A twelve-month chronology across Sunni and Ja\u0027fari commemorative calendars. Historical dates may differ between source traditions; confirm local observances with trusted scholars.
Community schedule
There are no upcoming public events in the connected calendar.
43 observances · Hijri dates
Beginning of the lunar year; a time for reflection.
SharedSunni sources connect fasting with Musa's deliverance; the day is central to remembrance of Imam Husayn's martyrdom at Karbala.
SharedObserved in many Imami calendars; historical reports differ.
Ja'fariA date observed in several Shia commemorative calendars; reports vary.
Ja'fariThe fortieth-day remembrance after Ashura, associated with devotion to Imam Husayn (a.s.).
Ja'fariObserved in many Shia calendars; other chronologies place the passing on 12 Rabi al-Awwal.
Various reportsCommemorated in Imami tradition; calendars differ.
Ja'fariA devotional observance in some Shia communities; its status is understood differently across scholars.
Ja'fariObserved by many Sunni communities; exact historical date is debated.
SunniObserved in many Shia calendars; Mawlid observance differs among communities.
Ja'fariA date appearing in Imami calendars; reports differ.
Ja'fariCommemorates the granddaughter of the Prophet ﷺ and witness to Karbala.
Ja'fariDays of mourning for Lady Fatimah al-Zahra (s.a.); dates differ between reports.
Ja'fariObserved according to one transmitted chronology; another period is observed in Jumada al-Awwal.
Ja'fariA date widely used in Imami calendars.
Ja'fariObserved in many Imami calendars; sources differ.
Ja'fariCommemorated as the birth of the ninth Imam.
Ja'fariThe report of his birth inside the Ka'bah is prominent in Shia tradition and appears in some Sunni works; assessments differ.
Various reportsCommemorated in Imami tradition.
Ja'fariIsra is mentioned in Qur'an 17:1; precise dating is disputed.
Various reportsObserved in many Shia calendars.
Ja'fariRemembered for loyalty and sacrifice at Karbala.
Ja'fariObserved in many Imami calendars; reports vary.
Ja'fariThe night is observed for worship in many communities; Imami tradition commemorates the twelfth Imam's birth on this date.
Various reportsA date used to remember the first wife of the Prophet ﷺ and early supporter of Islam.
Various reportsWidely commemorated in Shia calendars.
Ja'fariThe Qur'an calls Badr the Day of Criterion (8:41); tradition places it on 17 Ramadan.
SharedRemembered as the night Imam Ali was struck while at prayer in Kufa.
Ja'fariThe commonly observed Imami date of the first Imam's martyrdom.
Ja'fariQur'an 97:3 calls the Night of Decree better than a thousand months; worship is encouraged throughout the last ten nights.
SharedThe festival marking completion of Ramadan; the date depends on lunar month determination.
SharedA day of remembrance for destruction of historic structures at al-Baqi; date details vary by source.
Various reportsCommemorated in many Shia calendars as the passing of the sixth Imam.
Ja'fariA date observed in many Imami calendars.
Ja'fariA devotional observance in some Shia calendars; interpretation and practices vary.
Ja'fariObserved in some Shia calendars; reports differ.
Ja'fariCommemorated in some Shia calendars.
Ja'fariObserved in many Shia calendars; sources are not uniform.
Ja'fariPilgrimage rites span these days according to the ritual sequence.
SharedStanding at Arafah is central to Hajj; supplication is encouraged.
SharedFestival of Sacrifice, connected to the Qur'anic account of Ibrahim's devotion.
SharedCommemorated in Shia tradition; Sunni and Shia scholars differ on the event's implications.
Ja'fariAssociated with Qur'an 3:61 and the reported meeting involving the Prophet ﷺ and members of his household.
SharedThe Islamic calendar counts lunar months from the migration of the Prophet from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE. Twelve lunar months run about 354 days, eleven shorter than the solar year, which is why Ramadan and the two Eids move steadily through every season over a thirty-three-year cycle. The Qur'an fixes the count: 'The number of months with Allah is twelve' (al-Tawba 9:36).
A month starts with the sighting of the new crescent. The Sunni schools and the Ja'fari school agree that sighting is the basis, but differ on whether a sighting in one country establishes the month elsewhere. The Shafi'i school and many Shia jurists tie it to a shared horizon, while others accept a global sighting. This difference — not disagreement about the religion — is why Eid can fall on different days in different communities.
Dhul Qa'da, Dhul Hijja, Muharram and Rajab are designated sacred in the same verse of al-Tawba. Fighting in them was prohibited in pre-Islamic Arabia and the Qur'an confirmed their sanctity, adding 'so do not wrong yourselves therein'. Voluntary fasting, extra charity and reconciliation are especially recommended in these months across all schools.
Fasting Ramadan is the fourth pillar, obligatory on every sane adult Muslim who is able, with the sick, the traveller, the pregnant and the nursing given concessions detailed differently by each school. Laylat al-Qadr, better than a thousand months (al-Qadr 97:3), is sought in the last ten nights — commonly the twenty-seventh in Sunni practice, and the nineteenth, twenty-first and twenty-third in Shia practice, the twenty-third being the strongest.
Hajj takes place from the eighth to the thirteenth of Dhul Hijja and is obligatory once in a lifetime for those with the means. The Day of Arafah on the ninth is the greatest day of supplication of the year; fasting it is recommended for those not on pilgrimage. Eid al-Fitr on 1 Shawwal closes Ramadan, and Eid al-Adha on 10 Dhul Hijja commemorates the sacrifice of Ibrahim.
The tenth of Muharram is honoured throughout the Ummah. Sunni tradition records the Prophet fasting it in gratitude for the deliverance of Musa, as narrated in Sahih al-Bukhari. For Shia Muslims and for many Sunnis it is above all the day of the martyrdom of Imam Husayn at Karbala in 61 AH, remembered with mourning gatherings, remembrance of his stand against tyranny, and service to the poor.
Written and reviewed by the editorial team of Imam Mahdi Civilizition. Where the schools of Islamic law differ, the positions of the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, Hanbali and Ja'fari schools are presented side by side. For a binding ruling in your own circumstances, consult a qualified scholar of the school you follow.