Does Ramadan begin at the same time every year?
No. The Islamic Calendar is based on lunar calendar. The Islamic lunar calendar, being 11 to 12 days shorter than the Gregorian calendar, migrates throughout the seasons. Thus, since Ramadan began on October 27th, 2003 of the this year, it will begin around October 15th or 16th of next year. The entire cycle takes around 35 years. In this way, the length of the day, and thus the fasting period, varies in length from place to place over the years.
