There are different lunar calendars followed that leads to confusion. Here's the complete guide to rid that chaos.
Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid, Ahmed Bukhari announced on Thursday that the festival of Eid ul-Fitr will be celebrated on Saturday, June 16. Except for Kerala.
Muslims celebrate Eid ul-Fitr on the first day of the 10th month of Shawwal. It officially begins with the sighting of the new moon after sunset that also marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
The announcement from Shahi Imam in India came after there was no moonsighting on Thursday, across the country. Same is not the case with a lot of other countries that follow Saudi Arabia and Turkey's lunar calendar. Saudi Arabia announced that the Shawwal moon was sighted in the country on Thursday evening, therefore, they will celebrate Eid on Friday, June 15.
Following are the countries that will enjoy the festivities on Friday, June 15.
- Saudi Arabia
- Afghanistan
- Albania
- Armenia
- Australia (Only Lebanese & Turkish Communities)
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Bahrain
- Bangladesh (Some areas that follow Saudi Arabia's lunar calendar)
- Belgium
- Bolivia
- Burkina Faso
- Chechnia
- Denmark
- Finland
- Georgia
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Iraq (Sunnis that follow Saudi Arabia's lunar calendar)
- Italy
- Japan
- Jordan
- Kazakhstan
- Kuwait
- Kyrgyzstan
- Lebanon
- Mauritania
- Norway (Some communities that follow Saudi Arabia)
- Palestine
- Qatar
- Romania
- Russia
- Singapore
- Sudan
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Syria
- Taiwan
- Tajikistan
- Tatarstan
- Togo
- Turkmenistan
- UAE
- Uzbekistan
- Yemen
Here are the countries that follow Turkey's Lunar calendar (European Council for Fatwa & Research) they too will celebrate Eid on Friday, June 15.
- Turkey
- Angola
- Bosnia and Hercegovina
- Bulgaria
- Canada (Communities that follow FCNA)
- Croatia
- France
- Germany
- Ireland
- Kosovo
- Luxembourg
- Macedonia
- Montenegro
- Slovenia
- Serbia
- USA
China, Egypt, Poland, Scotland, and Tunisia follow their own procedure of calculating moonsighting. These five countries will be celebrating Eid on June 15.
Countries like India, Pakistan, Indonesia, many of the Asian countries with Muslim majority follow their own lunar calendar. Their month calculations are based on correct and authentic moonsighting that also considers the scientific timings for moonset. Saudi Arabia uses a pre-calculated civil Islamic calendar that is sometimes adjusted for religious months (Ramadan, Shawwal, and Dhul-Hijjah). If per these calculations, 30 days are completed by their pre-calculated civil calendar then they start new month even if the moon is not sighted on the 30th day. Therefore there are two Eid dates.
Following is a list of countries that have announced official date of celebrating Eid.
- India - June 16
- Indonesia - June 15
- Maldives - June 15
- Nigeria - June 15
- Philippines - June 15
- Spain - June 15
- UK - June 15
- USA - June 15
Following are the countries that celebrate Eid according to local moon sighting.
- Australia - June 16
- Barbados - June 15
- Ghana - June 15
- Kenya - June 15
- Mali - June 15
- Mauritius - June 16
- Morocco - June 15
- Namibia - June 15
- New Zealand - June 16
- Niger - June 15
- Pakistan - June 16
- Senegal - June 15
- South Africa - June 15
- Sri Lanka - June 16
- Tanzania - June 15
- Zambia - June 15
- Zimbabwe - June 15
The month of Ramadan/Ramzan started on May 16 for 2018. Eid ul-Fitr will be a public holiday in India. Muslims will offer early prayers at mosques or other outdoor venues. They will exchange gifts, celebrate the festival with a feast and surrounded by friends and family.
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