Islamic Calendar 2024 2025 Hijri 1445 To Gregorian Calendar 2024

Better algorithms for estimating the visibility of the new moon have been devised. “One of the issues faced by Muslims in the UK is that we tend to differ amongst ourselves on which dates we celebrate Ramadan and Eid,” explains Imad. The phases continue to 'first quarter', 'waxing gibbous' and then 'full Moon', where the entire face of the Moon seen from the Earth is fully lit by the Sun. There are eight phases of the Moon, beginning with the 'new Moon'. This is where the side of the Moon facing the Earth is not lit up by the Sun at all, and so the Moon is invisible. For thousands of years, humans have used the Moon to help mark time and the seasons.

Traditionally, the first day of each month is the day (beginning at sunset) of the first sighting of the hilal (crescent moon) shortly after sunset. If the hilal is not observed immediately after the 29th day of a month (either because clouds block its view or because the western sky is still too bright when the moon sets), then the day that begins at that sunset is the 30th. Such a sighting has to be made by one or more trustworthy men testifying before a committee of Muslim leaders. Determining the most likely day that the hilal could be observed was a motivation for Muslim interest in astronomy, which put Islam in the forefront of that science for many centuries. Still, due to the fact that both lunar reckoning systems are ultimately based on the lunar cycle itself, both systems still do roughly correspond to one another, never being more than three days out of synchronisation with one another.

Muslims around the world use the Islamic Calendar Islamic calendar to determine the dates of religious events and observances. Before AH 1420 (before 18 April 1999), if the moon's age at sunset in Riyadh was at least 12 hours, then the day ending at that sunset was the first day of the month. This often caused the Saudis to celebrate holy days one or even two days before other predominantly Muslim countries, including the dates for the Hajj, which can only be dated using Saudi dates because it is performed in Mecca. As Dhul-Hijjah concludes, the Islamic calendar transitions into Muharram, the first month of the new Islamic year. Beginning around July 9th, 2024, Muharram is one of the four sacred months in Islam and is a time for renewed spirituality and reflection. Following Muharram is Safar, another important month, which continues the cycle of devotion and reflection.

Each month starts when the lunar crescent is first seen (by a human observer’s eye) after a new moon. The Moon's regular cycle in the sky allows people to determine the number of months in a year, keep track of the changing seasons or mark the start of religious festivals. For that reason, the Islamic calendar cannot be used for agriculture or other activities traditionally linked to the seasons, and most Muslim countries officially use the Gregorian calendar as their civil calendar alongside the Hijri system.

Each month lasts for a full lunation, which is the time span from one New Moon to the next. Although new moons may be calculated quite precisely, the actual visibility of the crescent is much more difficult to predict. It depends on factors such as weather, the optical properties of the atmosphere, and the location of the observer. It is therefore very difficult to give accurate information in advance about when a new month will start. The Islamic calendar is the official calendar in countries around the Gulf, especially Saudi Arabia.