Muslims in Saudi Arabia will celebrate Eid on April 21 despite a rare hybrid total solar eclipse because of the sighting of the Shawwal crescent moon.
The term “Eid moon sighting” refers to the custom of Muslims observing the crescent or new moon to determine the beginning of the tenth Islamic month of Shawwal, which signifies the conclusion of a month-long fasting period known as Ramadan and the start of the Eid-ul-Fitr festival.
The sighting of the new moon is typically done with the naked eye or using telescopes, and once it is confirmed, the news is typically broadcast via media outlets, mosques, and community
Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic lunar calendar, and Shawwal is the tenth, with the first day of Shawwal being observed as the festival of Eid-ul-Fitr around the world.
Muslims are preparing to see the crescent moon tonight in order to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr or Eid-al-Fitr, as Shawwal is the Arabic word for “festival of breaking the fast,” and Shawwal is the tenth month in the Islamic lunar calendar.
The Islamic calendar is lunar, as opposed to the Gregorian calendar that the West traditionally uses. Because of this, Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr always fall 10–11 days early each year depending on when the crescent moon is spotted. This is due to the fact that lunar months are shorter than solar months, hence there is a one-day difference between countries.
Here in Ghana, the government has declared April 24 a public holiday to commemorate the annual Eid-ul-Fitr celebration.
The President declared April 24 a public holiday because the Eid-ul-Fitr festival comes on a Saturday, according to a statement issued by the Interior Ministry on Tuesday.
“The general public is hereby notified that Saturday, 22nd April 2023, marks Eid-ul-Fitr which is a statutory holiday.”
“However, in view of the fact that 22nd April falls on a Saturday, His Excellency, the President of the Republic of Ghana, has by Executive Instrument (E), in accordance with Section 2 of the Public Holidays and Commemorative Days Act, (Act 601) declared Monday, 24th April 2023 as an additional public holiday and should be observed as such throughout the country.”
The earlier of the two official Islamic holidays—Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha—is observed. Muslims all around the world observe the holy holiday because it signifies the conclusion of the month-long Ramadan fast, which is observed from sunrise to sunset.
It occurs on the first day of Shawwal in the Islamic calendar, which does not always correspond to the same day in the Gregorian calendar because the start of each lunar Hijri month depends on the time the new moon is observed by local religious authorities.
In numerous languages and nations around the world, the festival is known by many distinct names. Lesser Eid or just Eid are other names for the day.
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