Ramadan: Which countries have the longest and shortest fast this year?

Ramadan is set to begin at the beginning of April this year and over a billion Muslims will start observing a month-long fast during daylight hours.

The holy month begins approximately two weeks earlier each year and, for half the world, it will move away from the longer, hotter days of summer towards the shorter, cooler winter.

But which countries will have the most daylight hours and which nations will have the shortest fast?

Shortest Ramadan fast in 2022:

New Zealand, Argentina and South Africa are tied for the shortest fasting period between 11 and 12 hours during the month.

Longest Ramadan fast in 2022:

Muslims in the city of Reykjavík, Iceland, will have this year’s record of being residents of the city with the longest fasting hours. They are expected to endure a punishing 16 hours and 50 minutes hours fast during the holy month.

How can you fast for Ramadan when it never gets dark?

While nowhere is expecting a midnight sun this Ramadan, Muslims in countries with exceptionally long daytimes during the holy month can’t actually adhere to a 20-hour fast.

So, what do they do?

In countries where the sunset and sunrise are less than three hours apart, fatwas have been declared in order to allow residents to follow the schedule of other cities. Many, for example, will follow the fast times of Makkah in Saudi Arabia.

This year, Saudi Arabia and much of the Middle East will be fasting for around 15 hours a day.