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Diyanet Center of America

Coordinates: 38°59′02″N 76°50′38″W / 38.98389°N 76.84389°W / 38.98389; -76.84389
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Diyanet Center of America
Established1993; 31 years ago (1993)
Founded atLanham, Maryland
Coordinates38°59′02″N 76°50′38″W / 38.98389°N 76.84389°W / 38.98389; -76.84389
Parent organization
Diyanet
Websitediyanetamerica.org

Diyanet Center of America (DCA) is a non-profit organization funded by the Turkish government that is based in Lanham, Maryland, serving the needs of the Muslim community in the Washington metropolitan area.[1] The center holds regular Friday congregational prayers, Ramadan dinners, religious holiday celebrations – including Mawlid – and various other social, cultural, and religious activities.[2]

The center benefits from its proximity to the nation's capital, various federal and state institutions, and schools. The closest is NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. The nearby New Carrollton station serves the Washington Metro, MARC, and Amtrak lines. Greyhound, a nationwide intercity bus company, also stops at the station.

The complex consists of five main buildings, an underground parking garage, and a geothermal well field on a 15-acre site. The five buildings are a mosque constructed using 16th century classical Ottoman architecture, a cultural center building, a guest house, a fellowship hall with a restaurant and shops, and a recreational building housing a Turkish bath, an indoor pool, and a sports center.[3][4][5]

History

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The DCA's campus is built in the Ottoman style.
The mosque at the Diyanet Center of America

The organization was established as the Turkish American Islamic Foundation in 1993, and as the scope of services expanded it was renamed to the Turkish American Community Center (TACC) in 2003.[6] After the completion of a comprehensive construction project, the center was renamed to its assumed business name of Diyanet Center of America, which receives major support from Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), an institution of the Government of Turkey.[7] The result of the construction project is a small village that will be an important cultural hub for all visitors and residents of Washington D.C. area.[8]

Affiliated mosques

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ Organizations Representing Turkish Americans and the U.S.-Turkey Relationship in the U.S.
  2. ^ Services
  3. ^ "Turkish American Cultural and Civilization Center". transtech.org. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  4. ^ "Turkish-American Community Center - Hassa Architecture". hassa.com. Archived from the original on 6 July 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  5. ^ "Preliminary Plan 4-10006" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-21.
  6. ^ Turkish Coalition of America. "Directory by State". tc-america.org. Retrieved 6 July 2015.
  7. ^ About Us
  8. ^ "What Is DCA". Archived from the original on 2020-11-26. Retrieved 2017-05-06.
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