Mar 16

Mar 16 History of Islam in Barbados (Part 1)

Islam in Barbados, Islam in the Caribbean

This (first) blog post is based on a leaflet done some years ago by Br. Abdul Samad Pandor (here in Barbados) and is titled “Pioneers of Islam in Barbados.”

Permission was requested from Br. Abdul Samad Pandor to republish his leaflet and due to the leaflet being quite lengthy it has been published in two parts (with this being the first part). Your du’aas (supplications) are requested.

Pioneers of Islam in Barbados by Br. Abdul Samad Pandor (Part 1)

I have for many years been thinking of publishing a chronological history of Islam in Barbados. I have been delinquent in this area and still hope I will have the energy and ability to write such a document. However, recent conversations with some brothers have compelled me to produce this leaflet. I was shocked to learn that they thought Islam was actually introduced in Barbados in the 1960’s and they knew nothing about when Islam started or who they were the earliest Muslims in post 1965 and know nothing about our early years on the island. In fact, the impression gained from listening to some is that the Muslim society was in moral decay, with very little emphasis being placed on performing the compulsory Islamic duties. The perception is that Islam actually began in Barbados in the 1960’s. This is far from reality; Islam was alive, the masajid were open for salah five times a day, fasting in Ramadhan was commonplace and women were modestly attired.

This leaflet seeks to clarify some issues surrounding the beginning of Islam in Barbados, to correct some false impressions and to educate Muslims about the pioneering work of our forefathers. The span is from 1910 until around the early 1970’s.

The first Muslims to arrive in Barbados landed on our shores in 1910. These were from West Bengal. Bashart Ali Dewan was the first, followed by Rahul Amin, Abdul Gaffoor and Nasrul Huque.

The first Gujarati Muslims to come to Barbados arrived in 1929. These were Sulaiman Kasoojee, Ibrahim Bulbulia, Moosa Patel and Ishmail Mamadh. These were soon followed by Moosa Daya, Sulaiman Samrodia, Babur Ahmad and Sulaiman Bhiku (the latter two went on to live in Panama).

The zeal for Islam was evident in those early days and can be proved by the fact that as early as 1910, places of worship were established in Milkmarket and Wellington Street in the city. These were poor Muslims with basic Islamic education but their desire to practise Islam was strong and they used to gather for jamaat (congregation) at these locations. Prayers were later held in Cheapside in the city.

In 1947, Maulana Ahmed Dawood Pandor arrived in Barbados. After qualifying as a Hafiz and Aalim from Dabhel Madresa, he went to Lahore to study Tafseer of Quran at the feet of Maulana Ahmed Ali Lahori, one of the greatest mufassireen (commentators) to emerge from the Indian subcontinent. He also returned to Dabhel Madresa as a teacher prior to coming to Barbados. Immediately on arriving in Barbados, Maulana Ahmed Dawood saw the need for a larger and more permanent place to perform salaah. The Maulana, along with some other brothers, notably Mohammed Sayeed Piprawala, Mohammed Degia (of Passage Road) and Haji Mohammed Patel (from Dabhel) set about looking for a location and then raising funds to build a masjid. These three brothers provided great encouragement to the Maulana and were in fact physically involved in the construction of the Jamah Masjid which was completed in 1951. In addition, many brothers made personal financial sacrifices. (e.g. donating a complete week’s income from business towards the construction). Mohammed Sayeed Piprawala later went on to function as the Motowallee of Jamah Masjid for a period of approximately 5 years, a job that called for tremendous sacrifice with no monetary rewards. Akram Ali (a Bengali) was the first muezzin and caretaker of this masjid.

Remember this was 1950. There were very few Muslims in Barbados at the time and they were certainly not wealthy, yet this small band of brothers undertook this task and managed to raise the required funds, and construction began on the original Jamah Masjid.

In 1950 a house was purchased as a place of worship in Sobers Lane in the city. The main driving forces behind this were Ibrahim Degia, Ahmed Teladia (Adam), Yusuf Bakharia and Mohammed Dockrat. The first Imam was Molvi Sayeed Piprawala. This place soon became too small, and a decision was made to construct a masjid. Again, funds were raised locally and overseas and The City Masjid (Madina Masjid) was erected in 1957. Anwar Ali (brother of Akram) was the first muezzin and caretaker at this masjid , a job he performed until his death. Ibrahim Degia and his son Mohammed must also be credited for the tremendous work they did in introducing Islam to the non-Muslim community.

In 1952, Madresa Quwwatul Islam was established next to Jamah Masjid. Again, Maulana Dawood was the chief driving force behind the establishment of the Madresa. He also taught there for a period of fourteen years without accepting a salary; he felt a price could not be placed on disseminating Islamic knowledge. There were several brothers who also taught at this madresa during the early years, among them Hafiz Ahmed Patel (the first ustad), Hafiz Hashim Bham who was the first person to read a Quran taraweeh, Hafiz Yusuf Nagdee, Hafiz Ishmail Dana, Maulana Moosajee Patel, Hafiz Hashim Nagdee, Hafiz Yusuf Samrodia, Molvi Abdulhai Kazi, Hafiz Bhamjee and Hafiz Eesa Kothdiwala.

Abdul Samad Pandor: