General Information » Facts & Figures » Public Holidays

Other options Ü Annual Events [p.54]

The Islamic calendar starts from the year 622AD, the year of Prophet Mohammed’s (Peace Be Upon Him) migration (Hijra) from Mecca to Al Madinah. Hence the Islamic year is called the Hijri year and dates are followed by AH (AH stands for Anno Hegirae, meaning after the year of the Hijra).

The Hijri calendar is based on lunar months; there are 354 or 355 days in the Hijri year, which is divided into 12 lunar months, and is thus 11 days shorter than the Gregorian year. There are plenty of websites with Gregorian/Hijri calendar conversion tools, so you can find the equivalent Hijri date for any Gregorian date, and vice versa (try www.rabiah.com/convert).

As some holidays are based on the sighting of the moon and do not have fixed dates on the Hijri calendar, the dates of Islamic holidays are frequently confirmed less than 24 hours in advance. Most companies send an email round the day before, notifying you of the confirmed holiday date. Some non-religious holidays are fixed according to the Gregorian calendar. It should be noted that the public sector often gets additional days off for holidays where the private sector may not (for example on National Day the public sector gets two days of official holiday, whereas private sector companies take only one day). This can be a problem for working parents, as schools fall under the public sector and therefore get the extended holidays, so your children will usually have more days off than you do. No problem if you have full-time home help, but if not then you may have to take a day's leave.

The table lists the holidays and the number of days they last. This applies mainly to the public sector, so if you work in the private sector you may get fewer days per holiday.

The main Muslim festivals are Eid Al Fitr (The festival of the breaking of the fast, which marks the end of Ramadan) and Eid Al Adha (the festival of the sacrifice, which marks the end of the pilgramage to Mecca).

Mawlid Al Nabee is the holiday celebrating the Prophet's birthday, and Lailat Al Mi'raj celebrates the Prophet's ascension into Heaven.

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