Summary

Colour photograph of Imam Ahmed Skaka in Adelaide Mosque, 1970s.

Ahmed Skaka migrated to Australia on the ship General Stewart in 1950. He came from a distinguished family from Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina and accomplished his study in Theology in Gazi Husrev Bey Medresa in Sarajevo, the oldest educational Islamic institution in south-east Europe. After leaving the Bonegilla Migrant Reception Centre in Victoria, he worked in Adelaide as a supervisor in a company making electrical parts. He was the first qualified religious leader (Imam) in the Bosnian Muslim community in Australia and the first within the multi-ethnic Muslim communities in Australia. For most of his life Ahmed lived in Adelaide in the same street (Little Gilbert St.) where the mosque was situated, taking care of the local Muslim community. He was instrumental in the renewal of the oldest mosque in Australia, the Adelaide city Mosque, which had been built in 1880s by the early Afghan cameleers and was Imam there for 30 years.

Description of Content

Muslim religious leader preaching in a mosque.

Physical Description

Colour photograph on paper.

Significance

Statement of Historical Significance:
Muslims in Australia are an under represented cohort in both the museum's collections and Australian history more broadly. As an-ever growing faith in Australia, it is important to trace the migration and settlement of Muslim Australians across time in order to help provide a historical, social and cultural context for Muslim Australians today. This collection is the key outcome for the collaboration between the Museum and Dr Dzavid Haveric, MV research associate, who has published a seminal history of Muslims in Australia. This collection is the result of his research and community interviews.

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