architecture|Iran and Central Asia]], involved four [[iwan]]s and other halls arranged around a central courtyard. The major domed mosques of [[Ottoman architecture]] from the 15th century onward also feature arcaded courtyards preceding their prayer halls.<ref name=":24" />

==See also==
* ''[[durqāʿa]]'': central space in a building
*[[:Category:Islamic architectural elements|Index: Islamic architectural elements]]

==References==
{{commons category|Islamic courtyards}}
{{reflist}}

{{Islamic architecture}}
{{Iranian Architecture}}

[[Category:Courtyards|*Sahn]]
[[Category:Mosque architecture]]
[[Category:Arabic architecture]]
[[Category:Iranian architectural elements]]
[[Category:Islamic architecture]]
[[Category:Islamic architectural elements]]