Sha'ban

Sha'ban
Native nameشَعْبَان (Arabic)
CalendarIslamic calendar
Month number8
Number of days29-30 (depends on actual observation of the moon's crescent)
Significant daysShab-e-Barat
← Rajab
Ramadan →

Shaʽban (Arabic: شَعْبَان, Šaʿbān) is the eighth month of the Islamic calendar. It is called the month of "separation", as the word means "to disperse" or "to separate" because the pagan Arabs used to disperse in search of water.[1]

The fifteenth night of this month is Mid-Sha'ban,[2] which coincides with the celebration of Shab-e-Barat in Muslim communities all over Asia.

Sha'ban is the last lunar month before Ramadan, and so Muslims determine in it when the first day of Ramadan fasting will be. In the second Hijri year (624), fasting during Ramadan was made obligatory during this month.[1]

In the post-Tanzimat Ottoman Empire context, the word was, in French, the main language of diplomacy and a common language among educated and among non-Muslim subjects,[3][4] spelled Chaʼban.[5] The current Turkish spelling today is Şâban.[1]

Virtues

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The virtues of Sha'ban is mentioned in various traditions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.

Aisha, the wife of Muhammad, narrated that "(she) did not see him fasting in any month more than in the month of Sha'ban," except Ramadan.[6][7][8]

In another narration Muhammad said, "Do those deeds which you can do easily, as Allah will not get tired (of giving rewards) till you get bored and tired (of performing religious deeds)."[9]

Timing

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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, Sha'ban migrates throughout the seasons. The estimated start and end dates for Sha'ban, based on the Umm al-Qura calendar of Saudi Arabia, are:[10]

Sha'ban dates between 2022 and 2026
AH First day (CE/AD) Last day (CE/AD)
1443 04 March 2022 01 April 2022
1444 21 February 2023 22 March 2023
1445 11 February 2024 10 March 2024
1446 31 January 2025 28 February 2025
1447 20 January 2026 17 February 2026

Islamic events

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Yaşaroğlu, M.Kâmīl (2010). ŞÂBAN - An article published in Turkish Encyclopedia of Islam (in Turkish). Vol. 38 (Suyolcu - Serif En-nisaburi). Istanbul: TDV Encyclopedia of Islam. p. 207. ISBN 9789753894555. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  2. ^ G.E. von Grunebaum, Muhammadan Festivals (London: Curzon Press, 1976), pp. 53-54.
  3. ^ Strauss, Johann (2010). "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire: Translations of the Kanun-ı Esasi and Other Official Texts into Minority Languages". In Herzog, Christoph; Malek Sharif (eds.). The First Ottoman Experiment in Democracy. Wurzburg. pp. 21–51.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) (info page on book at Martin Luther University) Cited: p. 26 (PDF p. 28 - Quote: "[...]the French translations were in the eyes of some Ottoman statesmen the most important ones[...]")
  4. ^ Strauss, Johann (2016-07-07). "Language and power in the late Ottoman Empire". In Murphey, Rhoads (ed.). Imperial Lineages and Legacies in the Eastern Mediterranean: Recording the Imprint of Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman Rule. Routledge. (ISBN 1317118448, 9781317118442), Google Books PT193.
  5. ^ Youssof, R. (1890). Dictionnaire portatif turc-français de la langue usuelle en caractères latins et turcs. Constantinople. p. 82.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  6. ^ "Sahih al-Bukhari 1969 - Fasting - كتاب الصوم - Sunnah.com - Sayings and Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم)". sunnah.com. Retrieved 2021-03-02.
  7. ^ "Sunan an-Nasa'i 2351 - The Book of Fasting - كتاب الصيام - Sunnah.com - Sayings and Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم)". sunnah.com. Retrieved 2021-03-02.
  8. ^ "Riyad as-Salihin 1226 - The Book of Virtues - كتاب الفضائل - Sunnah.com - Sayings and Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم)". sunnah.com. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
  9. ^ "Sahih al-Bukhari 1970 - Fasting - كتاب الصوم - Sunnah.com - Sayings and Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم)". sunnah.com. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  10. ^ Umm al-Qura calendar of Saudi Arabia
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