a distinct space housed in a separate structure, usually located within a mohalla, or enclave, of Satpanthi believers. Several of the oldest extant examples of Jamatkhanas go back to this period. Most, however, have subsequently been renovated and added to, to accommodate the changing functional needs and ritual practices of the jamats (congregation) that they serve. The oldest of these urban structures can be found in places such as Gwadar (present day Pakistan), Zanzibar and Bombay (present day India). More modest examples that date from this period can also be found throughout Kutch and in Jerruk in interior Sindh, the residence of Aga Khan I upon his arrival to the South Asia. The architecture and organization of these spaces tell us that there was no single architectural template or model of the Jamatkhana, but rather each was constructed based on a series of circumstances including such things as location, cultural environment, architectural practices of the period and resources available. The variations from one Jamatkhana to the next also gives us clues to the nature of practices, the use and allocation of space and the nature and function of social relationships. Some of these were due to the cultural milieu in which the Jamatkhanas were situated while others followed general traditions of pietic and religious culture, which in turn informed rules of decorum and etiquette within these spaces. In 1870, the Bombay Jamatkhana in Khadak became the first Jamatkhana assigned as a darkhana. The term, was initially used to designate the chief residence of the Imam. In later years, however, it came to stand for the principal Jamatkhana in a national context. Today, eight countries have Darkhana Jamatkhanas in the Nizārī Ismā'īlī tradition. These include India, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Canada, Pakistan, England and Portugal. Jamatkhana as the Centre of Nizārī Ismā'īlī Practice While the Jamatkhana initially began as a space of congregation specific to Satpanthi communities, it eventually was adopted by Ismaili communities with different geographic, cultural and linguistic backgrounds and historical experiences who before this congregated in spaces with different trajectories and nomenclatures. During the seven decades of Sir Sultan Mohammed Shah, Aga Khan III’s (d. 1957) Imamat, formal relationships with Ismaili communities living in Tajikistan, Afghanistan, China, the Northern Areas of Pakistan, Persia and Syria, were strengthened. Ismailis of the Northern Areas of Pakistan, namely Chitral, Ghizr, Gilgit, Hunza, as well as the border regions of China, were some