Al-Azhar Mosque

One of the oldest mosques in the world — Fatimid foundation from 970 CE, UNESCO World Heritage in the heart of Cairo.

Al-Azhar Mosque stands at the heart of historic Islamic Cairo and is one of the oldest and most revered mosques in the Islamic world. Founded in 970 CE by the Fatimid Caliph al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah, it was the first mosque of the new capital and inspired Cairo's nickname "City of a Thousand Minarets." Its name is thought to derive from az-Zahrā', an honorific for Fatima, the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad. Part of the UNESCO World Heritage site of Islamic Cairo, the complex layers more than a thousand years of architectural history — from original Fatimid arches to later Mamluk and Ottoman additions. It remains an active place of worship and one of Egypt's most powerful historical monuments.