The countdown is on… 

The next official public holiday of 2024 in the UAE will be two holidays together: Arafat Day and Eid Al Adha. First is Arafat Day, which falls on Dhul Hijjah 9. This is expected to be on Sunday, June 16, but it’s dependent on the sighting of the moon closer to the time.

Eid Al Adha is the second and the largest of the two holidays celebrated in Islam. It falls on Dhul Hijjah 10 to 12, which, according to astrological calculations, is likely to correspond to Monday, June 17 to Wednesday, June 19 as public holiday (but is dependent on the sighting of the moon). So, those who have a Saturday and Sunday weekend will have a five-day break with work resuming on Thursday, June 20.

If that is the case, UAE residents will enjoy a five-day public holiday from Monday, June 17 to Wednesday, June 19. Those that have a Saturday and Sunday weekend, will then return to work on Thursday, June 20. Remember though, the confirmation of dates all depend on the sighting of the moon.

With our next long weekend possibly being five days long, if you plan ahead of time, taking Thursday, June 20 and Friday, June 21 off as a holiday will give you a total of nine days of holiday.

Because the Islamic Calendar is based on lunar months — it means that for these dates to be confirmed in the Gregorian calendar (the traditional January to December version), there has to be a sighting of the moon in a very specific phase. We will have to wait for confirmation on these dates closer to the time from UAE officials.

What is Eid Al Adha?

According to tradition, Eid Al Adha is held to honour Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son, after being instructed to do so by God. Prophet Ibrahim told his son of the dream, and the son then told his father to follow the order. But God intervened, sending a sheep to take his son’s place.

The occasion of Eid Al Adha is usually marked with a few days off for both the public and private sectors, however, as with any Islamic holidays, decisions are based on the phases of the moon, so we won’t know the exact dates until the moon has been officially sited.

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