Ramadan fasting to start May 27 or May 28

Moon sighting committees in Saudi Arabia and Egypt confirmed that Shaban, the last lunar month before Ramadan, will start on Thursday evening.

The Muslim holy month of Ramadan will thus begin either on Saturday, May 27 or on Sunday, May 28, depending on moon sighting on the eve of May 27. Muslim lunar months last between 29 and 30 days, depending on sighting of the moon on the 29th night of each month. If the moon is not visible the month will last 30 days.

By the Gregorian solar calendar, Ramadan comes 10 to 11 days earlier each year. Last year, the first day of Ramadan was on June 6, 2016.

In order to declare the beginning of Ramadan, Saudi Arabia and other Muslim-majority countries depend on the testimonies of local moon sighters. The Judicial High Court then makes a decision on when Ramadan begins.

For Muslims, Ramadan is the month in which the first verses of the Quran, Islam’s holy book, were revealed to the Prophet Muhammad over 1,400 years ago.

During Ramadan, Muslims abstain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex from sunrise to sunset. This fasting is intended to bring the faithful closer to God and to remind them of the suffering of those less fortunate.

Ramadan fasting is one of the five pillars of Islam, along with the Muslim declaration of faith, daily prayer, charity and performing the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca.

In Muslim-majority countries, offices are required by law to reduce working hours and many restaurants are closed during daylight hours.

At the end of Ramadan, after 29 or 30 days, Muslims celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday. Eid al-Fitr in Arabic literally means “festival of breaking the fast”.

Depending on the actual start date of Ramadan and moon sightining on the 29th night of Ramdan, the Eid al-Fitr this year will fall between Sunday, June 25 and Tuesday, June 27.