Qibla direction in Çanakkale

How to face the Qibla in Çanakkale

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards south and move a further 35.3° towards east: the result is the bearing of 144.7°. 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 Çanakkale.

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 Çanakkale, aims at its direction as well as he reasonably can. Comparing with the mihrab of one of the mosques of Çanakkale 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

A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Çanakkale to Mecca points to 148.6° (south-east), 3.9° away from the correct 144.7°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 1 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.

The value of 144.7° is the direction in which the shortest route from 40.1555° N, 26.4127° 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 Çanakkale to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 2,439 km from Çanakkale as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 2,135 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 3 h 22 min, although most pilgrims from Çanakkale connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Çanakkale 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 Çanakkale rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Çanakkale

On 365 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Çanakkale 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 10:51 local time.

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

Çanakkale compared with other cities

Compared with Ankara, 549 km away, the Qibla in Çanakkale is turned 15.5° further anticlockwise (144.7° against 160.1°), and Mecca is 279 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Tekirdağ (130 km), prays towards 148.2°, a difference of 3.6°.

Across the 85 cities in Türkiye on this site, the Qibla ranges from 143.7° in Izmir to 192.2° in Iğdır, a spread of 48.6°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Türkiye.

Qibla in cities near Çanakkale

• Tekirdağ148.2° · 130 km
• Bandırma148.5° · 135 km
• Balıkesir147.3° · 138 km
• Çorlu149.1° · 162 km
• Edirne147.0° · 170 km
• Mustafakemalpaşa149.1° · 170 km