QNL announces Athan contest winners

DOHA: Qatar National Library (QNL) has announced the winners of its online Athan (call to prayer) contest, organized as part of the library’s Ramadan activities.

The contest saw competitors recite the Athan and share their recordings online with QNL staff, with more than 140 entries being received, including three from children and two from outside Qatar.

“The Athan contest is important in fostering the talents of community members and encouraging them to use the facilities at the library, such as the recording studio at our innovation stations,” said Ahmed Naddaf, Information Services Librarian at QNL.

“In order to reach the final stages of the competition, participants’ voices were filtered by voice experts and then voted on by library staff, ensuring both the professional and spiritual nature of the winners’ voices. As part of our drive to promote community engagement, we will use the recording of the first-place winner to announce the prayer times in our library building.”

First place was won by Mahmoud Majdy Al Domery, teacher of Islamic Studies and Arabic Language at the Sherborne Qatar; second place by Mohammad Hilal Sayeed, Imam at Qatar’s Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs; and third place by Mohammad Ali Al Abrash, currently a postgraduate student at Qatar University in Islamic Studies.

Commenting on the contest, the winners said that Athan is of great importance in Islam, as it is a call to enter the mosque and a gateway into Islam.

They expressed their delight that QNL organized such a unique contest that appreciates and credits the muezzins (reciters of Athan) of the community, and their hope that more competitions like this will be held in the future, both in Qatar and throughout the Arab world.