Eid al-Adha

Eid al-Adha (عيد الأضحى ˈʕiːd æl ˈʔɑdʕħæː, "Feast of the Sacrifice") or the Feast of Sacrifice is the second and the largest of the two main holidays celebrated in Islam (the other being Eid al-Fitr). It honours the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son, Ismail, as an act of obedience to God's command. However, before Abraham could sacrifice his son in the name of God, and because of his willingness to do so, God provided him with a lamb to sacrifice in his son's place. In commemoration of this intervention, animals are ritually sacrificed. Part of their meat is consumed by the family that offers the animal, while the rest of the meat is distributed to the poor and the needy. Sweets and gifts are given, and extended family members typically visit and are welcomed. The day is also sometimes called the Greater Eid. In the Islamic lunar calendar, Eid al-Adha falls on the tenth day of Dhu al-Hijja and lasts for four days. In the international (Gregorian) calendar, the dates vary from year to year, shifting approximately 11 days earlier each year. Eid al-Adha is also pronounced Eid al-Azha and Eidul Azha, primarily in Iran and regions influenced by the Persian language like the Indian subcontinent; ˌiːd_əl_ˈɑːdə,_-_ˈɑːdhɑː ; ʿĪd al-ʾAḍḥā, ʕiːd al ˈʔadʕħaː. The Arabic word عيد (ʿīd) means 'festival', 'celebration', 'feast day', or 'holiday'. It itself is a triliteral root عيد (ʕ-y-d) with associated root meanings of "to go back, to rescind, to accrue, to be accustomed, habits, to repeat, to be experienced; appointed time or place, anniversary, feast day". Arthur Jeffery contests this etymology, and believes the term to have been borrowed into Arabic from Syriac, or less likely Targumic Aramaic. The holiday is called عيد الأضحى (Eid-al-Adha) or العيد الكبير (Eid-al-Kabir) in Arabic. The words أضحى (aḍḥā) and قربان (qurbān) are synonymous in meaning 'sacrifice' (animal sacrifice), 'offering' or 'oblation'. The first word comes from the triliteral root ضحى (ḍaḥḥā) with the associated meanings "immolate; offer up; sacrifice; victimize".