Important Days in the Islamic Calendar in 2008–2009

As you may be aware, the Islamic calendar, called the Hijra calendar (based on the year of migration of the Muslims from Makkah to Madina) is a lunar-based calendar. As such, the Islamic year is about 354 days long, so the Islamic dates move through the seasons, completing the cycle in 34 years.

Each month officially starts with the sighting of the new crescent moon. With advances in astronomy, we are able to calculate those days but when it comes to official events and holidays such as Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr, etc., many communities and Muslim states rely upon the actual sighting, so the dates listed here may not coincide with the actual day the events are celebrated.