Islamic Calendar

1. Moharram - Muharram is the first month of the Islamic calendar. It is one of the four months of the year in which fighting is prohibited. Since the Islamic calendar is lunar, Muharram moves from year to year when compared with the Gregorian calendar.

Important Events :

On 1 Muharram, the Islamic New Year is observed by Muslims.



On 1 Muharram, Shi'ite Muslims begin the observance of the Commemoration of Muharram which marks the anniversary of the Battle of Karbala. Imam Husayn entered Karbala.



On 7 Muharram, access to water was banned on Husayn by Yazid's order.



On 10 Muharram

, the Day of Ashurah is commemorated by Muslims as the anniversary of the death of Husayn bin Ali, the grandson of Muhammad (Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam) . But the Shi'ite Muslims attach much greater importance to this day.



On 25 Muharram, Fourth Imam Hazrat Zain-ul-Abedin was poisoned.



On 27 Muharram, Mesum was killed.



2. Safar. - is the second month in the Islamic calendar."Safar literally means ‘the void month’. The origin of this word has two theories: the first says that when the pagan Arabs went on their looting expeditions they would leave their houses empty or ‘sifr’ meaning void. The second theory says that the word is derived form the Arabic word for yellow called ‘sufr’: as when it was first named it fell in the time of autumn, hence the derivation the word yellow as all the leaves at that time turned yellow. It is held to be the unluckiest month of the calendar, as in this month Adam was turned out of the Garden of Eden.



Important Events :



01 Safar, Households of Muhammad entered Yazid's Palace at Syria.



07 Safar, Seventh Shia Imam Musa_al_Kazim was born.



09 Safar, Victory to Imam Ali over Battle of Nahrawan.



13 Safar, Death of Sakina bint Husayn.



17 Safar, Death of eighth Shia Imam Ali Raza.



20 Safar, Arba'een is observed by Shiite Muslims, forty days after the Day of Ashurah.



28 Safar, Death of Muhammad & Imam Hasan. (According to Shi'a Islam)





3. Rabi - ul - Awwal. is the third month in the Islamic calendar. Muhammad is considered by Sunni Muslims to have been born on the twelfth of this month, and many Muslims celebrate the Mawlid on this day. Shi'a Muslims believe him to have been born on the dawn of the seventeenth day.



Important Events :



On 8 Rabi' al-Awwal, the eleventh Shia Imam, Hasan al-Askari was killed.



On 12 Rabi' al-Awwal, some Sunnis observe Mawlid in commemoration of Muhammad's birthday



On 17 Rabi' al-Awwal, the Shi`a Islam celebrate the birthday of Muhammad and the sixth Imam Jafar Sadiq.



On 18 Rabi' al-Awwal, the Shi`a Islam celebrate the birthday of Umm Khultum bint Ali, daughter of Ali ibn Abi Taalib.



On 26 Rabi' al-Awwal, Abu Talib ibn Abdul Muttalib died.



4. Rabi - ul - Aakhir or Rabi’ al-Thani is the fourth month in the Islamic Calendar.The name literally means ‘the last month of spring'.



Important Events :



On 10 Rabi' al-Thani, the eleventh Shia Imam, Hasan al-Askari was born.





5. Jama dil Awwal or Jumada al-awwal is the fifth month in the Islamic calendar. We can also find the alternative spelling Jumada al-Ula. The origin of the word is as follows: the word Jumda, from which the name of the month is derived, is used to denote dry parched land: land devoid of rain, and hence denote the dry months



Important Events :



On 15 Jumada al-awwal, the fourth Shia Imam, Ali ibn Husayn (Zayn al-Abideen) was born.



6. Jama dil Aakhir or Jumada al-thani is the sixth month in the Islamic Calendar. It is also known as Jumaada-ul-Akhir and Jumada-l-Akhra. This is the sixth month of the islamic calendar. The origin of the word is as follows: the word Jumda, from which the name of the month is derived, is used to denote dry parched land: land devoid of rain, and hence denote the dry months



Important Events :



On 8 AH: Dhat as-Salasil



On 03 Jumada al-thani,11AH, is the death of Muhammad's daughter Fatima Zahra



On 10 Jumada al-thani, victory to Imam Ali over Battle of Bassorah.



On 13 Jumada al-thani, Umm Baneen the mother of Abbas ibn Ali died.



On 20 Jumada al-thani, Muhammad's daughter Fatima Zahra was born.



On 22 Jumada al-thani, Shi'a celebrates the day providing food to everyone. This tradition is followed from 2rd Shia Imam Hasan ibn Ali and so is named after him.



7. Rajjab. is the seventh month of the Islamic calendar. The lexical definition of Rajaba is "to respect", which is where the word Rajab has been derived from. Rajab denotes ‘the honoured month’. This month was held in great esteem by the pagan Arabs and like Muharram it was a month during which fighting was forbidden.



Important Events :

On 01 Rajab, 5th Imam Muhammad al-Baqir was born.

On 03 Rajab, is the death of 10th Imam Ali Naqi.

On 04 Rajab, Sufi of Chishti Order celebrate the annivarsary of Khawaja Moinuddin Chishti

On 05 Rajab, the 10th Imam Ali Naqi was born.

On 07 Rajab, Shi'a Muslims observe the Festival of Imam Musa al Kazim in dedication of Musa al Kazim.

On 09 Rajab, Ali Asghar, son of Imam Husayn was born.

On 10 Rajab, the 9th Imam Muhammad al-Taqi was born.

On 13 Rajab, celebrates their first Imam Ali's birthday with great zeal.

On 18 Rajab, Abraham died. (In accordance with Shi'a Islam)

On 22 Rajab, Koonday (table cloth dinner) is organized by Sunni Muslims. It is an occasion for Muslims to discuss Allah and the Holy Ahlul Bayt and to strengthen ties among the community with love and compassion. This tradition is more common among the Muslims of South Asia. It is reported to be a practice instructed by 6th Imam Jafar as-Sadiq.

On 24 Rajab, victory to Mulims in the battle of Khyber.

On 25 Rajab, is the death of 7th Imam Musa al Kazim.

On 27 Rajab, Non Salafi Sunni celebrate Mi'raj i.e. the day Muhammad is alleged to have ascended to heaven.

On 28 Rajab, Imam Husayn started his journey to Karbala from Medina. In the year 5 A.H Bilal ibn Harith is reported to have brought a congregation of four hundred men named Banu Muzeena in the presence of Muhammad. They all embraced Islam.



The Battle of Tabouk took place in the year 9 A.H. This was the last battle which Muhammad participated in.



The second Oath of Aqabah took place in Rajab, 12 A.H. Saladin entered Jerusalem during the month of Rajab



On 28 Rajab 1342 AH (3 March 1924), the Caliphate was destroyed by Mustafa Kamal Pasha in Turkey and muslim nation was divided then into many states by colonial powers of Britain and France namely.





8. Shaaban Sha'aban is the eighth month of the Islamic calendar. This is the month of ‘separation’, so called because the pagan Arabs used to disperse in search of water. On the fifteenth night of this month falls the Shab-i-Barat: ‘The Night of Records’; some people think that on this night Muhammad told his followers that Allah records all the deeds that the humans have to perform for the next year.[citation needed] However, there is no Quranic or Hadith evidence to support this.



Important Events :



01 Sha'aban, birth of Zaynab bint Ali, daughter of Imam Ali.



03 Sha'aban, birth of the third Imam Husayn ibn Ali.

04 Sha'aban, birth of Abbas ibn Ali, son of Ali ibn Abi Talib.

05 Sha'aban, The fourth Imam Ali ibn Husayn.

05 Sha'aban, death of Hazrat Fiza, the Qaneez(hand-maiden) of Fatima Zahra.

07 Sha'aban, birth of Qasim, son of the second Shi'a Imam Hassan ibn Ali.

11 Sha'aban, birth of Ali Akbar, son of the third Shi'a Imam Husayn.

14 Sha'aban, night of prayer known as Shab-e-Barat observed by Muslims.

15 Sha'aban (Mid-Sha'ban), birth of the twelfth Shia Imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi.



9. Ramadan - The word Ramadan is derived from the word ramd "to burn". Fasting in the month of Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam. The month is spent fasting during the daylight hours from dawn to dusk. The name came from the time before the Islamic calendar, when the month of Ramadan fell in the summer. Fasting during this month is often thought to figuratively burn away all sins. Muslims believe that the Qur'an was sent down to the earth during this month. Furthermore, Muhammad (PBUH) told his followers that the gates of Heaven would be open all the month and the gates of Hell would be closed. The first day of the next month is spent in celebrations and is observed as the ‘Festival of Breaking Fast’ or `Eid ul-Fitr.



Important Events :



On 02 Ramadan, the Torah was bestowed on Moses. (As claimed by Shi'a Islam)

On 10 Ramadan, Khadija, wife of Muhammad, died.

On 12 Ramadan, the Bible was bestowed on Jesus. (As claimed by Shi'a Islam)

On 15 Ramadan, Hassan ibn Ali son of Imam Ali was born.

On 17 Ramadan, the Battle of Badr was won by the Muslims.

On 18 Ramadan, the Psalms were bestowed on David. (As claimed by Shi'a Islam)

On 19 Ramadan, Imam Ali was injured by a sword.

On 21 Ramadan, Imam Ali was killed.

On 23 Ramadan, the Qur'an was bestowed on Muhammad. (In accordance with Shi'a Islam; according to Sunni Islam the date is unknown, but is in the last ten days of Ramadan) Laylat al-Qadr (The Night of Destiny) is observed during one of the last five odd numbered days of the month. Muslims believe that this night is better than a thousand months. This is often interpreted as praying throughout this night is rewarded equally with praying for a thousand months. Many Muslims spend the entire night in prayer. According to Shi'a Islam this night is the 19th or 21st, o six days of fasting during Shawwal which, together with the Ramadan fasts, are equivalent to fasting "perpetually" (according to Sahih Muslim). Usually, this is taken to mean the whole year. The explanation is that a good deed in islam is rewarded 10 times, hence fasting 30 days in Ramadan with 6 days in Shawwal is equivalent to fasting the whole year in terms of reward Islam online . It is a common misconception that the six days of fasting must be undertaken on consecutive days, as there are no hadith that support or stipulate this.
Shawwal means ‘lift or carry’; so named because she camels would be carrying a fetus at this time. In this month Muhammad married Aisha, the daughter of his commander-in-chief Abu Bakr. The first day of Shawwal is celebrated as Eid ul-Fitr.
r 23rd of this month, but according to the Sunni Sect this night is 21, 23, 25, 27 or 29.However,it is said the date would be kept "top secret" by Allah (God).

10. Shawaal is the tenth month on the Lunar Islamic calendar. The first day of Shawwal is Eid ul-Fitr. There are also
Important Events :

On 01 Shawwal, Eid is celebrated throughout the Muslim World.
On 13 Shawwal, 194 AH Muhammad al-Bukhari
On 15 Shawwal, Sixth Imam Jafar Sadiq was killed.
On 17 Shawwal, victory to Muslims in th Battle of Uhud

11. Zil - Qad or Dhu al-Qi'dah - is the eleventh month in the Islamic calendar. It can also be known as Thou al-Qi`dah.The meaning of the word is ‘Master of Truce’ as the pagan Arabs did not conduct war during this month.

On 01 Dhu al-Qi'dah, Hazrat Masoumeh of Qom sister of Eight Imam Reza was born
On 11 Dhu al-Qi'dah, Eighth Imam Reza was born
On 25 Dhu al-Qi'dah, Jesus was born. (In accordance with Shi'a Islam)
On 29 Dhu al-Qi'dah, Ninth Imam Muhammad al-Taqi was killed.

12. Zil - Haj Dhu al-Hijja is the twelfth and final month in the Islamic Calendar. It is also known as Thou al-Hijja. This is a very sacred month in the Islamic calendar, marking the end of the year. It is in this month in which the Hajj Pilgrimage takes place.
"Dhu al-hijjah" literally means ‘Lord of the Pilgrimage.’ It is during this month that pilgrims from all around the world congregate at Makkah to visit the Kaaba. The Hajj is performed on the eighth, ninth and the tenth of this month. Eid ul-Adha, the ‘Festival of the Sacrifice,’ is held on the tenth day.


On 01 Dhu al-Hijjah, Nikah of Imam Ali and Fatima Zahra took place.
On 07 Dhu al-Hijjah, Fifth Imam Muhammad Baqir was killed.
On 08 Dhu al-Hijjah, Imam Husayn started his journey to Karbala from Makkah.
On 09 Dhu al-Hijjah, Muslim ibn Aqeel was killed at Kufa. It is also a day of supererogatory fasting.



On 18 Dhu al-Hijjah, Shi'a Muslims celebrated event of Ghadir Khumm.
On 19 Dhu al-Hijjah, Fatima Zahra went to Imam Ali house after their marriage.
On 24 Dhu al-Hijjah, Event of Al-Mubahila.