Bakrid/Eid ul-Adha in India

For India’s huge Muslim community, Bakrid is one of the most celebrated dates in the calendar. It features prayer, sacrifice, and excellent food.

Is Bakrid a Public Holiday?

Bakrid is a public holiday. It is a day off for the general population, and schools and most businesses are closed.

What Does Bakrid Look Like in India?

More than 200 million Muslims live in India, and on Bakrid, they celebrate one of the year’s holiest days.

If you visit an Indian city on this day, you’re likely to see large gatherings of people wearing their finest clothes, praying, wishing each other Eid Mubarak (Happy Eid), and celebrating.

How is Bakrid celebrated in other countries?

Open-Air Prayer

The day traditionally starts with Eid prayers (Namaz). They are performed in open-air enclosures called Eidgahs.

Animal Sacrifice

Be prepared to witness goats, cows, or camels being slaughtered in the street. Bakrid, literally meaning ‘Goat Festival,’ revolves around the concept of sacrifice, and animal sacrifice plays a central role.

Folk Festival

Especially in cities with large Muslim communities, such as Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad, or Mumbai, food stalls offering Bakrid delicacies line the streets of some quarters.

Families stroll around the streets, enjoying the food or buying each other small gifts. This part of the festival usually attracts people from all backgrounds and faiths.

Celebrating Ibrahim’s Sacrifice

This Muslim festival commemorates an act of obedience to Allah (God), as told in the Quran.

Following God’s instructions, prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) shows himself willing to kill his beloved son, Ismail (Ishmael). Just before Ibrahim carries out the sacrifice, God exchanges Ismail with a goat to be killed in his stead.

Sacrifice and Charity

In an act called Qurbani, millions of goats and other animals are slaughtered on Bakrid in India alone. What may sound like a rather coarse ritual is, in fact, based on the concept of personal sacrifice and charity.

Many Indians cannot afford meat on a regular basis, and Qurbani rules stipulate that some of the meat must be distributed among the poor. Some people may sacrifice a substantial portion of their income to buy an animal and perform this duty.

Rather than performing Qurbani themselves, some may also give money to charities providing meat and other goods to those in need.

Bakrid Food

India has a rich and world-famous culinary tradition. But did you know that some of the best-known Indian dishes have Mughal roots and are traditionally enjoyed on Bakrid? They include:

• Biryani: a mixed rice dish featuring the meat of the slaughtered animal.
• Korma: a spicy curry usually served with rice.
• Bhuna kaleji: roasted or grilled goat’s liver with savory spices, usually served as a Bakrid breakfast.

Different Date Each Year

The Bakrid festival falls on the 10th day of Dhu al-Hijjah, the 12th and final month in the Islamic calendar. In the Western Gregorian calendar, it occurs about 11 days earlier each year.

The exact date depends on Moon sightings, so it cannot be predicted far in advance. Moreover, India being a nation of many religions, the Bakrid date may be moved to avoid clashes with another religion’s holiday.

To find the correct date, keep an eye on our holiday pages for India, which are maintained daily.

Biggest Bakrid Celebrations in India

All of India’s Muslims celebrate Bakrid, but festivities are naturally most visible in the areas where a large percentage of the population is Muslim.

About half of India’s Muslims live in the states of Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and Bihar.

Northern Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana also have large Muslim communities.

While relatively sparsely populated, Jammu and Kashmir is the only mainland state in India with a Muslim majority.

Eid al-Adha, Id ul-Zuha, or Bakrid?

This Islamic festival has many names in India, each with a different background. They can generally be used interchangeably.

• Bakrid is a contraction of Bakra Eid, which translates as the goat festival. Bakr or Bakri is the Urdu word for goat, while Eid derives from the Arabic word for festival or feast.
• Both Eid ul-Adha and Id ul-Zuha are Arabic and mean Festival of Sacrifice.

As Arabic and Urdu each use a unique writing system, the Latin spellings vary greatly.

About Bakrid/Eid ul-Adha in Other Countries

Note: During a gazetted holiday, government offices and most businesses are closed so people have a day off work.

While we diligently research and update our holiday dates, some of the information in the table above may be preliminary. If you find an error, please let us know.