May God forgive me and guide me regarding anything that would have been misinterpreted in this study and elsewhere. May He always guide us to a better understanding of His profound scripture so we can purify ourselves and increase our knowledge.
(2:185) The month of Ramadan is the one during which the Quran was revealed as guidance for mankind; [it provides] proofs regarding such guidance, as well as the ability to distinguish [between right and wrong]. Therefore, whoever among you witnesses this month shall fast therein…
You will find in this article the dates of Ramadan 2023. Section 2 will explain in detail how to calculate the beginning of the new lunar month from a Quranic point of view, as well as a few additional important precisions.
Table of contents:
1. Ramadan 2023 in the USA
2. What is the Quranic criteria regarding selecting the first new day of the lunar month?
2.1 Key concept nº 1: Definition of the word “ahillat”
2.2 Key concept nº 2: The new day in Islam starts at sunset
2.3 Key concept nº 3: Definition of the time of the new moon, and precisions regarding the time of the first moonrise or moonset of the new lunar month following the new moon
3. What time do we have to stop eating and drinking during Ramadan?
Conclusion: How to calculate the first and last day of Ramadan wherever you are in the world
1. Ramadan 2023 in the USA
The dates for Ramadan 2023 in the USA are as follows:
The new month of Ramadan 2023 will start at sunset on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, for the entire continental USA. The last day of fasting in the continental USA will be on Thursday, April 20, 2023, except Alaska, where the last day of fasting will be Wednesday, April 19, 2023.
Data for New York City: The time of the new moon, as calculated by astronomers (definition provided later in the article), will occur at 13:23 p.m. on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, in New York City, USA. The moon will rise on Tuesday at 7:10 a.m. and will therefore be present in the sky before sunset after the time of the new moon, which is key to determine the start of the new month from a Quranic point of view (see section 2).
In other words, since the new day starts at sunset in Islam, the first day of Ramadan will start on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, at sunset at 07:08 p.m. in New York City. The first day of fasting will therefore be the next day on Wednesday, March 22, 2023 (the next period of daylight) starting fasting no later than about 30 minutes (nautical dawn) after the crack of dawn, also known as the astronomical dawn (2:187, see explanation provided later in the article). The last day of fasting in New York will be on Thursday, April 20, 2023, as the time of the new moon will occur on April 20 at exactly 12:12 a.m., the moon having risen at 06:24 a.m. on the same day and setting at 08:31 p.m. The moon will therefore be present in the sky at and after the precise time of the new moon and therefore before sunset (07:40 p.m.). The first day of the next lunar month (Shawwal) will therefore start at sunset on Thursday, April 20, 2023, at 07:40 p.m.
Again, the above dates for New York City are valid for the entire continental USA, except Alaska where the last day of fasting is Wednesday, April 19, 2023.
Regarding the West Coast of the United States, we can for instance take the example of Los Angeles, where the time of new moon will occur on March 21, 2023, at 10:23 a.m., while sunset will occur at 7:05 p.m. on the same day. The moon will rise on the April 21 in Los Angeles at 7:07 a.m. and set at 7:22 p.m. and will therefore be present in the sky at the time of the new moon and before sunset. Therefore, the first day of Ramadan in Los Angeles starts on March 21, 2023 at sunset. The next new moon occurs on April 19, 2023, at 9:12 p.m., the sunset being at 07:27 p.m.; people on the East Coast will therefore also have to fast on April 20, 2023, because the new moon will have occurred a little less than two hours after sunset on the 19th.
If you have any doubt regarding a particular location in the USA, you can apply the same calculation system in your specific location.
The night of Decree, Laylatul Qadr, the 27th night of Ramadan according to the Quran (please read the article “miracle of laylatul Qadr” on this website for Quranic proofs) will start at sunset on Sunday, April 16, 2023, in entire the entire continental USA (it is the 27th night from March 21, the first night of Ramadan). 97:3 states that the night of decree is “better than a thousand months”; it is definitely the best night of the year for special prayers, meditation and reading the Quran.
Again, the last day of fasting will be on Thursday, April 20, 2023, for the entire east and west coast of the USA, except Alaska, where the last day of fasting is Wednesday, April 19, 2023.
2. What is the Quranic criteria regarding selecting the first new day of the lunar month?
Every year during the month of Ramadan, we see some Muslims around the world disagreeing on the first day of Ramadan in a particular location or country and as a result for the date of Laylatul Qadr, as well as for the last day of fasting. So, what does the Quran exactly say about selecting the first day of the lunar month and how can we avoid dissensions in the Muslim community?
يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْأَهِلَّةِ قُلْ هِيَ مَوَاقِيتُ لِلنَّاسِ وَالْحَجِّ
وَلَيْسَ الْبِرُّ بِأَن تَأْتُوا الْبُيُوتَ مِن ظُهُورِهَا وَلَٰكِنَّ الْبِرَّ مَنِ
اتَّقَىٰ وَأْتُوا الْبُيُوتَ مِنْ أَبْوَابِهَا وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ
(2:189) They ask you about the appearances (al ahillat) [of new moons]: Say: “They are precise markers [to determine time] for mankind, and the pilgrimage (Hajj). It is not righteousness for you to enter homes from their rear; on the contrary, righteous is the one who fears God and enters homes from their [front] door. Fear God, that you may succeed.
Above: Example of the observable difference from the earth (with the naked eye) between the last lunar phase and the first crescent of the new lunar month.
Nighttime, sunrise or sunset a few hours after the exact time of the new moon (as calculated by astronomers) is the ideal time to actually see the first sliver of light of the new crescent moon, as the brightness of the day otherwise prevents the first sliver of light from being visible. Sometimes the earth-shine factor can make the entire moon circle slightly visible even on the day of the new moon.
Above: First visible sliver of light of the new lunar month. The entire moon circle is sligthly visible at sunset due to the earthshine effect. The ice present at the north and south poles can make our planet much brighter than the moon and the earthshine makes the entire moon circle slightly visible at various times of the year regardless of a specific moon phase.
2.1 Key concept nº 1: Definition of the word “ahillat”
In 2:189 (last verse quoted), the key word is “al ahillat” (الْأَهِلَّة). It is plural and means literally “the appearances”. It derives from the root “halla”, which means to “appear”, and relates to “the appearances” of new moons; it also means “to begin” (a lunar month) (dictionary of the Holy Quran, by Omar). The Quran is fully detailed and the verse purposely does not state if it relates specifically to the appearance of the first sliver of light of the new month (very thin first crescent in the picture above on the right) or if it can also mean the “appearance” of the new moon in the sky as defined today by astronomers. The verse simply implies that the new moon needs to “appear”, that is to say be present in the sky. Since God’s system does not change (33:62, 35:43, 48:23), we have to rely on a system that is consistent for past and present generations in order to calculate the first day of the lunar month. God chooses His words with miraculous precision, and it is on purpose that God did not use an expression like the “appearance of moon crescents” but rather the more general term “appearances”, as He knew that for thousands of years men would mostly have no other choice but to rely upon actually seeing the first new crescent of the month (which we know is not always a precise method because it depends on weather conditions and geography) to determine the first day of the lunar month; but God almighty also knew that the technological era would allow mankind to avoid mistiming the first lunar day of the month and define with the utmost precision the precise time that the new moon “appears” in the sky, relying on extremely accurate astronomical calculations.
People who claim that we still need to actually see the new crescent at the begin of the lunar month in order to start counting the first day at the following sunset are regularly responsible for dissensions in the Muslim community regarding the first and last day of fasting (as well as regarding defining the 27th night of Ramadan) and do not know or seem to care that the word “ahillat” (أَهِلَّة = appearances) is broad enough not to require to actually “see” moon crescents if we know, thanks to scientific data, that the new moon has technically “appeared” in the sky in a specific location. To those who will claim that the moon can’t “appear” if we don’t actually see it, I will reply that a layer of clouds, smog or a mountain can definitely prevent us from “seeing” the first sliver of moonlight in the sky, but whether Sunni and Shia traditionalists like it or not, the new moon will have “appeared” anyway as soon as it is present in the sky. If the sky in a particular country were completely shrouded with clouds for four days at the beginning of a new month, even the most hardcore traditionalists would be forced to submit and decide that the new month would have started after 30 days, without having to actually see the first moon crescent with the naked eye, because they would know for sure that the crescent has indeed “appeared” in the sky, despite the fact that they did not actually see it. If they agree to rely on science when they have no other choice, why not rely on science to begin with, since it is now available to everyone? So, what is wrong with their judgment? Defining the first day of the lunar month somewhere should not depend upon whether we have the ability to go on top of a mountain or launch a hot air balloon above the clouds to see the moon. If traditionalists want to miss the correct night for “laylatul qadr” (the 27th night of Ramadan), which is more important than 1000 lunar months, because they refuse to rely on astronomical calculations, so be it; but we won’t miss it because of them, God willing, nor will we misidentify the first and last day of fasting during the month of Ramadan God willing.
2.2 Key concept nº 2: The new day in Islam starts at sunset
We saw that verse 2:189 determines that it is “the appearances” (in the sky) [of new moons] which allow us to actually define the beginning of a new month. This said, we need to bear in mind that the new moon must at least be physically present in the sky from our viewpoint before sunset (which marks the beginning of the new day in Islam) for the first day of the new month to be counted starting at sunset. The reason for that is that the exact time of the new moon as defined by astronomers is when the sun and the moon are aligned in the sky perpendicularly compared to the horizon at a given point on earth and the moon is sometimes below the horizon at that specific time (actually, sometimes both the sun and the moon are below the horizon at the time of the new moon).
The most obvious evidence in the Quran that the new day in Islam starts at sunset with the apparition of the “night” is that the words “The Night” (الَّيْل = allayl) and “The Daylight” (النَّهَار = annahâr) are very frequently mentioned together, and it is a Quranic fact that “The night” is always symbolically mentioned first throughout the entire Quran every time a verse deals with the idea of the alternation between the night and the day (for instance, “The night overtakes the daylight…” in 7:54, and tens of similar examples). For thousands of years before the advent of the Quran and up to this day, Judaism has relied on the very same definition to count the new day as starting at sunset.
The Islamic calendar is a perfect system based on full days and not fractions of days. For instance, if the moonrise on the day of the new moon of Ramadan occurs two hours after sunset (following the time of the new moon occurring for example at 5:44 p.m. as calculated by astronomers, which means in this case that the moon is not present in the sky when the new moon occurs), the first day of the new lunar month will only be counted starting the next day at sunset because the last day of the previous lunar month has already started at sunset and has already been counted as such. If we started counting the first day of the month on the lunar day when the new moon appeared in our example, the first day of the month would only be a fraction of a day, and, for instance, the night of decree would not be the 27th night of Ramadan, but approximately the 26.9th night.
The second part of verse 2:189 states that “it is not righteousness for you to enter homes from their rear; on the contrary, righteous is the one who fears God and enters homes from their [front] door.” This allegory is unquestionably related to the appearance of the new moons as it is the topic of the verse, and means that when it comes to count the first day of the lunar month, we should not beat around the bush and rely on common sense (i.e. enter through the front door) given the level of science that is available to us at any given time in human history. It does not make sense in the 21st century to rely on conjecture and artificially delay the start of the new month by one day and sometimes even two like some hadiths followers often do because of unfavorable weather conditions and the inability to actually see the new moon crescent with the naked eye even though it is scientifically proven that it should be visible in normal conditions.
In other words, since the verse states that it is “the appearances” [of new moons] which determines the start of a lunar month, and since we are dealing with a system that has been valid for past and present generations (according to the Quran, God’s system does not change), what distinguishes us today from past centuries is that it is now possible to be 100% accurate thanks to science, while ancient generations could not.
2.3 Key concept nº 3: Definition of the time of the new moon, and precisions regarding the time of the first moonrise or moonset of the new lunar month following the new moon
People do not always understand the difference between the concept of “new moon” and “first crescent” of the new lunar month, nor do they always understand that we need to be aware of the time of the “moonrise” and “moonset” on the day of the precise time of the new moon (i.e. when the sun and the moon are aligned in the sky perpendicularly from the horizon at a given point on earth) if the moon is not already present in the sky at that time because it can be below the horizon line at the time of the new moon. We explained in the previous section that the moon has to be present in the sky before sunset from our viewpoint at or after the time of the new moon for the first day of the new lunar month to be taken into account. At the same time, the system to define the first lunar day of the new lunar month has to be the same for present and past generations because the Quran asserts that God’s system does not change (33:62, 35:43, 48:23) and has always been the same for past and present generations. The only difference is that we have tools today that allow us to always be perfectly precise when it is was clearly not the case for non-modern societies. The most important point to understand is that we cannot always only rely on the precise time of the new moon as defined by astronomers because sometimes the moon is not physically present in the sky from our viewpoint before sunset (we have in that case to take into consideration the next moonrise). Otherwise, we would rely on a radically different system than old generations, and God designed one and the same system for all of us. It is crucial to understand this concept.
“New moon” definition: The time for a new moon as defined by astronomers today is the first phase of the moon when it orbits as seen from the earth, at the moment when the sun and the moon have the same ecliptic longitude. In other words, as briefly mentioned earlier, the exact time of the new moon occurs when the sun and the moon are aligned in the sky perpendicularly from a given point on earth. Such a phase is invisible from the earth, except during a solar eclipse when it is illuminated by earthshine (earthshine = sunlight reflected by the earth on the moon). In other words, the exact time for the new moon differs in most cases by several hours from the time the first sliver of light is visible from the earth, except during a solar eclipse.
Since past and present generations have always had the ability to witness a solar eclipse on rare occasions, it means that people who were blessed with enough astronomical knowledge knew that the moon was in conjunction with the sun, and that such an event cannot possibly occur except at the very end of the lunar month. The moon, and not just its outline and shadow, can occasionally be seen during a solar eclipse thanks to the earthshine phenomenon.
Enlightened astronomers and human beings in ancient times had therefore the opportunity on those rare occasions to start counting the first day of a new month from the sunset following a solar eclipse (which corresponds exactly to the time of the new moon as calculated today by astronomers) without necessarily witnessing the first sliver of light on the moon before sunset. This is why, in our day and age, all Muslims around the world should take the exact time of a new moon as a point of reference to calculate the start of a new month, as long as the moon is actually present in the sky whether visible or not (we saw earlier that 2:189 states that the moon needs to “appear”), and otherwise wait for the next moonrise. What we see here is that a solar eclipse, which is very precisely the exact time of the new moon, has always been the best-case scenario to start counting the start of the new lunar month for past and present generations. Solar eclipses have always defined the earliest possible time upon which we can rely on in order to count with the utmost precision the first day of the new lunar month which starts at the following sunset. Now that we have the technology to define the exact time for the new moon, we should rely on it together with the fact that the moon must “appear”, that is to say be present in the sky, (whether visible or not with the naked eye). If it is not present in the sky before sunset, we then must wait until the next sunset to start counting the new day of the month. Relying on imprecise old school moon sightings and disregarding astronomical data in the 21st century is an insult to common sense and amounts to overlook the broad meaning of the word “al ahillat” (“the appearances”) in 2:189 as explained earlier.
On the other hand, claiming that we should rely on the exact time of the new moon even when the moon has not risen doesn’t make sense because ancient generations could not possibly have had access to such information and 2:189 makes it clear that the moon needs to “appear”. Again, God proclaims that His system does not change, so we have to be consistent and rely on the moon to at least being present in the sky.
Remark: Please be careful not to let yourself be misled by the sect of Rashad Khalifa regarding the dates of fasting and determining the night of decree. The “Submitters” have an online “Ramadan calculator” (at masjitucson.org) and they do base their calculations on the time of the new moon as determined by astronomers which is a very good thing, but they do not take into account whether the moon is present in the sky or not (as seen earlier, the moon is not always present in the sky from our viewpoint at the exact time of the new moon), which contradicts verse 2:189 which states that the moon has to “appear”, that is to say be present in the sky. This distinction is critical, otherwise, ancient and present generations would be relying on two radically different methods of calculations, which would be absurd as God never changes His system (33:62, 35:43, 48:23).
3. What time do we have to stop eating and drinking during Ramadan?
Believers must start fasting during the month of Ramadan when “you can discern the white line from the black line at [the horizon] dawn” (2:187). While the correct time to start the dawn prayer is the astronomical dawn (i.e., the first traces of light at the horizon at sea level at the crack of dawn), the Quran informs us in verse 2:187 that we can eat and drink until we “can discern a white line from the black line [at the horizon] which is the time of the nautical dawn:
Definition of the nautical dawn: It is the moment when the geometric center of the sun is 12 degrees below the horizon at sea level in the morning. It is about 30 minutes after the crack of dawn (or “astronomical dawn” = when the geometric center of the sun is 18 degrees below the horizon at sea level) in the USA and will vary slightly depending on when you live in the world. You can check the exact time of the astronomical and nautical dawn on timeanddate.com (https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/). The following picture shows an example of the nautical dawn:
We can see clearly in this picture a white line above the horizon line as described in 2:187 in the expression “until you can discern the white line from the black line [at the horizon] at dawn”. The rest of the sky is still completely dark. This picture was taken in Southern California about 35 minutes after the crack of dawn (beginning of the prayer of fajr).
(2:187) Approaching your spouses during the nights of fasting has now been made lawful for you. They are like a garment for you, and you are like a garment for them. God knows that you used to deceive your souls, so He had compassion upon you and forgave you. So, you may now have an intimate relationship with them, and seek what God has ordained for you. Eat and drink until you can discern the white line from the black line [at the horizon] at dawn. Then, fast completely until night[fall]…
As seen in the above picture, we can see a white line at the horizon, while the rest of the sky is still pitch black, describing exactly what the verse says. The white line marking the beginning of the nautical dawn can be observed every time there are no clouds in the sky. The earliest nautical dawn occurs about 5 to 10 minutes before the above picture was taken.
Conclusion: How to calculate the first and last day of Ramadan wherever you are in the world:
– 2:189 states that we shall rely on “the appearances” [of new moons] to determine the start of new lunar months and the time of hajj. The same verse also indicates that we shall not “enter homes from their rear, but on the contrary, enter them from the [front] door.” It means that we shouldn’t beat around the bush and rely on the best science available to us at any given time in history to determine the beginning of the new lunar month. Delaying artificially the beginning of a new lunar month in the 21st century, for instance because of unfavorable weather conditions, is “entering through the back of the house”, not the front door.
– The earliest possible observable “appearance” of a new moon for past and present generations has always been a solar eclipse. It is one perfect example of the exact time of the “new moon” as defined by astronomers, which is when the sun and the moon are perfectly aligned vertically and perpendicularly in the sky compared to the horizon from a particular point on earth. Since God never changes His system (33:62, 35:43, 48:23), He therefore designed the same system to calculate the beginning of a new month for past and present generations, and it is the exact time of the new moon which should always serve as point of reference today to define the start of a new month, as we now have the ability to know the exact time it occurs anywhere on earth and years in advance. Since 2:189 states that the new moon has to “appear” (which is the literal meaning of the word “al ahillat” = “the appearances”), the moon must at least be present at some point in the sky anytime between the precise time of the new moon and sunset. Sometimes, the sun and the moon are aligned vertically from our viewpoint (which is the time for the new moon) but the moon (sometimes even the sun) is below the horizon, and it has to be actually present in the sky before sunset for the first day of the lunar month to be taken into account. If not, we have to wait until the next sunset on the next day to start counting the first day of the lunar month.
– The Quran always mentions the word “the night” before the word “the daylight” because the new day in Islam starts at sunset. This is why we have to wait for the sunset following “the appearance” of the new moon, bearing in mind as we explained that the moon has to be physically present in the sky before sunset (or otherwise wait for the next sunset) in order to start counting the first day of the new lunar month in Islam.
– For instance, if the exact time of the new moon occurred at 6 p.m. while the moon was not present in the sky because it was below the horizon, and the moonrise following the exact time of the new moon occurs at 7:10 pm., 10 minutes after sunset (7:00 pm) in a given area on earth, let’s say on June 26, it means that the first day of the new Islamic lunar month will only start on the next day at sunset, that is to say on June 27. As a result, the first day of fasting will only be on June 28 if it is the month of Ramadan.
Regarding the night of Decree (Laylatul Qadr, the 27th night of Ramadan), be careful to start counting from the day of the first sunset of the month (June 27 in the above example), and not starting the first day of fasting, as you would otherwise miscalculate the date of the night of decree.
I recommend the website http://www.timeanddate.com/moon/ to make sure that you determine correctly the first and last day of fasting. It provides the exact time for the new moon, as well as moonrises and sunsets. Again, we need to make sure that the moon (whether visible or not) appears in the sky between the exact time of the new moon and before sunset (check at what time the moon rises and sets to see if it is in the sky) in order to start counting the first day of the lunar month.
It is all we need to know in order to calculate the start of the new lunar month in Islam with perfect accuracy.
The month of Ramadan is the one during which the Quran was revealed (2:185). It is the most important month in Islam. Contrary to common belief, the month of Ramadan is the first of the four sacred months of Hajj according to the Quran, and the first day of Ramadan has a special name in the Quran, being called “the day of the greatest pilgrimage” (“yawm al Hajji al akbar”, 9:3). Please check the article on this website entitled “The four sacred months of Hajj” for decisive Quranic proofs. Concerning the Quranic details for the “fast of Ramadan” please read the related article on this website.
Have a blessed month of Ramadan inch’Allah!