Muslim Holidays in 2022: Calendar

Features of the Muslim calendar
Hijri calendar
Muslim Holidays 2022

In 2022, the Muslim calendar is official in many countries around the world, but even more Muslims living in different countries use it to determine the dates of traditional holidays and important religious dates.

Features of the Muslim calendar

Most of the states of the world today use the Gregorian solar calendar, which counts from the birth of Jesus Christ (Prophet Isa, R.A.) and includes 12 months (365 or 366 days). In Islam, the lunar calendar is taken as a basis, counting the days from the moment of Hegira - the resettlement of the Prophet Muhammad (s.G.V.) and the first Muslims from Mecca to Medina, which occurred in 622 according to the Gregorian chronology.

The key difference is that the Muslim calendar is shorter than the Gregorian one by 11-12 days, so the onset of certain religiously significant events occurs on different dates of the Gregorian calendar.

At the same time, Muslims do not have a universal unified Islamic calendar, since they use different methods for determining the new month.

Some theologians argue that this moment comes when a new moon is visible in the sky.
Others believe that in this case, one should resort to the latest technologies and determine the onset of the month by satellite.

It is the presence of these disagreements that leads to the fact that the same event (for example, the onset of the month of Ramadan, the celebration of Eid al-Adha, and so on) in different states and even regions of the same country occurs at different times.

The Muslim calendar, like the Gregorian, is 12 months long. The final Revelation of God says: “Indeed, the number of months with Allah is 12. This was written in the scriptures on the day when Allah created the Heavens and the Earth. Four months of them are forbidden. (9:36) "

Hijri calendar

The years are counted from the Hijra - the resettlement of Mohammed to Medina in 622 AD. On July 16th of this year (according to the Julian calendar) AH 1 (AH = Anno Hegirae = year of Hijri) began. The Muslim year is significantly shorter (by about 11 days) than the tropical year used in the Christian calendar, so the chronology is not the same. When the year 2023 according to the Gregorian calendar comes, according to the Hijri the year 1443 will end and the year 1444 will come (the change will take place in July according to the chronology familiar to Russians). It will be many years before these two calendars become equal.

Interesting fact! The first day of the 5th month of 20874 in the Gregorian calendar will also be (approximately) the first day of the 5th month of 20874 AH in the Muslim calendar.

In the Muslim calendar, months have the following names:

Muharram
Safar
Rabi al-awwal (Rabi I)
Rabi al-Thani (Rabi II)
Jumada al-awwal (Jumada I)
Jumada al-Thani (Jumada II)
Rajab
Shaaban
Ramadan
Shawval
Dhu-l-Kaada
Dhu-l-Hijja

Please note that due to the difference in the transliteration of the Arabic alphabet in different sources, you can find other spellings of the names of the months.

Most Muslims believe that each month begins when a person can see with his own eyes the crescent moon after the new moon. While new moons can be calculated very accurately, the actual visibility of a crescent is much more difficult to predict. This depends on factors such as the weather, the optical properties of the atmosphere, and the location of the observer. Therefore, it is very difficult to predict in advance when a new month will start.

As stated earlier, some Muslims aje take into account the local visibility of the moon, while others rely on the testimony of authorities in the Muslim world. Islam allows both possibilities, but this can lead to different start times of the months.

However, Muslim calendars for 2022 are still printed for planning purposes, but they are based on estimates of the visibility of the lunar crescent, and in reality, the month may start a day later or earlier than predicted in the printed Muslim 2022 calendar, which you can download from our website.

Note! Since the change of months in calendars does not match, they are highlighted in different colors. On a gray background - the number of the Gregorian calendar, on a green or brown - the dates of the Muslim calendar.

Muslim Holidays 2022

In 2022, the following Muslim holidays are planned in the calendar:

March 1 (Tuesday) - Laylat al-Miraj;
March 17 (Thursday) - Laylat al-Baraat;
from Saturday 2 April to Sunday 1 May - Ramadan;
from Monday May 2 to Tuesday May 3 - Eid al-Adha;
July 9 (Saturday) - Kurban Bayram;
July 10 (Sunday) - 1st day of At-Tashrik;
July 11 (Monday) - 2nd day of At-Tashrik;
July 12 (Tuesday) - 3rd day of At-Tashrik;
July 23 (Saturday) - Eid al-Mubahilah;
July 30 (Saturday) - Muharram (Muslim New Year);
from Sunday 7 August to Monday 8 August - Ashura;
September 16 (Friday) - Arbain;
September 23 (Friday) - Hijri Night;
September 24 (Saturday) - Day of death of the Prophet Muhammad;
October 8 (Saturday) - Mawlid (birthday of the Prophet Muhammad).

Ramadan is one of the most notable Islamic holidays in the world. Two weeks before this occurs the Night of al-Qadr (Arabic: لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْر), the night of forgiveness. This is one of the Muslim holidays when believers realize one of the five pillars of Islam: they forgive each other for their sins and give alms to the poor in preparation for Ramadan. Starting in the ninth month of the Muslim calendar, this is the holy month of fasting from dawn to dusk. It allows you to exercise self-control, embrace hunger in dealing with the poor, and build a community. Eid al-Fitr or Uraza-bairam (from Persian روزه rūzeh - "fasting" and Tur. Bayram - "holiday"), marks the end of the month of fasting and is the second of the main Islamic holidays.

Now you know what holidays will be celebrated in Muslim families in 2022 and how the Muslim calendar differs from the principle of chronology that is familiar to Russians and Europeans. If there are adherents of Islam among your friends or colleagues, then by saving our calendar of Muslim holidays for 2022 on your device, you can not miss important dates.

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