Islamic Articles Islamic Calendar 2025

Islamic Calendar 2025 – Hijri Calendar 1446/1447

Muslims around the world use the Islamic Calendar (also known as the Lunar or Hijri calendar) to determine the dates of religious events and observances.
This Hijri calendar is based on 12 lunar months – a new month begins when a new moon is sighted.

Muslims around the world use the Islamic calendar to determine the dates of religious events and observances. It is also known as the Hijri calendar or the Muslim calendar.

The Hijri calendar is not to be confused with the Solar Hijri calendar used in Iran and Afghanistan.

Tied to the Moon Phases

The Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar whose time reckoning is tied to the Moon phases. Each month lasts for a full lunation, which is the time span from one New Moon to the next. This Moon cycle encompasses all the phases of the Moon.

The timing of the months in the Islamic calendar is based on astronomical observation. A new month can only begin after a Waxing Crescent Moon is observed shortly after sunset. The Waxing Crescent Moon is the Moon phase which starts right after a New Moon.
Detached from the Solar Year

Unlike other calendar systems that use leap days or leap months to synchronize the calendar with the solar year, the Islamic calendar is completely detached from astronomical seasons, which are marked by the equinoxes and solstices. An Islamic year consistently falls about 11 days short of the solar year.

Calendar types: solar, lunar, lunisolar

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.

How accurate are different calendar systems?

Difficult to Predict

The traditional version of the Islamic calendar requires an authorized person or committee to make an actual sighting of the Crescent Moon to determine the length of each month.

This dependence on astronomical observations makes it difficult to predict the length of Islamic months. Clouds and other adverse atmospheric conditions can obscure an otherwise visible Crescent Moon. When this happens, the month may be extended by a day, delaying both the beginning of the new month and the events associated with it. This is why the dates for Muslim holidays may change at short notice.

Modern Modified Versions

Some countries and Muslim communities now use modified versions of the traditional calendar that are designed to make the timing of Islamic months and observances easier to predict.

A new month may also begin on different days in different countries. Because the time of the moonset at a location depends on its longitude, a new month and key religious rituals like the Ramadan fast may begin a day earlier in, for example, West African Muslim countries than in Indonesia or Malaysia.

Calendar Structure

The Islamic calendar has 12 months with 29 or 30 days. If the Crescent Moon is visible shortly after sunset on the evening of day 29, the following day is the first day of the new month. If no sighting is made, a 30th day is added to the current month, which is then followed by the first day of the subsequent month.

The months of Rajab, Dhū al-Qa‘dah, Dhu al-Ḥijjah, and Muḥarram are considered sacred.

When Was Year 1?

Like the Persian calendar, Islamic time reckoning begins in 622 CE when the Muslim prophet Muhammad migrated to Medina. This event is referred to as Hegira or Hijrah, accounting for the name Hijri calendar.

In parallel with the letters AD (Anno Domini) used in the Christian calendar, years in the Islamic calendar are designated either H for Hijrah or AH, which stands for the Latin term Anno Hegirae.

The Persian and Islamic calendar systems are otherwise unrelated. The former is a solar calendar, so its year count differs substantially from that of the Islamic lunar calendar. For example, January 1, 2025 falls in the year 1446 AH in the Lunar Hijri calendar, which corresponds to year 1403 in the Solar Hijri calendar.

Leap Year Rules

The Islamic calendar year is not designed to match up with the length of a solar year, so it does not feature a correction mechanism like leap days in the Gregorian calendar to make up for the deviation. For each year that passes, Islamic dates fall on earlier dates in the Gregorian calendar. It takes 33 years until the Hijri year has cycled through a full Gregorian year and a given Islamic date again falls on the same Gregorian date.

Since the Islamic calendar years are shorter than Gregorian years and the current year number is lower, the two calendar systems will one day show the same year number. However, this will take some time: the year numbers will coincide on May 1, 20874 CE/AH.

Rule-Based Version

To make Islamic time reckoning more predictable and universal, Muslim scholars developed the Tabular Islamic calendar in the 8th century CE. This system uses arithmetical rules to determine the length of each month and inserts leap days on a regular basis.

History and Background

The modern Hijri calendar is based on and uses the same month names as the pre-Islamic calendar used by the Ancient Arabs. According to some sources, it was a lunisolar calendar where the length of the months followed the Moon phases and a leap month (Nasī’) was regularly inserted to re-align the time reckoning with the solar year. Following the Muslim conquest of Makkah, the leap month was abolished to create a purely lunar calendar.

The Iranian astronomer Al-Biruni (973 – 1048 CE) states that the Caliph Umar (c.583 – 644 CE) introduced the Islamic year count in 638 CE. Pre-Islamic time reckoning did not utilize year numbers as each year was identified by an important event that occurred in it.​

The Islamic calendar: How does it work and why is it lunar?
For Muslims, a month starts when a new moon is sighted. Here Middle East Eye explains why the Islamic calendar is different to the one most people are used to

More than 1.8 billion Muslims around the world follow the Islamic calendar in some form, meaning key dates, such as New Year’s Day, are marked at different times to the rest of the world, the majority of whom follow the Gregorian calendar.

For Muslims, the Islamic calendar, also called the Hijri calendar, holds religious significance and was the main calendar of day-to-day life until the process of westernisation across the Islamic world made the Gregorian calendar dominant.

However, Muslims continue to mark religious events using the Islamic calendar, as well as historic anniversaries relating to the life of the Prophet Muhammad.

The hijri calendar is used to determine the start dates for events, such as the start of Ramadan, the celebrations of Eid, and the Hajj pilgrimage.

The lunar calendar is mentioned in the Quran in Surah Yunus (the Chapter of Jonah). In this chapter, Muslims are told to mark the date based on the stages of the moon.

Here, Middle East Eye answers key questions about the calendar:
Why is it called the Hijri calendar and what are its origins?

The Islamic calendar is also commonly referred to as the Hijri calendar, a word that comes from the Arabic word hijra, meaning migration.

It refers to the Prophet Muhammad's migration from the city of Mecca, his birthplace, to Medina in 622 CE to escape persecution by his tribe, the Quraysh.

The city of Medina is significant for Muslims, as it was where the early Muslim community, known as the ummah (nation), was established.

Since the migration, 1,443 lunar years have passed, meaning we are now in the year 1443, according to the Hijri calendar.
How does it work?

The Islamic calendar is governed by the movements of the moon, meaning that each month starts with a new lunar cycle, marked by the "birth" of a new crescent moon.

As it is based on the lunar calendar, the Islamic calendar only has 354-355 days, due to the fact that a lunar cycle typically lasts for 29 or 30 days rather than the 30 or 31 days per month used in the solar calendar, which the dominant Gregorian calendar is based on.

f a new crescent moon is spotted on the 29th day, this marks the end of the lunar cycle, hence a new month starts the next day.

By religious custom, it is only necessary for one Muslim in the community to spot the moon.

Today, modern technology means that observing the moon is much easier and more scientifically accurate. It has therefore become a tradition among Muslims to try spotting it themselves and not rely on any one country to sight the moon.
What are the Islamic calendar months?

Muharram: The Islamic calendar started with the month of Muharram, Arabic for "forbidden". The month is called that because all forms of fighting are prohibited and worshippers have to refrain from doing anything that would violate the sanctity of the month.​

Some Muslims believe that the month signifies new beginnings, as it initially came after Muslims performed the Hajj pilgrimage, and would come back from the ritual having their sins forgiven.

The 10th day of Muharram, known as Ashura, is significant for both Sunni and Shia Muslims. For the Sunni majority, the day is marked with fasting and special prayers in mosques. For Shia Muslims, it marks the anniversary of the killing of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson Hussein during the Battle of Karbala, and is therefore a day of mourning.

Safar: The second month of the Islamic calendar means "void" in Arabic and was given the name because, before the formation of Islam, Arabs would leave their homes in search of food during this month.

Many would also use this time to travel, leaving their homes empty.

Rabi al-awwal: Meaning "first Spring", the month's name symbolises a period when cattle would start grazing. Muslims believe that the Prophet Muhammad was born during this month, making it particularly special.

Rabi al-thani: named "second Spring", this month symbolises the end of the spring.

Jumad al-awwal: Meaning "first (month) of the parched land".

Jumad al-thani: Meaning "second (month) of the parched land" this signifies the end to dry and arid weather.

Rajab: This month is seen as sacred, and marks the second month in which fighting is forbidden for the faithful. The word rajab means respect or honour, but can also mean "to remove". Some believe that the month gets its name as during this time, people would remove the heads of their spears to refrain from fighting.

Shaban: Arabic for "scattered", this month gets its name from the time when Arab tribes would split up across the land and travel around to obtain water.

Ramadan: One of the most well known months of the Islamic calendar is Ramadan, which is Arabic for "burning heat".​

The name symbolises scorching temperatures and serves as a reminder for Muslims to reflect on their behaviour and try to improve their character, as well as to let go of worldly desires.

The month, in which practising Muslims will fast from dawn to sunset, is one of the most important times of the year for worshippers.

During this month, Muslims will place emphasis on giving to charity, visiting the poor and sick, as well as engaging in extra prayers and asking for forgiveness.

Shawwal: Meaning "raised", the name refers to when female camels raise their tails when they are ready to give birth.

The first of the month is Eid al-Fitr, a time of celebration after Ramadan. Some Muslims may also choose to fast an optional six days during this month, with the belief that they are rewarded as if they fasted the whole year.

Dhul Qida: Meaning "the possessor of the truce", the month is another in which fighting is prohibited.

Dhul Hijjah: The final year of the Islamic calendar means "the possessor of the pilgrimage". The Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam, mandatory for every Muslim who is physically and financially able to undertake it in their lifetime.

Most Muslims will spend the period taking part in supplications and deriving lessons from the lives of the Islamic prophets.

The Hajj pilgrimage ends with Eid al-Adha, the festival of sacrifice, which falls on the 10th day and commemorates the willingness of the Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son Ismael in accordance with a command of God. This is the fourth month in which fighting is prohibited in Islam.
Which months are sacred?

There are four months that are seen as particularly sacred for worshippers. These are Muharram, Rajab, Dhul Qida and Dhul Hijjah.

These months are revered and fighting a war is prohibited in them, except in circumstances of extreme self-defence.​

The reason behind the ban on fighting during these four months was to allow pilgrims and merchants to safely travel to houses of worship and return home without the risk of being attacked.

During these months, Muslims are encouraged to be more mindful of their actions and carry out good deeds. Many will spend their time reflecting on pious acts and educating themselves on Islamic teachings.

Which countries still operate the Islamic calendar?



Today Muslims all over the world abide by the Islamic lunar calendar, however most will live their day-to-day lives using the more widely used Gregorian calendar.

Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries still officially use the Islamic calendar, however may use the Gregorian calendar for civil purposes.​