Islamic calendar

The Islamic Calendar

The Islamic calendar, also called the Hijri calendar, is a special way to count days and years for many people who follow Islam. It is a lunar calendar, which means it follows the moon. This calendar has 12 months and usually 354 or 355 days in a year.

This calendar helps decide important Islamic holidays and events, like the time for fasting and big pilgrimages. Even though many countries use the Gregorian calendar for daily life, they still use the Hijri calendar for religious activities.

The Hijri calendar starts from a very important event in the year 622 CE, when Muhammad and his followers moved from Mecca to Medina. This move is called the Hijrah and marks the beginning of the Islamic New Year. Today, we often write the year in this calendar with the letters AH, which stands for "Anno Hegirae," meaning "In the year of the Hijrah."

Days of the Week

In the Islamic calendar, each day starts at sunset and ends at the next sunset. The days of the week have special names. The sixth day is called the "gathering day." On this day, many Muslims meet for a special prayer at a mosque around noon. This day is often a day off for many people.

Months of the Year

Each month in the Islamic calendar starts when a new moon cycle begins. Because of this, each month can have either 29 or 30 days. Four months are special and no fighting is allowed during them. These months are Rajab, Dhu'l-Qa'da, Dhu'l-Hijja, and Muharram.

The Islamic calendar is mainly used for religious events, while most everyday activities follow the Gregorian calendar used in many parts of the world.