Qibla · Northern Ireland
Qibla direction in Belfast
To face the Kaaba in Belfast, turn to 115.5° measured clockwise from true north, which is south-east (25.5° south of east). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 5,295 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Belfast should follow.
Line up the top of your phone or compass with the green needle: it marks 115.5°, the Qibla of Belfast. Phone compasses usually display true north, so a reading of 115° 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 Belfast
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 25.5° towards south: the result is the bearing of 115.5°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at east would leave you about 25° 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 Belfast, 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
This is a place where maps mislead badly: a straight line on a flat map from Belfast to Mecca points to 133.6° (south-east), a full 18.1° away from the true Qibla of 115.5° (south-east). The map line keeps one compass heading and is 59 km longer than the great-circle route. Because the Earth is a sphere, the shortest way to Mecca from Belfast first heads south-east, and that is the direction to face.
How is the figure of 115.5° obtained? From the coordinates of Belfast (54.5968° N, 5.9254° W) 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 Belfast to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 5,295 km from Belfast as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 5,005 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 6 h 44 min, although most pilgrims from Belfast connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Belfast run 3 hours behind Mecca in winter and 2 hours 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 Belfast rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Belfast
On 246 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Belfast 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 March 2027 it happens at 08:19 local time.
On 87 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 July (31 days), for instance on 15 May 2027 at 20:33.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | — |
| 15 January 2027 | — | — |
| 1 February 2027 | — | — |
| 15 February 2027 | — | — |
| 1 March 2027 | 08:19 | — |
| 15 March 2027 | 08:29 | — |
| 1 April 2027 | 09:40 | — |
| 15 April 2027 | 09:49 | — |
| 1 May 2027 | 10:00 | — |
| 15 May 2027 | 10:10 | 20:33 |
| 1 June 2027 | 10:20 | 20:25 |
| 15 June 2027 | 10:27 | 20:24 |
| 1 July 2027 | 10:30 | 20:28 |
| 15 July 2027 | 10:27 | 20:35 |
| 1 August 2027 | 10:17 | 20:46 |
| 15 August 2027 | 10:05 | — |
| 1 September 2027 | 09:46 | — |
| 15 September 2027 | 09:28 | — |
| 1 October 2027 | 09:07 | — |
| 15 October 2027 | 08:50 | — |
| 1 November 2027 | — | — |
| 15 November 2027 | — | — |
| 1 December 2027 | — | — |
| 15 December 2027 | — | — |
Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Belfast: at 10:18 and 10:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Belfast compared with other cities
Compared with London, England, United Kingdom, 518 km away, the Qibla in Belfast is turned 3.5° further anticlockwise (115.5° against 119.0°), and Mecca is 502 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Glasgow (176 km), prays towards 118.3°, a difference of 2.8°.
Across the 75 cities in the United Kingdom on this site, the Qibla ranges from 113.7° in Plymouth, England, United Kingdom to 121.7° in Aberdeen, a spread of 8.0°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for United Kingdom.
Qibla in cities near Belfast
Qibla in Belfast: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Belfast?
It is 115.5° from true north, which is south-east: 25.5° south of east.
How far is Belfast from Mecca?
5,295 km in a straight line over the globe, and 5,005 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Belfast?
On 246 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.
Why is the Qibla in Belfast not the direction shown on a map?
Flat maps distort directions. The line on a map points to 133.6°, but the shortest route on the globe leaves Belfast at 115.5°, and that is the Qibla.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 115.5° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.