Sikhism in the United Arab Emirates
Encyclopedia
Sikhism in the United Arab Emirates has a following of over 50,000; the majority of Sikh
s in the UAE are found in Dubai
and are expatriates hailing from Punjab
, India
. There are smaller numbers of Pakistani Sikhs also.
There is a Sikh Gurdwara
in Dubai which serves over 10,000 worshippers. In June 2010, foundations were laid for the Guru Nanak Darbar. At a cost of $20 million, the large gurdwara is located in Jebel Ali
, Dubai and will be the first 'official' Sikh temple in the entire Gulf
, catering to the needs of the local Sikh community. An area of 25400 sq ft (2,359.7 m²) of land was given by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum for the construction of the building. A community member and local businessman who proposed the gurdwara remarked "My dream is to make Guru Nanak Durbar the best, second only to the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
s in the UAE are found in Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
and are expatriates hailing from Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. There are smaller numbers of Pakistani Sikhs also.
There is a Sikh Gurdwara
Gurdwara
A Gurdwara , meaning the Gateway to the Guru, is the place of worship for Sikhs, the followers of Sikhism. A Gurdwara can be identified from a distance by tall flagpoles bearing the Nishan Sahib ....
in Dubai which serves over 10,000 worshippers. In June 2010, foundations were laid for the Guru Nanak Darbar. At a cost of $20 million, the large gurdwara is located in Jebel Ali
Jebel Ali
Jebel Ali is a port town, located 35 kilometres southwest of the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates . The village has a thriving expatriate community with over 300 residents. The area is also home to "5,500 companies from 120 countries"....
, Dubai and will be the first 'official' Sikh temple in the entire Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
, catering to the needs of the local Sikh community. An area of 25400 sq ft (2,359.7 m²) of land was given by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum for the construction of the building. A community member and local businessman who proposed the gurdwara remarked "My dream is to make Guru Nanak Durbar the best, second only to the Golden Temple in Amritsar.