Islamic calendar

This is a special way to track time.

It uses the moon to find months. Each month starts when a new moon is seen. This calendar helps people know when to fast. It also shows when to go on a special journey. Some months are sacred. During these months, fighting is not allowed. It is an old way to mark the year. Do you look at the moon at night?

The Islamic calendar is a way to track time. It is also called the Hijri calendar. This calendar uses the moon to name its months. A new month starts when people see the new moon. Each year has 12 months. A year can have 354 or 355 days.

Muslims use this calendar for holy days. It helps them know when to fast. It also shows when to go on a great pilgrimage. The calendar began in the year 622. This was when Muhammad moved from Mecca to Medina. This move is called the Hijrah.

Some months are sacred. This means they are special. In four of these months, fighting is not allowed. These are Rajab and three other months. One very important month is Ramadan. This is a time for fasting. People do not eat from dawn until sunset. It is a time to give to the poor.

The year ends with a festival called Eid al-Fitr.

The Islamic calendar is also known as the Hijri calendar. It is a lunar calendar used to track time. This means it follows the cycles of the moon. A year has 12 lunar months. These years are usually 354 or 355 days long. Most people use the Gregorian calendar for daily life. However, Muslims use the Hijri calendar for religious events. It helps them find the dates for holy rituals. It also marks the time for fasting and the great pilgrimage.

Each new month starts with the birth of a new lunar cycle. People often look for the new crescent moon to mark this. Because the moon's visibility changes, months have 29 or 30 days. This can depend on the weather or the Earth's position.

The days of the week are also special. An Islamic day starts at sunset and ends at the next sunset. Most days are named by their order in the week. The sixth day is called the gathering day. This is when people meet for Friday prayers at a mosque.

This calendar began with a very important event. In the year 622 CE, Muhammad and his followers moved. They traveled from Mecca to Medina to start a new community. This move is called the Hijrah. This event marks the start of the Hijri era. In the West, people write this era as AH. In many Muslim countries, it is written as H. Years before this move are called BH, or Before the Hijra.

Before Islam, the Arabs had different ways of tracking time. Some used a lunar system, while others used a lunisolar system. A lunisolar system uses both the moon and the sun. Some thinkers believe the old Arabs used a practice called Nasī. This involved adding an extra month to the year. This helped keep the pilgrimage in a good season. Some scholars think they learned this from the Jewish calendar. Eventually, the practice of Nasī was stopped. Muhammad mentioned this during his farewell sermon in AH 10.

Many months in the calendar have special meanings. Four months are considered sacred or forbidden. During these months, fighting is not allowed. These include the month of Rajab and three others. One of the most important months is Ramadan. This is a time of burning heat and fasting. Muslims do not eat from dawn until sunset during this time. They also give charity to those in need. The month ends with a festival called Eid al-Fitr.

The Islamic calendar, also known as the Hijri calendar, is a lunar calendar system. It consists of 12 lunar months. A single year usually lasts 354 or 355 days. This calendar is essential for determining the dates of Islamic holidays and religious rituals. These include the annual season for the great pilgrimage and the month of fasting. While most countries where Islam is the predominant religion use the Gregorian calendar for civil matters, they use the Hijri calendar for religious purposes. In the Levant and Mesopotamia, people may use Syriac month-names for their civil calendars.

The Hijri era begins with a specific historical event called the Hijrah. In the year 622 CE, Muhammad and his followers migrated from Mecca to Medina. This move helped establish the first Muslim community, known as the ummah. In Western writing, years in this era are often denoted as AH. In many Muslim countries, it is abbreviated as H. Years occurring before the Hijra are labeled as BH, which stands for "Before the Hijra." For example, the year 1447 AH begins on 26 June 2025 and ends around 15 June 2026.

The mechanism of the calendar relies on the observation of the moon. Each month begins with the birth of a new lunar cycle. Traditionally, this is marked by the actual observation of the new crescent moon. Because of the Earth's position, the weather, or the moon's astronomical positioning, a month may have 29 or 30 days.

The Islamic day follows a different cycle than the solar day. An Islamic day begins at sunset and ends at the following sunset. This means the day starts at nightfall.

The seven-day week follows a specific naming pattern. Most days are named based on their ordinal place in the week. For instance, the second day is al-Ithnayn, and the fifth is al-Khamis. The sixth day is al-Jum'ah, which means the "gathering day."

On this day, Muslims assemble for Friday prayers at a mosque at noon. This day is often treated as a weekly day of rest. Different countries handle the weekend differently; some use Friday and Saturday, while others use Saturday and Sunday.

History shows that pre-Islamic Arabia used various time-tracking methods. Some South Arabian calendars used a lunisolar system, which combines the moon and the sun. Muslim authors from the Abbasid era suggest that ancient Arabs used names similar to the current Islamic months. There is a concept in Islamic tradition regarding "forbidden" months, or ḥarām months. These were four months when fighting was prohibited: Rajab and the three-month period containing the pilgrimage season. These months were Dhu al-Qa‘dah, Dhu al-Hijjah, and Muharram.

Scholars have debated the nature of a practice called Nasī. Nasī literally means "postponement." Some researchers believe the pre-Islamic calendar was purely lunar. They suggest Nasī involved moving religious events within the calendar rather than changing the calendar itself. Other scholars, such as the astronomer Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi, proposed that the calendar was once lunisolar. They suggest Arabs used intercalation, or adding an extra month, to keep the pilgrimage in a specific season. This practice was eventually prohibited. Muhammad addressed this during his farewell sermon on 9 Dhu al-Hijjah AH 10.

The months of the Hijri calendar carry deep significance. Four months are considered sacred: Rajab, Dhu al-Qa‘dah, Dhu al-Hijjah, and Muharram. During these times, battles are forbidden. Ramadan is perhaps the most venerated month. It is associated with "burning heat" and the practice of fasting. During Ramadan, Muslims refrain from sinful acts and do not eat from pre-dawn until sunset.

The end of this month is marked by the festival of Eid al-Fitr, the "Festival of Breaking the Fast."