Hijri newyears come almost uncelebrated, just briefly noted on in some papers and official governmental offices. It;s a one day public holiday except in some Islamic countries. This year around the First of Muharram came on a Friday, which is from sunset-Thursday to sunset Friday. Some countries announced Friday as a holiday like Tunisia; while others didn't.
The Islamic calendar is based on the lunar year of about 354 days. The number of days each month is adjusted according to the lunar cycle, beginning about two days after the new moon. the months vary in length from 29 to 30 days and drift backward over the seasons, returning to their starting points after about 33 lunar years. the difference between a lunar and solar year is 11 days (12 if it is a leap year). The Islamic year begins on the first day of Muharram, and is counted from the year of the Hegira (anno Hegirae AH).
In 638 (the year 17 AH), Abu-Musa al-Asha'ari, one of the officials of the second Caliph Umar in Basrah, complained about the absence of any dating system in the correspondence he received from Umar, making it difficult for him to determine which instructions were most recent. This report convinced Umar of the need to introduce a calendar system for Muslims. After debating the issue with his Counsellors, he decided to start the calendar with the date of Muhammad’s arrival at Medina.
Uthman ibn Affan then suggested to start the calendar with the month of Muharram, in line with the established custom of the Arabs at that time.
1431 calendar
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