Adda'Wa Mosque

Adda'Wa Mosque stands on Rue de Tanger, in the 19th arrondissement of Paris, a few hundred metres from the Villette basin and Place Stalingrad. With its contemporary façade and its large prayer hall, it is one of the busiest mosques in the capital, especially on Fridays and during Ramadan. Its roots in a mixed, working-class neighbourhood have made it a landmark of north-eastern Paris for several decades.

Getting there

Rue de Tanger runs along Stalingrad métro station, at the crossing of lines 2, 5 and 7. Riquet, on line 7, is five minutes away on foot. La Villette (line 7) and Jaurès (lines 2, 5, 7bis) also serve the area. Bus 60 runs down Rue de Tanger itself, and lines 26, 48 and 54 link the surrounding stops. Several Vélib' stations sit along the Villette basin for visitors on a bike.

The neighbourhood

The northern 19th is one of Paris's most working-class, youngest districts. Around the Villette basin and Place Stalingrad, you meet Maghrebi, sub-Saharan African, Chinese, Comorian and Sri Lankan families. The canal-side cafés, the halal shops of the Villette boulevard and the West African grocers all coexist within a ten-minute radius. The mosque fits into that landscape without overshadowing it, serving mostly the worshippers who live or work in the 19th and 20th arrondissements.

A north-eastern anchor

Adda'Wa Mosque has a large prayer hall, which makes it one of the few mosques inside Paris able to host several hundred worshippers for Friday prayer. During Ramadan, Tarawih night prayers draw crowds that sometimes spill onto landings and corridors. The place also runs Arabic classes, Quranic study circles and community activities around after-school support and social aid.

Practical advice for a visit

Sightseeing is not encouraged: the mosque works first for its own community. For a first visit, choose a slot outside Friday noon and avoid the early-evening rush during Ramadan. Shoes come off before the prayer hall, women cover their hair, and clothes should cover shoulders and legs. Quiet is expected as soon as you step inside.

The premises are wheelchair-accessible according to the available data. Visitors with reduced mobility will find easier access here than in many other neighbourhood mosques of the capital.

Around the mosque

The Villette basin, five minutes away, offers a long walk along the water, extended by the Ourcq canal towards the east. Parc de la Villette and the Cité des sciences are a quarter of an hour on foot, with vast green spaces and free events for much of the year. Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, in the southern 19th, remains one of the most beautiful gardens in Paris. The Ledoux rotunda on Place Stalingrad, part of the old Farmers-General wall, now hosts a restaurant and a lively terrace.

Other mosques in Paris

Paris has dozens of mosques, each reflecting the history of its own district. The Grand Mosque of Paris, in the 5th, remains the most institutional and the most visited. Omar bn El Khattab Mosque, in the 11th, serves the north-eastern community from Belleville. Other entries will enrich this directory as data is checked.