What Are the 12 Months of the Hijri Year in Arabic — and How Long Is Each One?

Short answer: the Hijri year has twelve months, usually transliterated Muharram, Safar, Rabi al-Awwal, Rabi al-Thani, Jumada al-Ula, Jumada al-Thaniyah, Rajab, Sha'ban, Ramadan, Shawwal, Dhu al-Qi'dah, and Dhu al-Hijjah. Each runs 29 or 30 days, which is why the Hijri year is shorter than a Gregorian one, per the U.S. Naval Observatory's Islamic calendar reference. There is no thirteenth month and no fixed day count per month.

The twelve months in order

• 1. Muharram — محرم
• 2. Safar — صفر
• 3. Rabi al-Awwal — ربيع الأول
• 4. Rabi al-Thani (also Rabi al-Akhir) — ربيع الآخر
• 5. Jumada al-Ula (also Jumada al-Awwal) — جمادى الأولى
• 6. Jumada al-Thaniyah (also Jumada al-Akhirah) — جمادى الآخرة
• 7. Rajab — رجب
• 8. Sha'ban — شعبان
• 9. Ramadan — رمضان
• 10. Shawwal — شوال
• 11. Dhu al-Qi'dah — ذو القعدة
• 12. Dhu al-Hijjah — ذو الحجة

The Naval Observatory's month table marks Muharram, Rajab, Dhu al-Qi'dah, and Dhu al-Hijjah as holy months.

In short: twelve names, a fixed order, and several months whose transliteration varies by source.

Why the spellings differ so much

Arabic does not map one-to-one onto English letters, so the same month shows up as Dhu al-Hijjah, Dhul Hijja, or Zulhijjah depending on who typed it. Points to expect:

• Definite article variation — al- may be written el-, ul-, or dropped entirely.
• Ordinal pairs — months 3/4 and 5/6 come in "first" and "second" pairs, and some sources render the second as al-Thani and others as al-Akhir ("the latter").
• Letters with no English equivalent — the sounds written dh, th, and ' are handled inconsistently.

When a visa form, a hotel booking, and an official letter spell a month three ways, they are almost always naming the same month. Match on position in the year, not on spelling.

In short: compare month numbers when the transliterations don't line up.

Why no month has a fixed length

The Hijri calendar is purely lunar. The Naval Observatory's introduction to calendars separates purely lunar calendars from solar and luni-solar ones, and its Islamic calendar page notes months of 29 or 30 days, traditionally beginning with the appearance of the new crescent after sunset. Because a lunar cycle is not a whole number of days:

• A month in a sighting-based calendar is 29 or 30 days, settled as it ends.
• Pre-computed tabular calendars commonly alternate 30- and 29-day months so dates can be published in advance.
• The twelve months total roughly 354 days, short of the solar year — which is why Hijri dates shift against the Gregorian calendar.

We cover the missing thirteenth month in why the Hijri calendar has 12 months and no leap month, and the annual drift in how the Hijri calendar works.

In short: no Hijri month has a permanent length, and the year deliberately ignores the seasons.

The months most travelers end up caring about

• Ramadan (9) — the month of fasting, which reshapes business hours and travel demand.
• Shawwal (10) — opens with Eid al-Fitr.
• Dhu al-Hijjah (12) — the month of Hajj; pilgrimage rules, permits, and seasonal arrangements are published by the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah.

If you are planning around those months, can you do Umrah any time of year explains how the Hajj season affects the rest of the calendar. For the current official month and date, Saudi Arabia publishes the Umm al-Qura calendar.

Bottom line: learn the twelve names in order, accept that spellings vary, and remember that month lengths are 29 or 30 days rather than fixed — that single fact explains most of what feels unfamiliar about the Hijri year.