A calendar that follows the moon
The Islamic year has 12 months, and each month begins with the first sighting of the new crescent moon after sunset. A lunar month is about 29½ days, so months have 29 or 30 days and the year has 354 or 355. Years are counted from the Hijra — the Prophet Muhammad's journey from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE — and marked AH.
In the official Umm al-Qura calendar of Saudi Arabia, which we follow, 19 of the years from 1421 to 1449 AH have 354 days and 10 have 355.
Why Ramadan moves
Because the Islamic year is about 11 days shorter than the solar year, every date in it moves about 11 days earlier each year in our calendar. Ramadan slowly travels through all the seasons, coming back to the same time of year about every 33.5 years.
| Ramadan begins | Day |
|---|---|
| 1 March 2025 | Saturday |
| 18 February 2026 | Wednesday |
| 8 February 2027 | Monday |
| 28 January 2028 | Friday |
| 16 January 2029 | Tuesday |
Sighting or calculation?
Many Muslims begin each month only when the crescent has actually been seen, so the start of Ramadan and the Eids is announced the evening before and can differ by a day from country to country, or from the calculated calendar. Saudi Arabia's Umm al-Qura calendar is calculated in advance from astronomical rules and is used for civil purposes, which is why dates printed ahead of time — including ours — can be a day out.
The months
1. Muharram, 2. Safar, 3. Rabi al-Awwal, 4. Rabi al-Thani, 5. Jumada al-Ula, 6. Jumada al-Akhirah, 7. Rajab, 8. Shaban, 9. Ramadan, 10. Shawwal, 11. Dhu al-Qadah and 12. Dhu al-Hijjah. Ramadan is the ninth month; Eid al-Fitr is on 1 Shawwal, and Eid al-Adha on 10 Dhu al-Hijjah, during the Hajj.