Religious Affairs Minister: Turkey's Global Hilal Calendar Shows Tomorrow Is Not Yet 1 Ramadan
Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar said many Islamic countries had not sighted the hilal, or new crescent moon, marking the beginning of Ramadan 1447 Hijriah on Tuesday (17 February).
Nasaruddin noted that Turkey’s version of the global hilal calendar also recorded that Wednesday, 18 February 2026, had not yet entered 1 Ramadan 1447 Hijriah.
“The position of the hilal across all of Indonesia ranged in altitude from minus 2 degrees 24 minutes 42 seconds — meaning the hilal had not yet formed and was still below the horizon — up to 0 degrees 58 minutes 47 seconds. So across the entire Indonesian archipelago, and indeed Southeast Asia, and even according to discussions among governments of all Islamic nations, not a single Muslim country has met the criteria for the hilal’s appearance because it is still below the horizon,” Nasaruddin said after the Isbat Session at Hotel Borobudur, Jakarta, on Tuesday (17 February).
“And we also noted that Turkey’s global hilal calendar has not yet begun Ramadan tomorrow,” he added.
Nasaruddin conveyed that based on the results of the isbat session, the government had decided that 1 Ramadan 1447 Hijriah would fall on Thursday, 19 February. He said officers at 96 observation points did not sight the hilal before sunset.
“In determining the start of the lunar month, Indonesia uses the MABIMS hilal visibility criteria, namely a minimum hilal altitude of 3 degrees and an elongation angle of 6.4 degrees — that is the standard,” he said.
“Accordingly, based on astronomical calculations and the absence of any hilal sighting reports, it has been agreed that 1 Ramadan 1447 Hijriah falls on Thursday, 19 February,” Nasaruddin added.
The government’s decision means the start of this year’s Ramadan fasting differs from that of Muhammadiyah’s central leadership, which had already determined that 1 Ramadan 1447 Hijriah would fall on Wednesday, 18 February 2026.
Citing its official website, Muhammadiyah’s falak (Islamic astronomy) expert Arwin Juli Rakhmadi Butar-Butar explained the reasoning behind Muhammadiyah’s decision to begin Ramadan on Wednesday.
Firstly, Muhammadiyah officially set 1 Ramadan 1447 Hijriah on 18 February, as stipulated in Muhammadiyah Central Leadership Communiqué Number 2/MLM/I.0/E/2025 and the explanation from the Tarjih and Tajdid Council Number 01/MLM/I.1/B/2025.
This determination uses the Unified Global Hijri Calendar (Kalender Hijriah Global Tunggal/KHGT) as a new method that has now become Muhammadiyah’s official reference, replacing the previously used wujudul hilal method.
“Secondly, the implementation of the KHGT requires the integration of three main elements known as the Principle, Condition, and Parameter (PSP). One important parameter is the fulfilment of the hilal’s position after conjunction with a minimum altitude of 5 degrees and elongation of 8 degrees anywhere on the earth’s surface, not limited to a specific territory,” said Arwin, as quoted from Muhammadiyah’s official website on Tuesday (17 February).