While the exact early history of this term is unclear, we know that it only became common in Ottoman times, when administrative order was established over all matters pertaining to the organization of the Muslim faith and the supervision of the holy places, for which the Ottomans took financial and architectural responsibility.
Mentres que as orixes históricas deste termo non son claras, sabemos que foi en tempos do dominio otomán, cando o poder administrativo estableceuse en todos os aspectos relativos á orde da fe musulmá e a supervisión dos lugares sagrados, polo que os otománs tomaron responsabilidades financeiras e arquitectónicas.