Eid al-Adha is an Arabic word which means the Festival of Sacrifice. It is one of the official holidays celebrated within Islam. The other celebration is Eid-al-Fitr.
EID -al-Adha celebrates the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son Ishmael as an act of obedience to God’s command.
According to Genesis 22:2, Abraham took his son Isaac to sacrifice. However, before he could sacrifice him God provided a lamb to sacrifice instead.
In commemoration of Abraham’s obedience, animals are sacrificed ritually. One third of the meat is consumed by the family offering the sacrifice. The rest is provided to the needy people.
Gifts and sweets are given out and families are usually visited and welcomed for a feast.
In the Islamic lunar calendar, the Eid-al-Adha falls on the 10th day of Dhu al Hijah. The celebration lasts four days.
Other languages
In English language for example in North America, the celebration is called ‘Feast of the sacrifice’ while in Trinidad and Tobago it is called Bakra Eid.
The Hausa language spoken in Nigeria and Niger call it Babbar Sallar. In Spanish the celebrations is called Fiesta del Cordelo which means Festival of the Lamb in English.
In Yoruba spoken in Nigeria and Togo Eid -al- Adha is known as Odun Ileya.
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