The Muslim calendar is otherwise called "hijra" or "hijrat." Therefore, quite often when using the Muslim chronology, they say: such or such a year of the hijra. This is an Arabic word that means tearing something apart, to separate the soul from the body, to part, but more often it has the meaning of “moving from place to place.” In Islamic tradition, the word is taken not so much from the Qur'an as from the hadith, that is, the statements of the Prophet Muhammad.
Like many terms revered in Islam and used in the interpretation of theology, the Muslim calendar or hijrat has historical and symbolic meaning - that is why its first year marks the beginning of the Islamic chronology. The historical meaning of this term is that the word "hijrat" traditionally meant the resettlement of Muslim communities led by the prophet from Mecca to Medina (often called Ansara), when they were forced to abandon the persecution organized by the pagans there. History also says that the people of Ansara joyfully welcomed the first heralds of the new faith and shared with them everything that they had.
That is why the year 622 marks the beginning of a new, Islamic era and is considered the first year from the Hijrat, that is, the resettlement of communities. In this regard, the use of the term “hijrat”, which is widespread in Russian literature in the sense of “the flight of the Prophet from Mecca to Medina”, is incorrect, since in Islam it is believed that the Prophet moved to Medina, fulfilling the will of God to spread Islam, and not to save Islam own life. In addition, the Muslim calendar symbolizes the person’s departure from sin, the desire and even the duty to spread faith, and the duty to overcome difficulties. The fact is that the concept of “hijrat” also has a figurative meaning, which really means “flight”, but we are talking about the flight of the believer from everything that is forbidden by God or harm others.
The history of the introduction of the hijrat is associated with many beautiful stories, in particular, testifying to the mutual attraction and harmony between Muslims and Christians during the time of the Prophet and his first followers. For example, one of the significant migrations due to which the Muslim calendar arose was committed by the Muslim community in Christian Ethiopia. The pagan rulers of Mecca sent an embassy there with a request to return the refugees to their homeland, and they even sent gifts to the Ethiopian emperor. But he decided first to speak with the Muslim community. Muslims told him that they used to be idolaters, despised the poor, unwanted daughters buried alive in the sand. And after the sermons of the Prophet, they decided to believe in the One God, to do good deeds, not to do evil to others, to help the poor and protect women and the offended, and then they began to be persecuted. The emperor burst into tears and said that he would never return them to their homeland. He even stated that they were free to practice their faith in Ethiopia, because the source of the message of the Prophet and Savior (Jesus Christ) is one and the same.
In 637, when the Caliph Omar ruled, the Hijrat (relocation) event began to be considered the beginning of a new era, and the month when this happened (Muharram) the first month of the year according to the new chronology. Although the first day of this month is actually the new year according to the Muslim calendar (رأس السنة الهجرية), there are no special ceremonies to celebrate this day. The first day of the first year according to this calendar corresponds to July 16, 622.
The year of the Islamic calendar also consists of twelve months, it is based on the lunar calendar, and all major holidays are calculated on it. This means that months are calculated from one new moon to another and consist of 29 or 30 days. Thus, it turns out that the Muslim lunar calendar divides the year into 354 days. In this regard, the beginning of the year each time is shifted by 11 days.