‘Come as you are’: place attachment to Islamic third spaces in the United States

Abstract

Our global community necessitates the understanding of emergent hybrid typologies of religious spaces and their role in community development. Islamic third spaces are informal socio-religious environments that serve the unmet needs of acculturated generations of US Muslims. Using a place attachment framework, the study illustrates how the social and physical designs of two third spaces curate inclusive and contextually driven experiences for their members. This is done through an exploration of data from twenty-four in-depth semi-structured interviews with attendees of two Islamic third spaces. Findings indicated that, in addition to social and physical features of third spaces, contextual influences affecting US Muslims served a crucial role in participants place attachment. We conclude that attachment to third spaces provides a basis for community development processes, such as social cohesion and integration within the US populous.