Qibla · Harari Region
Qibla direction in Harar
To face the Kaaba in Harar, turn to 349.9° measured clockwise from true north, which is north (10.1° west of north). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 1,369 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Harar should follow.
Line up the top of your phone or compass with the green needle: it marks 349.9°, the Qibla of Harar. Phone compasses usually display true north, so a reading of 350° is all you need; a needle compass reads magnetic north and needs the local declination added or subtracted first.
Find the Qibla with your phone
How to face the Qibla in Harar
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards north and move a further 10.1° towards west: the result is the bearing of 349.9°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at north would leave you about 10° off.
Facing the Qibla is a condition of the prayer. Whoever prays inside the Sacred Mosque faces the Kaaba itself; whoever is far away, as in Harar, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. Any of the mosques of Harar is a handy reference, because the prayer rows were aligned when it was built. Once you know the direction at home, a discreet mark on the wall saves you from checking again.
Why a flat map shows a different direction
On a flat (Mercator) map, the straight line from Harar to Mecca points to 349.7°, only 0.3° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 349.9° bearing remains the exact one.
How is the figure of 349.9° obtained? From the coordinates of Harar (9.3139° N, 42.1182° E) and of the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E), spherical trigonometry gives the starting bearing of the great circle joining them. Mosque architects and astronomical Qibla tables rely on exactly the same calculation.
Distance from Harar to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 1,369 km from Harar as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 1,706 km away. The distance is short enough that many pilgrims from Harar travel to the Hijaz by road.
Clocks in Harar run the same time as Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Harar rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Harar
On 136 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Harar while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in May (31 days); for example, on 15 April 2027 it happens at 12:12 local time.
On 227 days the sun stands exactly opposite the Qibla: then the shadow of any vertical object, a pole, a door frame or a plumb line, points straight towards Mecca. This is most frequent in January (31 days), for instance on 1 January 2027 at 11:51.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | 11:51 |
| 15 January 2027 | — | 11:59 |
| 1 February 2027 | — | 12:06 |
| 15 February 2027 | — | 12:10 |
| 1 March 2027 | — | 12:12 |
| 15 March 2027 | — | 12:12 |
| 1 April 2027 | — | 12:12 |
| 15 April 2027 | 12:12 | — |
| 1 May 2027 | 12:13 | — |
| 15 May 2027 | 12:15 | — |
| 1 June 2027 | 12:19 | — |
| 15 June 2027 | 12:23 | — |
| 1 July 2027 | 12:26 | — |
| 15 July 2027 | 12:27 | — |
| 1 August 2027 | 12:24 | — |
| 15 August 2027 | 12:20 | — |
| 1 September 2027 | — | 12:11 |
| 15 September 2027 | — | 12:02 |
| 1 October 2027 | — | 11:53 |
| 15 October 2027 | — | 11:45 |
| 1 November 2027 | — | 11:38 |
| 15 November 2027 | — | 11:36 |
| 1 December 2027 | — | 11:38 |
| 15 December 2027 | — | 11:43 |
Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Harar: at 12:18 and 12:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Harar compared with other cities
Compared with Addis Ababa, 371 km away, the Qibla in Harar is turned 14.7° further anticlockwise (349.9° against 4.7°), and Mecca is 15 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Dire Dawa (42 km), prays towards 350.8°, a difference of 0.9°.
Across the 28 cities in Ethiopia on this site, the Qibla ranges from 1.0° in Dessie to 350.8° in Dire Dawa, a spread of 349.8°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Ethiopia.
Qibla in cities near Harar
Qibla in Harar: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Harar?
It is 349.9° from true north, which is north: 10.1° west of north.
How far is Harar from Mecca?
1,369 km in a straight line over the globe, and 1,706 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Harar?
On 136 days of 2027 the sun stands in the Qibla direction; the table on this page gives the exact time for the 1st and 15th of each month.
Is the Qibla the same everywhere in Ethiopia?
No. It ranges from 1.0° to 350.8° across the country, so each city has its own bearing.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 349.9° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.