Hijriyah Month Names – Hijri months are the references used in Islam for calendars. So, in contrast to the AD calendar system which refers to the circulation of the sun or the rotation of the earth around the sun. The Islamic month or Hijriyah calendar refers to the movement of the moon so that this calendar only amounts to 30 or 29 days.
So, the determination of the beginning of this hijriyah month is based on the appearance of the new moon or child moon (crescent moon). If the month has appeared then the beginning of the month has started. For example in determining the beginning of Ramadan. The officer and the rukyah team must look at the moon to determine whether the new moon has come out or not. Rukyah hilal is done at night 30 hijriyah. If the night appears in the moon, the next day is the beginning of hijriyah, which means that the previous month was 29 days. However, if the night of 30 does not appear the hilal (crescent moon on the western horizon) then the day is fulfilled to be 30 days, meaning that tomorrow is the thirtieth day and the following will be confirmed to enter 1 muharram of the new hijriyah year.
This rukyah is done to find out the beginning of the month in Islam which is 12 months which is also the same as the AD month. The month of Hiriyah begins with the month of Muharram and ends with the month of zulhijjah. Next, we will see in detail the names of the Hijri month or Islamic month in the Hijriyah calendar.
Hijri Month Names
1. Muharram
Muharram is the first month in Islam where the 1st of Muharram is the turn of the Islamic new year. Some people do not know and even think that the Islamic New Year is 1 Shawwal or holiday. So, we as Muslims should understand the Islamic months and new years.
Muharram is the first month in the Hijri calendar and has extraordinary features when compared to other months. Even Muharram is a great month until it is known as one of the 4 haram months.
2. Safar
The name of the second month in the Hijri calendar is Safar. So what does safar mean? Safar has many interpretations, among which a somewhat suitable meaning is empty or traveler. Aada is also the one who interprets the disease that occurs, because the month of Safar is a month that has many disasters and illnesses, so we are encouraged to pray and be free from all that badness.
There are also those who say that the name of the month “Safar” is because the people of Mecca are busy leaving Makkah this month so that Makkah becomes Empty (wikipedia). If we look at this meaning it is fitting that the sapphire moon is called “empty” because Mecca is empty due to the sapphire.
It is also said that in that month, the Arab tribes went to war and those who lost were taken all their belongings so that there was nothing left of the losers. Of these two meanings it is suitable if we interpret safar as “empty” or shifr.
3. Rabi’ul Awwal
The name of the next Islamic month is Rabi’ul Awwal. Rabi’ul Awwal is a special month in Islam because the noblest creature was born on the surface of the Earth, namely the birth of the natural lord of the Great Prophet Muhammad SAW on Monday 12 Rabi’ul Awal.
The meaning of Rabi’ul Awwal is spring, the origin of the phrase from Raba’a, based on http://id.wikishia.net/, this month is called rabbi ‘because the name begins in early spring (the first).
4. Rabi’ul Akhir
The fourth month in the Islamic calendar or Hijriyah is Rabi’ul Akhir or also known as Rabi’ul Tsani. Some say the meaning of the last month of Rabi’ul is the second spring which is a continuation of Rabi’ul awwal. There are also those who mean that this month is the month when the shepherding and migrants have settled after traveling.
Also see: Islamic Holidays, Complete with Meanings
5. Jumadil Awwal
The fifth month in the Islamic calendar is called Jummadil Awwal or jumadil Ula, this month there is a drought and people find it difficult to grow crops and raise livestock.
Some say that the name Jumadil comes from the Arabic word “Jamdun” which means strong. This month is known as the dry season, so life is difficult.
6. Jumadil Akhir
Jumadil Akhir or Tsani is the sixth month in the Hijri calendar. This month is a continuation of the previous dry season so it is called Jumadil Akhir and includes the ending of the dry season.
7. Rajab
The month of Rajab is derived from the word Rajjaba, Yurajjibu which means great. Indeed, in the month of Rajab, a lot of virtues and greatness occur. One of the miraculous and extraordinary things is Isra ‘Mi’raj of Prophet Muhammad SAW. which happened on the 27th of Rajab.
8. Sha’ban
Sha’ban is the eighth month in the Islamic calendar, it is also a great month and is close to the month of Ramaadan. One extraordinary night with Allah in this month is the night of Nisfu Sha’ban or the middle night of the month of Sha’ban.
The specialty is that tonight it is replaced by the servant practice logbook a year ago. So Muslims like to multiply their practices tonight and the next day and the day before the night of nisfu Sha’ban. The purpose of this is that the end of the experience notebook is full of good practices, and the beginning of the notebook is also filled with good practices.
One type of worship that is done is prayer beads because the rewards of people doing this prayer are very much, in the book i’anatuth-thalibin it is stated “Stawabuhu la yantahi”, meaning that the rewards are not inexhaustible (very much).
9. Ramadan
Ramadan is the ninth month in the hijri calendar. This is a special honor given to the Ummah of the prophet Muhammaad SAW. Ramadan means burning, because the servant who performs Ramadan fasting has his sins burned so that they are free from sins.
In the interpretation of al-Qurthubi it is stated that:
إنما سمي رمضان لأنه يرمض الذنوب أي يحرقها بالأعمال الصالحة
“It is called Ramadan because it burns / abolishes sins with righteous deeds”.
10. Shawwal
The tenth month of the month of Islam is shawwal. Shawwal means rising, light and profitable because this month the Islamic ummah is included in the fitrah. The first date of Shawwal is a day of victory and luck for Muslims who have been fasting for a whole month.
The month of Shawwal is the month for Muslims to be free from hellfire because they have been fasting sincerely for one month. It is also called the month of freedom from hellfire because it has been fighting lust for the past month.
11. Zulkaidah (Islamic Month Names)
Zulkaidah is the 11th month of Islam and it is considered a month of calm and also means a truce from war. Because the Arabs took off their weapons in that month and this month is one of the 4 haram months.
Also read: How Many Moons Does Jupiter Have
12. Zulhijjah
The month of the next Islamic month is Zulkaidah, this is the last month or the 12th month in the Hijri calendar. This is an extraordinary month for the Muslim Ummah because this month the Muslim Ummah is carrying out the fifth pillar of Islam, namely performing the pilgrimage.
In addition, it is mandatory to fast at the beginning of this month until the 9th day of Zulhijjah. The 8th day of zulhijjah is declared fasting because that day is considered a special day when the prophet Ibarahim will slaughter his son Prophet Ismail. It is called tarwiyyah because on that day Nabiyullah Ibarahim doubted (tarwiyah) whether the dream was from Allah or not.
Meanwhile, on the 9th of Zulhijjah, people go on the pilgrimage to perform wukuf id Arafah, and people in the country carry out Arafah’s extraordinary fast. Response 10 zulhijjah is the festival of qurban, or disebtu with Eid al-adha.
That is the 12 months of Islam in the hijriyah calendar, hopefully we better understand and are familiar with the hijriyah month which is calculated from the circulation of the month. Minmal 19 days of the month and a maximum of 30 days. There is neither 28 nor 31 as in the AD calendar.