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[[
As a result, Islamic holidays are fairly few and far between. However, there are several ones worth mentioning.
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=== The New Year (1 Muharram) ===
A fairly unimportant holiday, which often goes completely unnoticed today. There are only two interesting things about it.
* One, its name in Arabic is ''Ra's al-Sanah''. If that sounds like [[
* Two, there's a story that Muhammad noticed that Jews fast for Yom Kippur in honor of Moses. To show that Muslims also honor Moses, he started fasting on the first two days of Muharram. Some people continue to observe the fast. That's about it.
=== Ashura (10 Muharram) ===
A pretty much strictly Shiite holiday, commemorating the defeat of [[The Prophet Muhammad]]'s grandson Husayn in the Battle of Karbala (in [[
Hijri year 61 (680 CE). Since Shiites regard Husayn as having a right to be the Caliph, they understandably regard the day as one of mourning; salty foods (representing salty tears) are eaten, and self-flagellation and other forms of self-injury (including, famously, cutting the forehead with a sword) are common forms of remembrance. Also, prayer. Lots of prayer.
Sunnis tend to ignore the holiday, although some believe that the aforementioned tradition of fasting on 1 and 2 Muharram actually applies to the 9th and 10th or 10th and 11th of Muharram; since the custom is based on a report of something the Prophet did, it's not unexpected that there are conflicting reports. This corresponds more closely to the date of Yom Kippur (10 Tishrei); Muslim months always start on the same day or almost the same day as Jewish months, as the Jewish calendar is lunisolar. There is also a cultural custom in Egypt and Turkey to eat a certain kind of pudding with nuts and dried fruit, also called Ashura, on that day; what it has to do with anything is unclear.
Bizarrely, the festival has also spread to the English-speaking Caribbean, particularly [[
=== Arbaeen (20 Safar) ===
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=== Mawlid an-Nabi (Birthday of the Prophet) (12 or 17 Rabi` al-Awwal) ===
A holiday whose importance varies from place to place. In some countries, it's a big deal, a full day off with parades and special prayers and so on; in some other ones, like [[
=== Isra' and Mi`raj (27 Rajab) ===
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