ISLAMICA: Jurnal Studi Keislaman
Vol. 20 No. 2 (2026): March

The Production of Religious Space: Lived Space and the Sacred-Economic Dialectic in the Sunan Ampel Pilgrimage Area, Surabaya

Azizah, Siti (Unknown)
Karnaji, Karnaji (Unknown)
Suyanto, Bagong (Unknown)



Article Info

Publish Date
01 Mar 2026

Abstract

This study examines the production of religious space in the Sunan Ampel area of Surabaya through a sociological-historical approach, emphasizing the concept of lived space and the dialectics between sacrality and economy. Departing from Henri Lefebvre’s the­ory of space production, this article argues that the sacredness of Am­pel is not a static entity that is inherited ahistorically, but rather the result of social construction that continues to be produced and repro­duced through ritual practices, social relations, economic activities, and collective memory that are formed historically. This research uses a qualitative method with in-depth interviews, field observations, and historical document analysis. The study’s findings show that, socio­logically and historically, Ampel evolved from a religious settlement into an urban religious pilgrimage and tourism area with layers of sym­bolic, social, and economic meaning. The dialectic between sacredness and economics does not exist as a structural conflict of a binary na­ture, but rather as an everyday social experience negotiated by the ac­tors. In the Sunan Ampel lived space, economic activities are tied to religious ethics and the moral economy, thereby supporting the sacred space’s sustainability. Keywords: space production, lived space, sacrality, economy

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Journal Info

Abbrev

islamica

Publisher

Subject

Religion Education

Description

ISLAMICA: Journal of Islamic Studies is a biannually published journal in March and September. It covers various issues on the Islamic studies within such number of fields as Islamic education, Islamic thought, Islamic law, political Islam, and Islamic economics from social and cultural ...