The Islamic New Year. This is the first day
of the year in the Islamic calendar. But what do Muslims actually
celebrate during this event, and how do they do it? Here's what you need
to know about this landmark date in the history of Islam.
What do Muslims celebrate during the Islamic New Year?
The Islamic New Year – also called Hijri New Year – is an annual commemoration of the Hijra, which is the Arabic word for emigration or exile. This day celebrates the emigration of Muhammad
in 622 from Mecca to the city of Yathrib, known today as Medina. In
Yathrib, the prophet of Islam gathered with his companion their first
community – or Ummah – around the same belief. The
Hijri New Year celebrates, thus, the foundation of the Muslim community.
This year, Muslims celebrate the year 1440 of the Islamic calendar.
When is the Muslim New Year?
In the Hijri calendar, the year starts on the 1st of the month of Muharram. Unlike the Gregorian solar calendar used in the West since 1582, the Hijri calendar is based on lunar months.
In a year, there are 12 months with a duration of 29 to 30 days. Each
month begins on the first crescent of a new moon. Thus, this calendar
contains only 354 or 355 days. And that is why the dates of the new
year, Ramadan and Aid al-Adha are, every year, shifted by ten or eleven
days in the Gregorian calendar.
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