Qibla direction in Urmia

How to face the Qibla in Urmia

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards south and move a further 17.2° towards west: the result is the bearing of 197.2°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at south would leave you about 17° off.

The scholars distinguish two cases: the one who sees the Kaaba aims at the building itself, while the one who cannot see it, as anywhere in Urmia, aims at its direction as well as he reasonably can. Comparing with the mihrab of one of the mosques of Urmia is a quick way to confirm the result. If you travel or move house, check the angle again, since it changes from place to place.

Why a flat map shows a different direction

On a flat (Mercator) map, the straight line from Urmia to Mecca points to 195.7°, only 1.4° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 197.2° bearing remains the exact one.

The value of 197.2° is the direction in which the shortest route from 37.5527° N, 45.0761° E sets off towards the Kaaba at 21.4225° N, 39.8262° E. Every accurate Qibla calculator, and the plans of well-oriented mosques, arrive at the same angle for this point.

Distance from Urmia to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 1,863 km from Urmia as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 1,545 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 2 h 42 min, although most pilgrims from Urmia connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Urmia run 0.5 hours ahead of Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Urmia rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Urmia

On 365 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Urmia while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in January (31 days); for example, on 1 January 2027 it happens at 13:39 local time.

The sun is never opposite the Qibla of Urmia during daylight, so the shadow method does not apply here; the left-hand column is the one to use.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Urmia: at 12:48 and 12:57 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Urmia compared with other cities

Compared with Tehran, 603 km away, the Qibla in Urmia is turned 21.3° further anticlockwise (197.2° against 218.5°), and Mecca is 83 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Piranshahr (95 km), prays towards 198.3°, a difference of 1.1°.

Across the 90 cities in Iran on this site, the Qibla ranges from 195.9° in Khoy to 257.6° in Iranshahr, a spread of 61.7°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Iran.

Qibla in cities near Urmia

• Piranshahr198.3° · 95 km
• Marāgheh, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran200.9° · 104 km
• Mahabad200.1° · 105 km
• Khoy195.9° · 111 km
• Mīāndoāb201.1° · 112 km
• Marand198.4° · 115 km