1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites
Live TV
Latest audioLatest videos
In focus
German coalition collapseUS election Berlin Wall
Members of the Muslim community gather at Times Square for the first Tarawih prayer of Ramadan
Image: Getty ImagesImage: Getty Images

Ramadan

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and is observed by Muslims worldwide. Observant Muslims fast daily, then celebrate and pray with their families.

Skip next section All Content on this topic

All Content on this topic

Soccer player Süleyman, who plays for Arminia Hassel in Gelsenkirchen, standing in front of a goal with a soccer ball in his hand

Ramadan workout

Top Muslim athletes balance workouts and religious rituals during Ramadan.
August 1, 2013

Muslim athletes tackle the Ramadan challenge

Ramadan is celebrated by many of Germany's four million Muslims, who choose to fast from sunrise to sunset. But sport training doesn't stop when the sun rises for Muslim athletes.
LifestyleJuly 30, 201306:21 min

Pulse

How far would you go for your faith? On Pulse this week, Muslim athletes discuss what it means to fast during Ramadan and Prague enjoys a surge in religious tourism. We also hear how much music and dance can break down barriers - from Nigeria to Germany.
LifestyleJuly 30, 201329:59 min
Aya El Ammouri, Lebanese football player and member of the GFA academy, pictured in Berlin during the 2013 "Discover Football" tournament. Photo from Michael Scatturo, DW freelancer

Discovering Football in Berlin

Lebanese footballer Aya El Ammouri on how sport can bridge religious divides in the Middle East.
July 27, 201306:57 min
A Malaysian Islamic religious officer performs "rukyah", the sighting of the new moon of Ramadan, in Putrajaya outside Kuala Lumpur July 8, 2013. (Photo: REUTERS/Bazuki Muhammad)

Religious differences

Struggling to maintain religious harmony, Malaysian lawmakers withdraw child conversion bill.
July 17, 2013

A Ramadan return to the ever-changing Cairo

Journalist Maeve Francis lived in Cairo last year, spending much of the holy month of fasting and feasting with friends from the Muslim Brotherhood. One year later, with the organization ousted from power by the military, Maeve felt compelled to return and see Egypt's latest changes first hand.
July 13, 201307:52 min
24 people injured during a truck bomb blast in the Tuzhurmatu district of Saladin province Iraq where mostly Turkmen people live. (Photo: Stringer/Anadolu Agency)

Deadly attacks continue in Iraq

Iraqi officials have said two overnight attacks against Shiites have killed at least 20 people and wounded dozens more. A string of bombings claimed dozens more lives across Iraq on Thursday.
July 12, 2013
An Iraqi policeman inspects the site of a car bomb attack in Kirkuk, 250 km (155 miles) north of Baghdad, July 11, 2013. Two civilians were wounded in the car bomb attack, police said. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed

Iraq attacks leave dozens dead

A string of deadly attacks have claimed dozens of lives across Iraq. The violence came as Iraq began celebrating the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.
July 11, 2013
Turkish protestors are breaking their fast in front at the first day of Ramadan at Istiklal Street during a anti government protest (photo: EPA/TOLGA BOZOGLU +++(c) dpa - Bildfunk+++)

A time for peace?

Protests in Turkey's Taksim Square continue despite the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
July 10, 2013
Bundeswehr member Chaouki Aakil (c) Ulrike Hummel

Ramadan in uniform

How do the roughly 1,000 Muslims among Germany's 250,000 soldiers observe Ramadan?
July 10, 2013

A festival for men

While the men celebrate the end of Ramadan, the women live to serve.
August 22, 2012
Libyan security forces inspect the remains of a vehicle near the Ministry of Interior in Tripoli after twin blasts killed two people in the Libyan capital

Deadly Libyan bomb attack

At least two people are said to have died in car bombings in the Libyan capital, Tripoli. The attacks come during an important Muslim festival.
August 19, 2012

Ramadan nights

Muslims around the world will be celebrating the end of the holy month of Ramadan this weekend, with big parties, special prayers and gifts to charity. In Berlin, there have been a series of cultural events related to Ramadan, including concerts, art exhibitions and lectures.
August 19, 201205:03 min
Security personnel inspect the site of a car bomb attack in Kirkuk, 250 km (155 miles) north of Baghdad, August 16, 2012.

Wave of violence in Iraq

A wave of violence continues to grip Iraq during the month of Ramadan, with a string of bombings and shootings hitting cities across the country. More than 60 people have been killed and hundreds injured.
August 16, 2012
Volunteers carry food for an Iftar meal

Ramadan in Egypt

The first Ramadan in post-Mubarak Egypt reflects Muslim Brotherhood influence.
August 13, 2012
Shoes on a prayer mat Copyright: Fotolia/prima

Faith in practice

A Pew Research Center study looks at the variety of trends and practices in Islam around the world.
August 12, 2012

Ramadan in Cairo

How has the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood effected the celebration of Ramadan in Egypt?
August 11, 201205:41 min
Egyptian relatives cry on the coffin of a soldier killed during an attack at a checkpoint along the Sinai border with Israel.

Egyptian soldiers laid to rest

A funeral has taken place for 16 members of Egypt's security forces killed on Sunday, in an attack on the Sinai Peninsula. A notable absentee was the country's president Mohammad Morsi.
August 7, 2012
A policeman stands guard at the site of a bomb attack in Kirkuk

Fighting back

Is there a tradition of violent opposition in Iraq?
July 27, 2012
An interior of the Central Jamaat-e-Ahl-e Sunnat Mosque at street Urtegaten 11 in Oslo, Norway, 24.08.2007. Photo: Stian Lysberg Solum/SCANPIX NORWAY +++(c) dpa - Report+++

Ramadan in Asia

Have a look at how Muslisms in Asia are observing the holiest month of the Islamic calendar.
July 22, 2012
Pakistani Shiite Muslim Abu Zar Zaidi prays as he watches a grave on a web site at his office Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2004 in Karachi, Pakistan. Shiite Muslims can visit the Wadi-e-Hussain graveyard through the web site on which they can see the photographs of the graves of the people buried over there. The graveyard is meticulously organized and each grave is numbered and photographed with a few personal details, uploaded onto the web site immediately after the burial. Mourners can easily trace a grave online by entering its number or the name of the dead person. (ddp images/AP Photo/Shakil Adil)

Salamworld

Turkish startup aims to draw Muslims from around the world to have a 'halal' space online.
March 5, 2012
98% of Tajikistan's population is Muslim.

Religious freedom

In an effort to restrain religious fundamentalism, Tajikistan bans youth from mosques and churches.
August 4, 2011
A police guard stands next to a damaged Ahmadiyya house in Indonesia

Attacks on Ahmadiyya minority in Indonesia during Ramadan

Followers of the minority Ahmadiyya religious group fear hatred and violence in Indonesia.
ReligionAugust 2, 2011
Rebel fighters on security duty downtown in Benghazi, Libya, Thursday, May 19, 2011.

Ramadan in Libya

The holy month of Ramadan presents Libya's rebels and their NATO supporters with unique problems.
August 1, 2011
A group of Muslim women in headscarves

Combating Islamophobia

Hostility to Muslims is on the rise, but Tariq Ramadan insists Islam and Europe are compatible.
January 26, 2011
A street vendor sells dates and dried fruits in Casablanca

Ramadan row

Activists in Morocco are worried that Ramadan is being hijacked by Islamists in the country.
August 20, 2010
Pakistani flood survivors shift their belongings to safer areas

Pakistan relief

Muslim groups in Germany muster to help those in need in parts of flood-ravaged Pakistan.
August 18, 2010
Mesut Oezil playing for Germany

Ramadan exception

A new fatwa allows professional soccer players in Germany to break the fast over Ramadan.
August 11, 2010
Market stand in Berlin

German Ramadan culture

As the Muslims' month of fasting comes to an end, some say a new German Ramadan culture is emerging.
September 20, 2009
Pakistani soldiers on patrol near the Afghan border

Waziristan Offensive Likely to Start After Ramadan: Expert

The Pakistan army seems to need more time before it is ready to launch its expected offensive against the Taliban stronghold in the Waziristan tribal area. The army had announced that it would take on the forces of Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsood, who was recently reported to have been killed in a US missile strike, after taking back the Swat valley from the militants.
August 19, 2009

Young Muslims use Ramadan to help homeless

Muslims in London have come up with a novel way of breaking their fast at the end of the day by sharing their meal with London’s homeless in a downtown park – a spot where they usually gather to get their food handouts.
September 24, 2008

Ramadan in Germany

In Berlin, Muslims have opened the month-long Ramadan religious observance to non-Muslims at a festival highlighting the meaning and cultural content of the holy month.
September 13, 2008

Ramadan in Germany

As Muslims around the world observe the holy month of Ramadan, a festival in Berlin invites non-Muslims to find out more about the meaning and cultural content of the fasting period.
September 11, 2008
A Pakistani Muslim boy arranges dishes of fruits and other stuff for Iftar, time to break the fast

Ramadan in Germany

While Ramadan is celebrated in Germany, it's a more subdued affair than in Muslim countries.
October 8, 2006

Europe's Muslim of Choice

He's the man EU officials and journalists alike seek out when Islam and Western Europe don't see eye-to-eye. Muslim intellectual Tariq Ramadan has been in demand again recently.
February 15, 2006

Cultural Misunderstandings at the Sick Bed

When a Muslim falls ill in Germany, it can lead to conflicts. Doctors and caregivers often know too little about the Islamic faith and can't properly respond to the needs of their patients.
September 25, 2005

Muslims Around the World Celebrate Ramadan

For many Muslims in Germany, celebrations are much like those in Turkey and other Islamic countries. But this year, European Muslims are introducing several innovations during the month-long fast.
November 6, 2002

US Pounds Afghanistan as Ramadan Begins

As air strikes over Kandahar ushered in the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, power struggles among various factions erupted in the capital Kabul.
November 16, 2001

Bombing to Continue During Ramadan

The US has decided to continue with its air strikes against Afghanistan during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.
November 2, 2001