Shawwāl (شوّال) is the tenth month of the lunar Islamic calendar. Shawwāl means to ‘lift or carry’; so named because she-camels normally would be carrying a fetus at this time of year.
Fasting during Shawwāl [edit]
The first day of Shawwāl is Eid al-Fitr. Some Muslims observe six days of fasting during Shawwāl beginning the day after Eid ul-Fitr since fasting is prohibited on this day. These six days of fasting together with the Ramadan fasts, are equivalent to fasting "perpetually", according to Sahih Muslim. The reasoning behind this tradition is that a good deed in Islam is rewarded 10 times, hence fasting 30 days during Ramadan and 6 days during Shawwāl is equivalent to fasting the whole year in terms of reward.[1] It is a common misconception that the six days of fasting must be undertaken on consecutive days, but there is no hadith that support or stipulate this.
Timing [edit]
The Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar, and months begin when the first crescent of a new moon is sighted. Since the Islamic lunar calendar year is 11 to 12 days shorter than the solar year, Shawwāl migrates throughout the seasons. The actual and estimated start and end dates for Shawwāl are as follows:
| CE / AD |
AH |
First day |
Last day |
| 2005 |
1426 |
3 November |
2 December |
| 2006 |
1427 |
24 October |
21 November |
| 2007 |
1428 |
13 October |
10 November |
| 2008 |
1429 |
1 October |
29 October |
| 2009 |
1430[2] |
21 September |
19 October |
| 2010 |
1431[2] |
10 September |
8 October |
| 2011 |
1432[2] |
30 August |
28 September |
| 2012 |
1433[2] |
19 August |
16 September |
| 2013 |
1434[2] |
8 August |
6 September |
| 2014 |
1435[2] |
28 July |
26 August |
| 2015 |
1436[2] |
17 July |
15 August |
| Shawwāl dates between 2005 and 2015 |
Islāmic Events [edit]
- 01 Shawwāl, Eid al-Fitr is celebrated throughout the Muslim World.
- 08 shawwal, Bulldozing of Jannatul Mualla and Jannatul Baqee on 8th Shawwal Al-Mukarram 1926 is desecration of Holy Quran and Sunnah.[citation needed]
- 13 Shawwāl, primary traditionist of the Sunni Muslims, Muhammad al-Bukhari, was born in 194 AH.[citation needed]
- 17 Shawwāl, early Muslims took part in the Battle of Uhud
- 22 Shawwāl 1284 AH, death of Haji Dost Muhammad Qandhari, an Afghan Sufi master of Naqshbandi tradition
- 25 Shawwāl, death of Shī‘ah Imām, Ja‘far as-Sādiq
- 29 Shawwāl, Abu Talib ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib was born.[citation needed]
External links [edit]
