Iran Events

Just about everything that can close will close on a religious holiday, so it's important to know when they fall. Iran's religious holidays follow the Muslim lunar calendar, so the dates according to the Western calendar vary each year. Major events include Ramazan, the month of dawn to dusk fasting; Eid-é Fetr, the one day festival of feasting that marks the end of Ramazan; Ghadir-é Khom, which commemorates the day that the Prophet Mohammed appointed Imam Ali his successor; and the birthday of Mohammed.

National holidays follow the Persian solar calendar, but still usually fall on the same day each year according to the Western calendar. The big bangers include the lustily titled Magnificent Victory of the Islamic Revolution of Iran on 11 February, which is the anniversary of Khomeini's coming to power in 1979; the enthusiastically celebrated No Ruz or Iranian New Year (21 to 24 March); and the tear-jerking Heart-Rending Departure of the Great Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran on 4 June, which commemorates the death of Khomeini in 1989.