The Abu
Dhabi government has announced its list of public holidays for 2016. The list is provisional, as dates may change due to local sightings of the moon.
“The
official reference to determine Islamic occasions, such as the beginning of
Ramadan or Haj, is the Hijri Calendar,” the announcement, on the government
website, reads. “It is based on the phases of the moon. Hence, the exact dates
of Islamic events vary from one Gregorian year to another as they depend on the
local sightings of the moon.”
The dates, according to the
Gregorian calendar, are as follows.
January 1: New Year’s Day
May 5: Israa and Miraj Night
June 6: Ramadan is expected
to begin
July 6: Eid Al Fitr (three-day
holiday)
September 10: Arafat Day
September 11: Eid Al Adha
(three-day holiday)
October 2: Hijri New Year
November 30: Martyr’s Day
December 2/3: UAE National
Day (two-day holiday)
December 11: Prophet
Mohammed’s Birthday
All
federal ministries, public departments and institutions will be closed on the
above days. Holidays for the private sector will be announced in due course.
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