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[nomad soul]

This is a must-read if you're new to the Middle East and will be in KSA within the next 30-40 days.

Ramadan 2015: Everything you need to know
By Martin Fullard, Gulf News | June 10, 2015
Source: http://gulfnews.com/guides/life/community/ramadan-2015-everything-you-need-to-know-1.1528649
(Edited to cover Ramadan for non-Muslims. Click on the link above for the full article, including the religious significance for Muslims. Keep in mind, religion can't be discussed on the forum.)

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Hijri (Islamic) calendar. This year, as far as the Gregorian calendar is concerned, Ramadan starts on June 18 (subject to moon sighting) and lasts for 29-30 days, or one complete moon cycle. The moon sighting determines the duration.

You'll hear people greet each other with, “Ramadan Kareem”. This roughly translates into “Happy Ramadan”. Adult Muslims are required to fast from dawn until dusk every day throughout Ramadan, although exceptions are made for the ill, elderly, pregnant women, etc. The fast-breaking meal is called Iftar.

Eid Al Fitr is the annual three-day celebration after the last day of Ramadan and is considered a public holiday. The government will announce the exact holiday dates nearer the time.

Ramadan for non-Muslims

Do non-Muslims have to fast? No. While Muslims don’t expect non-Muslims to fast as well, it remains important to show respect. Most of the following points apply to the rest of the year too, but are even more important to adhere to during Ramadan:

- Do not eat, drink, or smoke in public during the fasting hours (from dawn until dusk). This includes chewing gum.
- Do not engage in any aggressive behaviour.
- Do not dance or play music in public. You may listen to music quietly with headphones.
- Dress respectfully.
- Do not swear. Blasphemy is considered extra offensive during Ramadan.
- Do not refuse a gift, from a simple date to something more exotic, you should accept it. Further, you should not refuse an invitation to join someone at Iftar.

The penalty for not following the above etiquette can vary, with community service normally being favoured.

If you are not fasting, you are free to eat and drink in the privacy of your own home, as well as in designated areas. Ask your employer where you can eat your lunch. The same goes with smoking. Some restaurants and cafes will be open during the day; you are free to frequent these. Food can be taken out and consumed in private.

Work hours: The standard work-day is reduced by two hours for all employees across all sectors, regardless of whether you are observing Ramadan or not. Check with your employer.

Grocery shopping: Supermarkets are open as usual.

Driving: There’s no denying the fact that driving during the day, particularly between 5pm and Iftar, is hazardous. Some fasting taxi drivers may have been working longer than they should have been and as a result they may be dehydrated and lacking the ability to concentrate properly. Only drive in the afternoon if you absolutely have to.

Booking a taxi: If you are heading out around the Iftar time, then be advised that booking a taxi may not be so easy. A lot of drivers will be breaking the fast, so availability may be difficult.

Going out for dinner: If you are planning on going out for Iftar then you should book a table in advance. Restaurants are understandably busy during Ramadan evenings.

Going to the mall: While a lot of businesses change their hours for Ramadan, malls remain generally open during the day – with the exception of food courts and restaurants. Some restaurants may remain open, but this will seldom be advertised.

(End of excerpt)

[plumpy nut]

Thankfully within due time, Saudis will be able to partake in Ramadan without being afraid that someone will make reasonable use of their time during the day eating and partaking in commerce and just generally enjoying themselves. Saudis will not have to be reminded that not everybody is Muslim.

[nomad soul]

[paul.conlong]

I though all ESL jobs stopped during ramadan. Isnt this the time institutions/ organisations expect you to go on holiday?

[veiledsentiments]

Nope... there used to be some places that closed for Ramadhan, but you no longer hear about that. (military jobs perhaps?) Universities for sure keep going.

Now that it is happening in the summer, many will be on their normal summer leave... nothing to do with Ramadhan.

VS

[johnslat]

And teaching classes in Ramadan is SO much more fun.

Well, looking on the bright side, it can make non-Ramadan teaching seem more appealing.

You thought you'd hit bottom, but then, you taught during Ramadan.

Regards,
John

[MixtecaMike]

At least the classes are shorter, so less time is wasted pretending to teach.

[johnslat]

Can't say I ever pretended to teach, but admittedly, there were students who pretended to learn.

A few didn't even bother to pretend.

Regards,
John

[scot47]

I remember when I was in Jeddah I did some "moonlighting" at LANSA (Larsen-Nielsen-Saudi Arabia).In Ramadan I used to come out of class at 2 am - and Jeddah was going like a fair !

The timetable for evening classes was completely reorganised during that wonderful month ! Students would do nothing at all in daytime, so their classes were scheduled for late at night, They learned very little - but I got paid.

Thanks, LANSA !

[MixtecaMike]

[honestadviser]

Hi,

This is very useful information, much appreciated.

God Bless You.

[nomad soul]

Five-hour work for government offices in Ramadan
Saudi Gazette | June 16, 2015
Source: http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20150617247594

RIYADH — Government employees will work for five hours from 10.00 a.m. to 3.00 p.m.during office days in Ramadan, according to the Ministry of Civil Service.

Eid Al-Fitr holidays will be from July 10 (Ramadan 23) to July 22 (Shawwal 6).

Khaled Al-Araj, minister of civil service, conveyed greetings of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman to civil service employees on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan. The Ministry of Labor announced earlier that the work hours for the private sector employees during Ramadan will be six hours per day or 36 hours in a week.

(End)

[hash]

Arabic Sidebar:

The word RAMADAN has a specific meaning in classical Arabic. It means THE SCORCHER implying that historically, the first Ramadan most likely occurred in one of the extremely hot summer months.

The word is also sometimes spelled RAMADHAN to alert readers that the Arabic word itself is spelled in Arabic with a DH and not a D. The two are totally different letters (and sounds) in Arabic.

(To complicate matters further, the DH in DHAHRAN (name of Eastern Province city) is not the same DH as the DH in RAMADHAN. That is a separate Arabic letter. In academic English this DH in DHAHRAN is written with a dot at the bottom of the D to distinguish it from the DH without the dot). To wit:

d = د ......Ramadan.....The common and recommended English spelling. I always use the English D, even though I "know better".

dh = ض........Ramadhan (actual Arabic spelling and pronunciation) (Also this is the DH in the city name Riyadh although I just write RIYAD.....unless, of course, I'm writing in Arabic)

dh = ظ........Dhahran......(English has a dot under the "d") (I've kept the DH when writing English Dhahran simply out of habit).

By the way, it is highly unlikely a single one of your KSA students would be aware of any of this information including the information in paragraph 1 above. I used to spend many a boring ESL class hour enlightening my classes about this information, particularly when "evaluation" time rolled around.

Recommendation: when spelling any of this in English, just use plain ol' D. The DH just confuses the reader and does not help him in pronouncing these 2 very difficult to pronounce Arabic letters.

Note: Many of these "difficult" letters are also difficult for native Arabic speakers. The result of that they're falling out of use especially in the dialects. For example, the Egyptian sound Z (similar to English Z) is now used for at least 4 "pure" Arabic sounds. They will say, for example, RAMAZAN. Naturally, if you enquire about all this, it will be hotly denied and you will be told that what you are hearing is the purest Arabic, (despite what you are really hearing).

[veiledsentiments]

For those interested, the "dh" is actually a soft "th" sound. Phonetically the sound is probably closer to "z" than "d" as most English speakers will say it. Personally I did not "hear" it as "z" sound when I was in Egypt, but you can certainly hear it when they say "Abu Zabi" instead of Abu Dhabi... likely because it comes at the beginning of the word.

VS

[nomad soul]

FYI: The Saudi Embassy in Washington, DC, posted the following on their website:

"In observance of Eid Al-Fitr holiday, the embassy will be closed Friday, July 17 - Friday, July 24."