Mawlid al-Nabi (Maulid al-Nabi; Prophet's Birthday)
12th day of the Islamic month of Rabial-Awwal Mawlid
al-Nabi celebrates the birth of Muhammad, the founder of Islam. He was Born in
Mecca around 570 and he was a shepherd and a trader who began to receive
revelations from God when he was 40 years old. Over the next 23 years he
not only established a religion but brought an unprecedented political
unity to Arab tribes. Muhammad's birth began to be observed as a public
holiday about the 12th century, except by conservative sects such as the
Wahhabis who do not celebrate any human. They believe that to do so
would detract from the worship of God. It is celebrated with the
recitation of litanies in mosques, and with firecrackers and gift-giving
throughout the Middle East and countries with prominent Muslim
populations. In Burkina Faso and parts of Ghana the holiday is called Damba and in Indonesia, Sekaten. The Prophet's birthday is a legal holiday in more than 30 countries around the world.
