Shanghai Xiaotaoyuan Mosque

Xiaotaoyuan Mosque is located at Xiaotaoyuan Street in southern Shanghai. It is called Xicheng Mosque by local Muslims. Xiaotaoyuan Mosque is the largest mosque in Shanghai. Xiaotaoyuan Mosque was listed as heritage architecture by the Shanghai Municipal Government in 1994.

Xiaotaoyuan Mosque was first established in 1917 and rebuilt in 1925. The mosque features traditional Arabic style combined with Chinese architecture. Inside the gate there is a rectangular courtyard. On the west side of the hall stands the prayer hall with a floor area of 500 square meters, which can hold 200 prayers. The prayer hall has two storeys. In its center there is a vault dome, with minaret on the top. A three-storied building stands on the eastern side of the courtyard, and there is a library and a reading room on the second and the third floor respectively. There are the Imams’ rooms, reception room on the southern side of the courtyard.

Since Xiaotaoyuan Mosque was built, it has established several schools, including the Islam Normal School, the Primary School for Muslims, Mingcheng Primary School, Chongben Primary School, and Shanghai Islam Orphanage, etc. From 1920 to 1940, Shanghai Xiaotaoyuan Mosque received and served Muslims who converge in Shanghai from Shaanxi, Gansu, Ningxia, Qinghai, Xinjiang, etc., and prepared Hajj to Mecca. Thus it has become the transfer center for Muslims who want to go to Mecca by sea.

Currently, organizations such as the Management Committee of Mosques in Shanghai, Shanghai Islam Association are located at Xiaotaoyuan Mosque.