Qibla direction in Amarah

How to face the Qibla in Amarah

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards south and move a further 33.9° towards west: the result is the bearing of 213.9°. Because the angle sits far from the cardinal points, a rough guess such as “south” would be off by more than 30°, which is why a measured bearing matters in Amarah.

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 Amarah, aims at its direction as well as he reasonably can. Comparing with the mihrab of one of the mosques of Amarah 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 Amarah to Mecca points to 212.1°, only 1.8° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 213.9° bearing remains the exact one.

The value of 213.9° is the direction in which the shortest route from 31.8356° N, 47.1448° 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 Amarah to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 1,366 km from Amarah as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 1,102 km away. The distance is short enough that many pilgrims from Amarah travel to the Hijaz by road.

Clocks in Amarah 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 Amarah rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Amarah

On 365 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Amarah 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 14:06 local time.

The sun is never opposite the Qibla of Amarah 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 Amarah: at 12:18 and 12:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Amarah compared with other cities

Compared with Baghdad, 307 km away, the Qibla in Amarah is turned 13.9° further clockwise (213.9° against 199.9°), and Mecca is 33 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Al Qurnah (95 km), prays towards 217.2°, a difference of 3.3°.

Across the 40 cities in Iraq on this site, the Qibla ranges from 190.9° in Duhok to 224.3° in Al Fāw, a spread of 33.4°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Iraq.

Qibla in cities near Amarah

• Al Qurnah217.2° · 95 km
• Al Madīnah216.7° · 98 km
• Qal‘at Sukkar209.6° · 101 km
• Ash Shaţrah211.1° · 104 km
• Nasiriyah212.4° · 121 km
• Kut207.1° · 146 km