Novi Pazar Quran School: A Center for Revival of Islamic Identity in Serbia
The Novi Pazar Quran School represents the educational and spiritual progress of Bosnian Muslims after decades of religious persecution and the erasure of their identity.
Since its establishment in 2010, the school has become a Quranic center where thousands of people of all ages come to learn the Word of Revelation and connects generations with their Islamic identity.
According to Irfan Malich, director of the Novi Pazar Quran School, the school, which is affiliated with the Islamic Board of Serbia, currently enrolls more than 3,000 male and female students in more than 30 branches across the country, including Belgrade, the capital, as well as branches in European countries where Bosnian Muslims live.
“We have established branches in every city and village so that there is no place without a Quran school,” says Malic, noting that the school’s students come from all age groups, from 6 to 70, and are united by their love for the Quran.
A few decades ago, due to the communist era that lasted until the early 1990s, reciting the Quran in Latin script was common among Serbian Muslims. “At that time, not a single one of us had memorized the Quran,” says Malic. But he adds proudly, “Now we have memorizers, some of whom have received certificates.”
This school offers Quran education at various levels, starting with learning the Arabic letters, then the rules of recitation and intonation, and finally memorizing the final Juzes (parts) of the Quran until the student reaches the level of memorizing the entire Quran.
Emphasizing the profound impact of the institution, Emilja Alickovic, a teacher at the school, says, “It is a blessing from God that our city has a school where we recite the Quran as our Prophet recited it.”
Sima Gecic, a Quran student at the New Quran School in Pazar, says, “I try to come here every day. Here I learn the Quran and Arabic and understand my religion.”
To strengthen the spirit of competition and create motivation, this school has held 11 domestic Quran competitions and has also participated in international competitions, achieving top positions, including first place in one of Mecca’s Quran competitions.
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In the introductory classes, students start with letters, then are taught memorization and interpretation, while also learning Islamic values, explained Jannah Abdullah, another teacher at the school. “We explain the Surahs and extract Islamic values from them to teach students how to live according to God’s commands.”
More than a decade after its founding, the Novi Pazar School has become more than just an educational institution, but a spiritual beacon that preserves the presence of Islam in Serbia and revives the Islamic identity and the people who had almost lost touch with the Quran.
In a country that did not have a single Quran memorizer three decades ago, despite this school, the sounds of recitation are increasing, memorizers are graduating, and new generations are carrying the Book of God in their hearts by memorizing the Quran.
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