Qibla direction in Groningen

How to face the Qibla in Groningen

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 38.4° towards south: the result is the bearing of 128.4°. Because the angle sits far from the cardinal points, a rough guess such as “east” would be off by more than 30°, which is why a measured bearing matters in Groningen.

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 Groningen, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. A nearby mosque is a handy reference, because its 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

A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Groningen to Mecca points to 141.1° (south-east), 12.6° away from the correct 128.4°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 25 km longer than the true shortest route. The Qibla follows the great circle, the shortest path on the curved Earth, which is why the bearing differs.

How is the figure of 128.4° obtained? From the coordinates of Groningen (53.2192° N, 6.5667° 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 Groningen to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 4,521 km from Groningen as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 4,220 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 5 h 49 min, although most pilgrims from Groningen connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Groningen run 2 hours behind Mecca in winter and 1 hour behind Mecca in summer, because of daylight saving time. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Groningen rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Groningen

On 299 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Groningen while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in March (31 days); for example, on 1 February 2027 it happens at 09:08 local time.

The sun is never opposite the Qibla of Groningen 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 Groningen: at 11:18 and 11:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Groningen compared with other cities

Compared with Amsterdam, 147 km away, the Qibla in Groningen is turned 2.8° further clockwise (128.4° against 125.6°), and Mecca is 34 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Leeuwarden (50 km), prays towards 127.5°, a difference of 0.9°.

Among the 22 cities in the Netherlands on this site, Groningen has the largest Qibla bearing; the smallest is 124.6° in The Hague. Across the country the direction varies by 3.8°.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Netherlands.

Qibla in cities near Groningen

• Leeuwarden127.5° · 50 km
• Zwolle127.2° · 85 km
• Enschede127.9° · 113 km
• Apeldoorn126.7° · 119 km
• Almere Stad126.0° · 131 km
• Amersfoort126.0° · 143 km