It was the norm for Muslim armies during the early period that whenever a new territory was conquered, the first establishment would be a mosque. That mosque served simultaneously as the military base, administrative office, and place for congregational prayers. However, at present, the function of the mosque institution has become more diversified and flexible. This paper aims to study the historical precedence of a mosque's function and the current perception of the mosque programs. The paper adopts the qualitative method through reviewing existing literature and analyzing the data using descriptive analysis. Recommendations are made based on the findings that show that the diversification of mosque's functions. It is highly needed in the present time as the Muslim community is facing rapid socio-cultural changes. Moreover, the inclusiveness of mosque institutions is significant to ensure the participation from all strata of community. Further research on these aspects can be done to study specific mosques in selected contexts.

The concept of urban mosque stems from more extensive reasons that mostly come from the overall issues of industrialization. Considering the challenges related to rapid urban growth, public institutions, such as mosque and its compatibility is required to be assessed in the context of compact cities. This study, therefore, aims to evaluate the planning and layout of six different styles of mosque in Malaysia regarding their suitability in compact urban settings. Due to its genre, the study adopts a case study as a qualitative research strategy as its research method. Content analysis is conducted on the compiled literature to indicate the expected outcome. Following a brief comparative discussion, this paper shows that mosque with modern architectural style among all six typologies is most suitable in the context of compact urban settings. Factors considered for the evaluation of mosques include layout progression of the mosque whether horizontal or vertical, provision for vertical stacking of spaces, symmetry in topology as well as in elevation and space types regarding flexible usage. The scope of this paper is limited to the assessment of literature only, which opens the window for a further in-depth study of actual case studies related to this topic.

The term Islamic garden has been defined in various ways considering different aspects and values. These definitions draw a broader perspective to Islamic garden, a key feature of Islamic civilization throughout the history. This paper aims to analyze these views and compare them in order to reach toward a holistic definition for Islamic garden- its origin, evolution, principles and essence. Also searching for a way to revitalize the original essence and application of Islamic gardens in the contemporary societies are discussed in a brief way.

Thousands of years after the establishment of mosque as a place of worship, issues and problems regarding its continuous development, especially those stemming from complexity of modern living have created the need for urban planners and architects to reconsider its planning and design in regard with limited land availability, shortage of resources, accessibility and appropriate architectural expression. Thus the aim of this research is to find a proper definition for urban mosques in compact cities and point out the key considerations for the design of urban mosques. This research is conducted qualitatively through reporting on available design guidelines related to the current topic followed by a discussion on three mosques within the Malay Archipelago as the secondary data source. Consequently, three mosques within Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia were studied as a primary data source. The outcome of this research establishes a framework for possible design approach of urban mosque development as a basis for future mosques design in compact cities. The result can be utilized as a source of information for reference purpose as well as a possible guide on the effectiveness of urban mosque concepts, possible challenges in a compact city setting, vertical expansion, and sustainable development.