Ramadan

RAMADAN: The ninth month of the Mohammedan year, observed as a fast. According to Surah ii. of the Koran the method of observance is total abstinence from food during the day, but eating may be indulged during the night and until it is possible to distinguish a white thread from a black one by natural light. It is customary for the leisure classes to make the daytime a period for sleep, the nights being seasons of feasting and revelry. The three days following the fast are days of feasting, and are called the Little Beiram. See Mohammed, Mohammedanism, IV., § 3.