The migration of Muhammad and the early Muslim community from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE, which became the starting point of the Islamic calendar.

Why is 16 July 622 used?

It corresponds to the first day of the lunar year in which the migration occurred, the epoch Caliph Umar chose when the calendar was set. The hour is not recorded.

No. Where no clock time survives, the Museum records a midday UTC marker and says so on the page.

July 16, 622

0622-07-16 12:00 UTC

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The Hijra begins

Muhammad's migration from Mecca to Medina starts the year that becomes the first of the Islamic calendar.

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What happened in this minute

The migration of Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Yathrib, later Medina, turned a persecuted community into a self-governing one with its own charter between tribes.

Caliph Umar later fixed the start of the Islamic lunar calendar to the first day of the lunar year in which the migration took place, which corresponds to 16 July 622 in the Julian calendar.

The choice is itself significant: the calendar starts not at a birth or a battle but at a relocation, dating the community from the moment it could organise itself.

Questions and answers

What is the Hijra?: The migration of Muhammad and the early Muslim community from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE, which became the starting point of the Islamic calendar.
Why is 16 July 622 used?: It corresponds to the first day of the lunar year in which the migration occurred, the epoch Caliph Umar chose when the calendar was set. The hour is not recorded.
Is the time exact?: No. Where no clock time survives, the Museum records a midday UTC marker and says so on the page.