No UAE Public Holiday For Isra'a Wal Mi'raj | ExpatWoman.com
 

No Public Holiday in UAE for Isra'a Wal Mi'raj

The decision is in line with the unified public holidays announced earlier in March

Posted on

1 April 2019

Last updated on 1 April 2019
by Rebecca Roberts
Public holiday for Isra'a Wal Mi'raj

Hoping for a day off this week? You're going to be disappointed...

After earlier announcements that UAE public holidays will be consolidated for both public and private sectors, it seems we won't be getting a day off for Isra'a Wal Mi'raj as a result.

According to Gulf News, both public and private sectors employees in the UAE will not have a holiday marking the Islamic holiday.

This is due to the unified holidays declaration by the UAE Cabinet earlier in March - which failed to include Isra'a Wal Mi'raj and Prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) birthday. We suspected this would be due to the fact they're based on the moon-sightings, but it seems there's other ideas behind their exclusion.

In fact, there's speculation that the day off will instead be combined with the public holidays for Eid Al Fitr later in June, as the list of UAE public holidays stipulates that Eid Al Fitr will fall between 29 Ramadan to 3 Shawwal, which means that if Ramadan has 30 days, the number of holidays would be 5 in total.

As per the decree approved by the UAE Cabinet, national holidays for the year 2019 - 2020 will be equal for both sectors. Meaning, the private sector will be able to enjoy the same number of public holidays as the public sector and government workers.

Whilst we may not be getting a day off this week, both public and private sectors will enjoy 14 days of UAE national holidays for 2019 - 2020.

What is Isra'a Wal Mi'raj?

Formally known as Al Isra'a Wal Mi'raj, this major holiday celebrates the Prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) nighttime journey from the holy city of Mecca to the 'Farthest Mosque' in Jerusalem.

SEE ALSO: Facts you should know about Isra'a Wal Mi'raj

The UAE holiday is observed annually on the 27th day of the Islamic month of Rajab, and its name literally translates to 'Night Journey and Ascension'. In fact, Prophet Muhammad's journey occurred in a single night, hence the name's translation.

 
 

ON EXPATWOMAN TODAY