Ṣafar

Ṣafar (Arabic: صفر‎) is the second month of the Islamic calendar. The Arabic word ṣafar means “empty,” corresponding to the pre-Islamic Arabian time period when people’s houses were empty, as they were out gathering food. Ṣafar also means “whistling of the wind,” as this was likely a windy time of year. Most of the Islamic months are named according to weather conditions of the time; however, since the calendar is lunar, the months shift about 11 days every year, meaning that the seasons do not necessarily correspond to the name of the month.