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| National Holidays of Azerbaijan |
Azerb.com
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You may hear complaints about Azeri salaries
but none about their holidays. Bank and religious holidays are generously
spread along the year. There is even an holiday dedicated to the Azerbaijani
Armed Forces... maybe to celebrate future events.
| Name of Holiday | Date |
| New Year's Day | January 1 |
| Day of Shehids (1990 massacre) | January 20 |
| International Women's Day | March 8 |
| Novruz Bayram | March 22 |
| Victory Day | May 9 |
| Day of The Republic (independence day in 1918) | May 28 |
| National Army Day | June 26 |
| Day of National Salvation
(a bit of personality cult: celebrates Heydar Aliyev's return to the leadership of the Republic) |
June 15 |
| Day of Armed Forces | October 9 |
| Day of State Sovereignty (independence day in 1991) | October 18 |
| Constitution Day | November 12 |
| Day of National Revival
(signals the Nationalist demonstrations of 1988) |
November 17 |
| Universal Azeri Solidarity
Day
(marks the '1st World Congress of the Azeri people' in Istanbul, in 1992) |
December 31 |
| Gourban Bayramy (Eid-al-Adha: feast of sacrifice) | varies: see Hijri Calendar below |
| Orudjlug Bayramy (Eid-al-Fitr : end of Ramadan) | varies: see Hijri Calendar below |
'bayram' = holiday, festival
The Gregorian calendar dates for the most
relevant Islamic events are indicated below,
the dates were calculated using our calendar
converter and
Islamic Timer 2.01 programme (free
software download, please see below). These dates are obviously subject
to change, subject to sighting of the moon.
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| Ramadan
Eid al Fitr Eid al Adha Islamic New Year |
July
21 to August 20, 2012 AD
August 19, 2012 AD October 26, 2012 AD November 15, 2012 AD |
1 Ramadan
1433 AH
1 Shawwal 1433 AH 10 Zul Hijjah 1433 AH 1 Muharram 1434 AH |
The Islamic Calendar, which is based purely on lunar cycles, was first introduced in 638 C.E. by the close companion of the Prophet and the second Caliph, `Umar ibn Al-KHaTTab (592-644 C.E.). He did it in an attempt to rationalize the various, at times conflicting, dating systems used during his time. `Umar consulted with his advisors on the starting date of the new Muslim chronology. It was finally agreed that the most appropriate reference point for the Islamic calendar was the "Hijrah". The actual starting date for the Calendar was chosen (on the basis of purely lunar years, counting backwards) to be the first day of the first month (1 MuHarram) of the year of the Hijrah. The Islamic (Hijri) calendar (with dates that fall within the Muslim Era) is usually abbreviated A.H. in Western languages from the latinized "Anno Hegirae". MuHarram 1, 1 A.H. corresponds to July 16, 622 C.E.
The Hijrah, which chronicles the migration of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) from Makkah to Madinah in September 622 C.E., is the central historical event of early Islam. It led to the foundation of the first Muslim city-state, a turning point in Islamic and world history.
The Islamic (Hijri) year consists of twelve
(purely lunar) months. They are: (1) MuHarram; (2) Safar; (3) Raby` al-awal;
(4) Raby` al-THaany; (5) Jumaada al-awal; (6) Jumaada al-THaany; (7) Rajab;
(8) SHa`baan;
(9) RamaDHaan; (10) SHawwal; (11) Thw
al-Qi`dah; and (12) Thw al-Hijjah.
The most important dates in the Islamic (Hijri) year are: 1 MuHarram (Islamic new year); 27 Rajab (Isra & Miraj); 1 RamaDHaan (first day of fasting); 17 RamaDHan (Nuzul Al-Qur'an); Last 10 days of RamaDHaan which include Laylatu al-Qadar; 1 SHawwal (`iyd al-FiTr); 8-10 Thw al-Hijjah (the Hajj to Makkah); and 10 Thw al-Hijjah (`iyd al-'aDHHae).
Since the Islamic calendar is purely lunar, as apposed to solar or luni-solar, the Muslim (Hijri) year is shorter than the Gregorian year by about 11 days, and months in the Islamic (Hijri) year are not related to seasons, which are fundamentally related to the solar cycle. This means that important Muslim festivals, which always fall in the same Hijri month, may occur in different seasons. For example, the Hajj and RamDHaan can take place in the summer as well as the winter. It is only over a 33 year cycle that lunar months take a complete turn and fall during the same season.
source: Waleed Muhanna
| see also: culture, geography, places, religion, summary, photos |
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Bank Holidays
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