In many countries around the world, every 29th of the month of the Muslim calendar, in the evening, the sky is scanned by observation committees in search of the crescent moon.
If the star is seen, the following month begins the next day. Otherwise, one more day must be added to the current month. The next month then begins two days later.
The twelve months of the Muslim calendar
The twelve months of the Hijri year are as follows:
1- muharram
2- safar
3- Rabi’ al-Awwal
4- rabi’ ath-thani
5- Jumada al-Awwal
6- jumada ath-second
7- rajab
8- Chaabane
9- ramadan
10- chawwal
11- dhu al-qi’da
12- Dhu al-Hijja
Observation committees, public or independent, scanned the sky Monday December 30 or Tuesday December 31 in search of the lunar crescent (hilal).
In some countries, Rajab, a sacred month in Islam, begins Wednesday January 1, in others Thursday January 2. Review of the dates selected.
1st Rajab 1446: Wednesday January 1, 2025
– Qatar
– Ivory Coast
– Libya
– Egypt
– Tunisia
– Kenya / Tanzania
– Brazil
– Indonesia
– United Arab Emirates
– Jordan
– Austria
– Japan
– South Africa
– Saudi Arabia
– United Kingdom
– Nigeria
– Senegal
1st Rajab 1446: Thursday January 2, 2025
– Mauritania
– Canada
– Afghanistan
– UNITED STATES
– Thailand
– Sri Lanka
– Pakistan
– Morocco
– Madagascar
And in France?
In France, since 2014, only the French Muslim Lunar Observatory has been responsible for observing the sky in search of the crescent moon. The association indicated in September 2022 that it was putting an end to its activities.
It is up to Muslims to organize themselves throughout France, autonomously, to set up committees for observing the lunar crescent as on the island of Reunion, to cite just one example.
White days January 2025
THE white days13th, 14th and 15th days of each lunar month, are associated with a fast, which it is meritorious to observe.
The dates to remember for jumada ath-thani are as follows:
– Thursday 13, Friday 14 and Saturday 15 Januaryin countries where the month of rajab began on Wednesday January 1;
– Friday 14, Saturday 15 and Sunday 16 Januaryin countries where the month of Rajab begins Thursday January 2.
With just two months until Ramadan 2025, observing a few days of fasting before the big leap is a very useful preparatory exercise.
Download rajab prayer times
We remind you that Al-Kanz has made available to you since 2007 the prayer times of your municipality.
As a reminder, you can also use it on our application, which can be downloaded by clicking on one of the links below:
– Al-Kanz app for iPhone/iPad
– Al-Kanz application for Android
