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Rabat – The US has announced Thursday as the first day of Ramadan this year, according to the Fiqh Council of North America.
Like all Muslims around the globe, Muslims in the US abstain from eating and drinking from dawn to dusk.
The only notable difference in how the holy Muslim month is observed in the US might be in slight variations of Ramadan rituals. As last year, Muslims in America may, for instance, gather in Times Square in New York City not only to pray together and break their fast, but also “to explain our religion to all those that don’t know what Islam is all about. Islam is a religion of peace,” one of the participants told CBS News last year.
People may also have their iftar in mosques, where Muslims from different backgrounds or origins meet and taste one another’s traditional meals. This occasion brings some non-Muslims to adapt their dishes to make them halal and savor the moment with Muslims.
America’s US’ “melting pot society” has seen a gradual increase of the Muslim population over the years. As of 2022, Muslims in the US represented 3.5 million of the country’s overall population. By 2050, the number will have reached 8.1 million, according to the US embassy in Italy.
Countries that have announced the first day of fasting on Thursday include Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
Fasting during Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam, the others include the oath of faith (Shahada), prayer (salat), almsgiving (zakat), and pilgrimage (hajj).
Read also: The Lowdown on Ramadan for Non-Muslims
