Culture & Tradition

For French Muslims, the Ramadan calendar is not just a means to mark the start of the holy fasting month, but a way to advertise products and drum up support for Muslim bodies and organisations. “The Ramadan calendars are very helpful in highlighting activities of the Union of the French Islamic Organizations (UOIF),” said UOIF chairman, Lhaj Thami Breze. Nearly 200,000 Ramadan calendars are distributed every year by the UOIF across the country. “The calendar has a special importance for Muslims in remote areas and the countryside as they are totally dependent on the calendar to identify the time of Iftar and fasting,” Breze said. Other Muslim groups use the Ramadan calendars to market their business. The Turkish Milli Gurus Organization prepared this year’s calendars printed with pictures of Makkah and Madinah with the names of some Turkish businesses written on them. Other businesses from electronic houses to hairdressing salons are following suit. France is home to some 5-6 million Muslims, making up the biggest Muslim minority in Europe. “The Ramadan calendar has a symbolic importance for Muslims in France and the whole West,” said Al-Arabi Kachat, the Rector of Al-Da`wa mosque in Paris. “The Ramadan calendar is not all about time, but is a way of expressing Muslim cultural identity and stands as a good tradition that has been passed on from one generation to another,” he added. In Paris’s Strasbourg Saint Denis street, Ramadan calendars printed in Urdu, Turkish and Arabic languages are handed out among Pakistani, Turks and Moroccan immigrants.

The Glasgow Central Mosque on the banks of the River Clyde is the largest mosque in Scotland, and one of the largest in the United Kingdom. The Mosque was opened in 1984. The Muslim population of Scotland is around 50,000 and comprises mainly Arabs, Pakistanis, Turks, African, Malayans and Indian Muslims. The Mosque which can accommodate 2500 worshippers was built at a cost of around 3 million Pounds.