Islamic Waqf Institution

Timeline

1. 700–1100Hejaz · Arabian PeninsulaEarly Muslims endowed land, shops, or water sources through waqf, with proceeds supporting mosque maintenance, almsgiving, and pilgrimage services; juristic interpretation formed the principle of a permanent endowment that could neither be alienated nor inherited.
2. 1181–1190Jerusalem · LevantIn the 1180s, waqf in cities such as Damascus, Cairo, and Jerusalem funded religious buildings, madrasas, and hospitals; after Saladin's recovery of Jerusalem in 1187, waqf was also used to rebuild holy site facilities, with a clear division of labor from the sultan's iqta system.
3. 1200Ottoman Empire territories · Ottoman EmpireUnder the Mamluks and Ottomans, waqf reached an unprecedented scale, forming specialized managing bodies (nazir); the institution continued into modern Islamic states and remains today an important form of property for charity and religious facilities in Muslim societies.