Place of worship

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Place of worship

A place of worship or house of worship is a building or other location where a group of people (a congregation) comes to perform acts of religious praise, honour, or devotion. The form and function of religious architecture

Religious architecture

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Religious architecture

Sacred architecture is concerned with the design and construction of place of worship and/or sacred or intentional space, such as Church architecture, Mosque#Architecture, stupas, synagogue architecture, and temples....
has evolved over thousands of years for both changing beliefs and architectural style. The term temple
Temple

A temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites. A ??templum?? constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur....
is often used as a general term for any house of worship; but churches and mosque

Mosque

A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. Muslims often refer to the mosque by its Arabic name, masjid, ? . The word "mosque" in English refers to all types of buildings dedicated for Islamic worship, although there is a distinction in Arabic between the smaller, privately owned mosque and the larger, "collective" mosque ,...
s are not generally called temples.

Names used for places of worship

Different religions have different names for their places of worship:

Bahá'í House of Worship
Bahá'í House of Worship

A Bah?'? House of Worship, sometimes referred to by its Arabic name of Mashriqu'l-Adhk?r , is the designation of a place of worship, or temple, of the Bah?'? Faith....
– Bahá'í Faith
Bahá'í Faith

The 'Bah?'? Faith' is a monotheism religion founded by Bah?'u'll?h in nineteenth-century Persian Empire#Persia and Europe , emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind....
Buddhist temple
List of Buddhist temples

Buddhist temples, Monastery, stupas, and pagodas sorted by location....
/ Vihara
Vihara

Vihara is Sanskrit or Pali for monastery. Vihara is a place of worship for followers of Buddhism.It originally meant "dwelling" or "refuge", such as those used by wandering monks during the rainy season....
– Buddhism
Buddhism

Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices considered by most to be a religionand is based on the teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as "The Buddha" , who was born in what is today Nepal....
Church – Christianity
Christianity

Christianity is a Monotheistic religion #Christian view religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus as New Testament view on Jesus' life....

In Western Christianity, some "private" temples are called chapel
Chapel

A chapel is a building used as a place for fellowship and of worship for Christians. It may be attached to an institution such as a large Church , a college, a hospital, a palace, a prison or a cemetery, or may be an entirely free-standing building, sometimes with its own grounds....
s, while major public ones are designated by a term reflecting its ecclesiastical status, such as cathedral
Cathedral

A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop. It is a Religion building for worship, specifically of a denomination with an episcopal hierarchy, such as the Roman Catholic Church, Anglicanism, Orthodox Christian and some Lutheranism churches, which serves as a bishop's seat, and thus as the central church of a dioc...
(seat of a diocesan bishop), basilica
Basilica

The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a ancient Rome public building , usually located in the Forum of a Roman town. In Hellenistic cities, public basilicas appeared in the 2nd century BC....
, or minster
Minster (cathedral)

In current English usage, Minster is an honorific title given to particular churches in Great Britain, most famously York Minster.The term minster is first found in royal foundation charters of the 7th century; and, although it corresponds to the Latin monasterium or monastery, it then designated any settlement of clergy living a...
, and/or proper to a cultural tradition, including kirk
Kirk

Kirk can mean "church " in general or the Church of Scotland in particular. Many place names and personal names are also derived from it....
(Scottish–cognate with church) or dom
Dom

Dom may refer to:*Dom , the third highest mountain in the Alps*Dom , a title of respect, derived from Latin Dominus*Dom people, an ethnic group in the Middle East...
.
In Orthodox Christianity (both Eastern and Oriental) an Orthodox temple is a church with base shaped like Greek cross.
Protestant denominations installed in France in the early modern era use the word temple (as opposed to church, supposed to be Roman Catholic); some more recently built temples are called church.
Quakers call their places of worship meeting houses
Friends meeting house

A Friends meeting house is a meeting house of the Religious Society of Friends , where meeting for worship may be held. Quakers do not believe that meeting for worship should take place in any special place....
.
Latter-day Saints (Mormons) use meetinghouse
Meeting house

A meeting house describes a building where a public meeting takes place. This includes Secularity buildings which function like a town hall or city hall, and buildings used for religious meetings, particularly of some non-conformist Christian denominations....
and temple
Temple (LDS Church)

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also called the LDS or Mormon Church, a Temple is a building dedicated to be a House of the Lord, and they are considered by Church members to be the most sacred structures on earth....
to denote two different types of buildings. Normal worship services
Worship services of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

In Mormonism, worship services include weekly services, held on Sundays , in neighborhood based religious units. Twice each year the Church holds a worldwide General Conference....
are held in ward meetinghouses while Mormon temples are reserved for special ordinances.

Derasar
Derasar

A dehrasar is a temple for followers of Jainism. Jain idols of Tirthankaras are worshipped there. Usually they are built from marble stone. Some famous Jain temples are located in Palitana, Shankeshwar, Shikharji, Vataman, Mumbai, and Ahmedabad....
– Jainism
Jainism

Jainism is one of the oldest Indian religions that originated in India. Jains believe that every soul is divine and has the potential to achieve God-consciousness....
Fire temple
Fire temple

A Zoroastrian Fire Temple is a place of worship for Zoroastrianism.Although Zoroastrians revere fire in any form, the temple fire is not literally for the reverence of fire: In the Zoroastrian religion, fire , together with clean water , is an agent of ritual purity....
– Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism

Zoroastrianism is the religion and philosophy based on the teachings ascribed to the prophet Zoroaster, after whom the religion is named. The term Zoroastrianism is in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism, i.e., the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority....
Gurdwara
Gurdwara

A gurdwara , meaning "the doorway to the Guru", is the Sikh place of worship and is referred to as a "Sikh temple". The most famous all of the gurdwaras is the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, in Punjab India....
– Sikhism
Sikhism

Sikhism , founded on the teachings of Guru Nanak and ten successive Sikh Gurus in fifteenth century Punjab region, is the Major religious groups organized religion in the world....
Jinja
Jinja (Shinto)

A Shinto shrine is a structure whose main purpose is to house a Shinto kami, and is usually characterized by the presence of a or sanctuary, where the kami is enshrined....
– Shinto
Kingdom Hall
Kingdom Hall

Kingdom Hall is the term for the meeting place for Jehovah's Witnesses. The term was first suggested in 1935 by Joseph Franklin Rutherford, then president of the Watch Tower Society, for a building in Hawaii....
– Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses

Jehovah's Witnesses is a restorationism, Millenarianism Christianity religious movement. Sociology of religion have classified the group as an Adventism sect....
use the term Kingdom Hall to identify their places of worship, and seldom, if ever, use the word 'church' to describe any building in use by them for the purpose of such assembly.
Mandir – Hinduism
Hinduism

'Hinduism' is the predominant religion of the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism is often referred to as , a Sanskrit phrase meaning "the eternal dharma", by its practitioners....

Variously called a mandir (Hindi), a koyil (Tamil), and an gudi/devalayam/kovela (Telugu).

Mosque
Mosque

A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. Muslims often refer to the mosque by its Arabic name, masjid, ? . The word "mosque" in English refers to all types of buildings dedicated for Islamic worship, although there is a distinction in Arabic between the smaller, privately owned mosque and the larger, "collective" mosque ,...
– Islam
Islam

Islam is a Monotheism, Abrahamic religion originating with the teachings of the Prophets of Islam Muhammad, a 7th century Arab religious and political figure....
(also referred to by its Arabic name: Masjid).
Pathi
Pathi

Pathi is the name asserted to the primary centres of congregational worship for the South Indian religious system of Ayyavazhi, having a relatively large structure like that of a temple....
– Ayyavazhi
Roman temple
Roman temple

In the ancient religion of Roman paganism, practitioners often performed their worship at a temple....
– Roman religion

Templums for native deities
Fanums for foreign deities

Synagogue
Synagogue

A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer.Synagogues usually have a large hall for prayer , smaller rooms for study and sometimes a social hall and offices....
– Judaism
Judaism

Judaism is a set of beliefs and practices originating in the Hebrew Bible , as later further explored and explained in the Talmud and other texts....

Some synagogues, especially Orthodox synagogues, are called temples, but Reform Judaism considers this inappropriate as they do not consider synagogues a replacement for the Temple in Jerusalem
Temple in Jerusalem

The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple , refers to a series of structures located on the Temple Mount in the old city of Jerusalem. Historically, two temples were built at this location, and a The Third Temple features in Jewish eschatology....
. Some Orthodox Jewish congregations use the term 'shul' to describe their place of worship.

Daoguan – Taoism
Taoism

Taoism refers to a variety of related philosophical and religious traditions and concepts. These traditions have influenced East Asia for over two thousand years and some have spread to the West....
Greek temple
Greek temple

Greek temples were structures built to house deity statues within Greek sanctuaries in Greek paganism. The temples themselves did usually not directly serve a cult purpose, since the sacrifices and rituals dedicated to the respective deity took place outside them....
– Greek religion
Hof
Hof

Hof means "courtyard" but also "farm" or "Royal court" in German. In architecture, the word "Hof" denotes an area that is surrounded by buildings or walls....
– Norse Paganism
Norse paganism

Norse paganism is a term used to describe the religion which were common amongst the Germanic tribes living in Nordic countries prior to and during the Christianization of Scandinavia of Northern Europe....
Wat
Wat

A wat is a monastery temple in Cambodia, Thailand, Lanna or Laos. The word "wat" means "school." Strictly speaking a wat is a Buddhist sacred precinct with monks' quarters, the temple proper, an edifice housing a large image of Buddha, and a structure for lessons....
– Buddhism (in Cambodia
Cambodia

The Kingdom of Cambodia is a country in South East Asia with a population of over 13 million people. The kingdom's capital and largest city is Phnom Penh....
, Thailand
Thailand

The Kingdom of Thailand is an independent country that lies in the heart of Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Laos and Myanmar, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the west by the Andaman Sea and Myanmar....
, and Laos
Laos

Laos , officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and People's Republic of China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south, and Thailand to the west....
)

Place of worship

Names used for places of worship

See also