Eid al-Fitr 2028: Date, History & Significance

On the night before, the new moon is looked for; when it is seen, 'Chand Raat' is kept with shopping, henna and preparation. In the morning Muslims bathe, wear their best, eat something sweet (dates, or in the subcontinent sheer khurma / seviyan), and go to the Eidgah or mosque for the two-rakat Eid prayer and a sermon. The rest of the day is for embracing (Eid Mubarak), visiting relatives and the graves of the dead, gifts (Eidi) for children, and a great meal.

Ramadan is the month in which the Qur'an began to be revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. Fasting through it — abstaining from food, drink and wrongdoing from dawn to sunset — is one of the five pillars of Islam, kept for God-consciousness (taqwa) and self-restraint. Eid al-Fitr is the divinely appointed day to break that discipline in gratitude, and the fast is expressly forbidden on it.

Source: The scriptures and calendar of the tradition; community religious practice in India

Eid al-Fitr was instituted in Medina in the second year after the Hijra (623–624 CE). The Islamic calendar is purely lunar, so Eid moves about eleven days earlier each Gregorian year and can fall in any season. In India it is a gazetted national holiday.

• Wikipedia

1. Before the Eid prayer every household pays zakat al-fitr, a fixed charity for the poor, so that everyone can celebrate.
2. Men gather at the eidgah or mosque for the Eid prayer after eating a few dates; women pray at home or in the women's section, and new clothes are worn.
3. Elders give children eidi, and families visit relatives and neighbours with sweets, greeting each other 'Eid Mubarak'.

• Across India. The Eidgah prayer (Delhi's Jama Masjid, Hyderabad's Mir Alam, Lucknow's Aishbagh, Kashmir's Hazratbal draw the largest congregations), sheer khurma, new clothes and Eidi; markets and homes lit for Chand Raat.
• Kerala, Malabar. Kept as Cheriya Perunnal ('small feast'), with the prayer, biryani or ney choru, and family visits.

• Sheer khurma and seviyan — Vermicelli in milk with dates and dry fruit, the dish of the day.
• Dates — Eaten before leaving for the Eid prayer, following the Prophet's practice.
• Biryani and kebabs — The festive lunch for visiting family.

Eid-ul-Fitr falls on Sunday, 27 February 2028. Festival of breaking the fast (1 Shawwal).

at sunrise

1 Shawwal — the day after Ramadan ends, on the sighting of the new moon. The Islamic (Hijri) calendar is purely lunar with no intercalation, so its dates move about eleven days earlier through the Gregorian year on a 33-year cycle.

The date is set by the Hindu lunisolar calendar and shifts against the Gregorian year.