Paperback. 154 pages / 33,000 words. Black & white photos. Brand new copy.

Islam is without doubt one of the fastest growing religions in New Zealand and also one of the least understood by the general public. Yet Muslims have been living in this country for over a century - peacefully and conscientiously. New Zealand Muslims have proved it perfectly possible to remain devout and faithful to Islam and at the same time function effectively in a modern Anglos-Saxon Western society.

The New Zealand Muslim Association is the oldest Islamic institution in this country. The first mosque in New Zealand, and the definitive heart of Islam in this country, was built twenty years ago in 1979 in Ponsonby, central Auckland. It represented the culmination of thirty years hard work and effort on behalf of the immigrants and refugees who were the driving force behind its construction. The building marks the collective turning point from being a group of expatriate migrants to becoming the foundation stone of the New Zealand Muslim community, and stands as a milestone in the history of the wider Muslim community across the land.

This is the first ever historical account of the burgeoning local Muslim population and an extended study of the development of one of the main Islamic organisations here. It is based on a wide array of primary sources and interviews, and provides essential reading for an examination of Islam in New Zealand.



Islam In New Zealand - The First Mosque
By Abdullah Drury