Al-Azhar Mosque ( , "mosque of the most resplendent") is a
mosque in
Islamic Cairo in
Egypt.
Al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah of the
Fatimid Caliphate commissioned its construction for the newly established capital city in 970. Its name is usually thought to allude to the
Islamic prophet
Muhammad's daughter
Fatimah, a revered figure in Islam who was given the title
az-Zahra' ("the shining or resplendent one"). It was the first mosque established in
Cairo, a city that has since gained the nickname "the City of a Thousand
Minarets."