Tracing the origins of Ramadan decorations

A man prepares Ramadan decorations including a lantern known as a ‘Fanous.’ AFP
Updated 02 June 2018
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Tracing the origins of Ramadan decorations

  • Celebrating the holy month in style has become an integral part of the Saudi way of life
  • The tradition of dressing modestly has developed in the last few years and become a lucrative market for fashion designers

JEDDAH: The holy month of Ramadan is no longer just about fasting, iftar and sahoor meals, and night prayers. With the passage of time, Muslims across the world have found ways to express their love for this holy month in different manners.

Using special decorations is one of the ways to celebrate the holy month. As a matter of fact, Ramadan decorations are increasingly becoming an integral part of Ramadan preparations for many families in Saudi Arabia.
There are two main elements of these Ramadan decorations: Lanterns and colorful fabric with red patterns used in various types of decorations.
The combination of these two elements gives a reddish oriental theme to Ramadan celebrations in Saudi Arabia.
A few years ago, Ramadan decorations were available only in big markets and huge stores and people had fewer options. However, the advent of the internet and the social media revolution have changed the situation with major brands and stores coming up with innovative ideas to attract customers thus changing the way we used to celebrate Ramadan in the past.
Local and international brands offer innovative Ramadan products and collections every year ranging from home accessories, items, party supplies, Ramadan pillows, mattresses, tablecloths, Ramadan jewelry, dresses, perfumes, and even Ramadan cake designs, food presentation, packaging and much more. Special prints and symbols are used in the making of these items to give them a touch of Ramadan.
The print used on all types of product is either the traditional red-themed oriental pattern, or a redesign of it, and the most recognizable symbols used on most of the Ramadan-related items are the traditional lantern and crescent.  
Contrary to popular belief, using decorations to celebrate Ramadan is not a recent phenomenon. Historians may differ over the exact origins but they do agree that the use of lanterns and the traditional red patterned fabric first began in Egypt.
It is said that lanterns were used during the Fatimid Caliphate at the end of the 10th century and at the beginning of the 11th century.
History books tell us that during the month of Ramadan in 362 AH, Caliph Al-Muizz Lideenillah Fatimi arrived in Cairo from Morocco. The Egyptians went out in large processions to greet him at night holding torches and decorated colorful lanterns to light the streets. These lanterns remained lighted until the end of Ramadan filling the streets with joy.
In that connection, Abu Bakr Al-Jassas, a Muslim scholar of the 9th century, in his book “Unanimity of Scholars” stressed that the celebration of festivals (Eids) and the month of Ramadan began in the period during which the Tolonic state was established i.e. between 868 and 905 AC. According to him, squares were lighted and streets decorated during the month of Ramadan and festivals (Eids).
Others choose to refer these Ramadan social traditions to earlier times. Ziad Sami Itani said in an article, titled “Ramadan customs: Ramadan decorations,” that the first to start celebrating the coming of Ramadan was Caliph Umar ibn Al-Khattab, who was a companion of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Itani said that Caliph Umar decorated mosques and lit them starting from the first day of Ramadan so that Muslims could perform Taraweeh prayers and other religious rituals comfortably.
The traditional red-patterned fabric originates from Al-Khayamiyya art, which means Tentmakers art. It is an authentic Egyptian art used to decorate tents and it is one of the unique Egyptian traditions.

It is said that it existed since the era of the Pharaohs, yet it indeed flourished in the Islamic era, especially during the Mamluk rule in Egypt (between 1250 and 1517).

Decorative applique
Al-Khayamiyya was associated with the Kaaba cloth embroidered in gold and silver threads, which used to be manufactured in Egypt until the 1960s. It was sent to the Hijaz in a majestic procession known as the “Mahmal.”
This craft of tentmakers is widely present in Al-Khayamiyya Street in Cairo. Al-Khayamiyya market was built in the 1600s. It is Cairo’s sole remaining medieval covered market located in a 300-meter-long street near Bab Zuwayla, Cairo’s medieval gate and the only one remaining from the 11th and 12th-century walls of Fatimid Cairo.
The market is famous for its colored fabrics used for the massive street tents set for funerals, weddings, shop openings and other gatherings.
The market includes other goods like applique works, cushions, covers, Egyptian cotton bed covers, wall hangings, car covers and traditional Egyptian “galabeyas” (long traditional dress).
Ramadan decorations had varied during the centuries, yet the most significant traditions that influenced the region and the world derived from Egypt.

Special outfits
The society’s respect for the holy month of Ramadan has indirectly developed a dress code that limits outfit choices during Ramadan, especially for women.
People dress modestly in Ramadan. In family and friends’ gatherings, they wear the “jellabiya,” which is a traditional Arab garment worn by both males and females. In Saudi Arabia, the female garment is called “jellabiya,” while its male version is called “thobe.”

 

 The tradition of dressing modestly has developed in the last few years and become a lucrative market for fashion designers. For many designers, Ramadan is a remarkable season — more exhibitions targeting female customers are organized before and during Ramadan, more designs and collections are launched every year for adults and children.
International brands have also started to launch special collections for Ramadan, targeting Muslim women in the Middle East.

What do Saudis think of Ramadan trends?
Banan Mohammed from Jeddah views Ramadan traditions as a form of social pressure.
“It is really a nice thing to make one whole month of the year a special one at all levels. But I feel, whatever  (commercialization) is happening around us, is only piling up pressure on us to make us more consumptive,” she told Arab News.
She lamented the growing irresponsible consumerism in society.
“Ramadan should serve as a spiritual journey for us to strengthen our connection with our Creator, our families and people we love, and to ourselves too,” she added “Ramadan decorations and outfits should support the goal of moral and spiritual purity. If not, then I think we are missing the whole point of Ramadan, and moving in the opposite direction.”
She said: “In my family, we make very little efforts in preparing for Ramadan, I like that we don’t overdo it, it is nice and beautiful because it is simple and it still positively influences the atmosphere at home.”
Samia Bahaziq, another Jeddah resident, takes Ramadan preparations more seriously and pays attention even to minor details and she believes she has a reason to do so. “I do that to make my kids happy and excited for Ramadan. It also helps and encourages them with their fasting,” she told Arab News.
“Preparing for Ramadan is our family custom. We always make special preparations for Ramadan so as to ensure it is not like any other month of the year. It is something etched in our minds,” she said.
“But honestly, now I see that social media platforms are promoting opulence in society, which is alarming,” Bahaziq added.

Decoder

What is Al-Khayamiyya?

It is a type of decorative applique textile developed in Egypt and historically used to decorate tents across the Middle East.


Sudan’s army chief receives Saudi deputy foreign minister in Port Sudan

Sudan’s army chief Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan receives Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Waleed Al-Khuraiji in Port Sudan.
Updated 1 min 54 sec ago
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Sudan’s army chief receives Saudi deputy foreign minister in Port Sudan

  • During the meeting, Al-Khuraiji stressed the keenness of the Kingdom’s leadership on restoring security and stability in Sudan

RIYADH: Sudan’s army chief Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan received Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Waleed Al-Khuraiji in Port Sudan on Tuesday.

During the meeting, Al-Khuraiji stressed the keenness of the Kingdom’s leadership on restoring security and stability in Sudan.

The minister’s visit to the country comes as part of the Kingdom’s ongoing efforts to address the crisis in Sudan, reach a ceasefire, and restore stability to the country. 

The Kingdom continues to support the humanitarian response efforts to alleviate the suffering of the Sudanese people, Saudi Press Agency said. 


Saudi pavilion at UNESCO Arab Week in Paris celebrates Kingdom’s camel culture

Updated 05 November 2024
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Saudi pavilion at UNESCO Arab Week in Paris celebrates Kingdom’s camel culture

  • It shows how the role of the camel evolved from essential means of transport and provider of resources to a cultural icon embodying the Kingdom’s values

PARIS: The Saudi pavilion at UNESCO’s Arab Week event in Paris this week featured a showcase of the Kingdom’s deep-rooted connection to camel culture.

It explored the role of the animals as a vital part of the nation’s heritage, identity and civilization, and offered a glimpse into their enduring place in society, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Tuesday.

The exhibits showed how the role of the camel has evolved from essential means of transport and provider of resources to a cultural icon that embodies the Kingdom’s values, and the ways in which camels are embedded in Saudi customs, traditions and literature, including poetry and proverbs.

The Saudi Ministry of Culture designated 2024 “The Year of the Camel” to highlight and reinforce the status of the animal as a national symbol and cornerstone of the Arabian cultural identity. Camels are regularly celebrated across the country through dedicated festivals, race events, clubs and research centers.

UNESCO’s Arab Week, which features 22 Arab nations, was initiated by Saudi Arabia. Guests at the official opening of the event on Monday included Saudi envoys, ambassadors representing other nations, Arab and other international diplomats stationed in France, and officials from UNESCO.


AI makes media industry more efficient and drives growth, expert says

Martin Sorrell, founder and executive chairman of S4 Capital, speaks to Arab News at the Athar Festival of Creativity.
Updated 05 November 2024
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AI makes media industry more efficient and drives growth, expert says

  • Martin Sorrell: ‘AI speeds up writing processes, increasing efficiency’
  • New tech allows for increasingly personalized content

RIYADH: Artificial intelligence is being used more effectively and efficiently to drive higher economic development in the media industry, said Martin Sorrell, founder and executive chairman of S4 Capital.

At a panel session at the Athar Festival of Creativity Sorrell described how media agencies, such as S4 Capital and its subsidiary, Media.Monks, are using AI in a number of ways.

One application of AI in media, he said, is in “speeding the execution of copywriting and visualization.”

Time to market is drastically decreasing: “What took us literally days is now taking us three hours,” he said. Yet this produces another problem because reducing the time of procurement cuts costs, but this also means it is necessary to move to a model that increases gains in outputs,” he said.

Another application is in personalizing content for consumers. Sorrell told Arab News: “Individualization, hyper personalization, are going to become more important. Knowing the consumer in excruciating detail, using data, using the signals from the platforms, using first-party data, it becomes even more important.”

Using Netflix audience feedback algorithms as an example, Sorrell pointed out that AI enables these algorithms to produce larger and more accurate quantities of output, for example, recommendations based on user profile readings.

“We charge on a per asset used basis. Price of the asset may come down, but total revenue grows because we’re using multiple assets,” he said.

A growing area is in “media planning and buying.” Sophisticated algorithms can far more efficiently choose the distribution of planning and buying than individual media planners.

Technological capital and human capital, however, go hand in hand.

“We as agencies have to validate the algorithm’s analysis. We have to make sure that the client’s money is spent in the right way.”

Another benefit of AI is its ability to improve organizational efficiency. Where organizational silos once kept departments and specializations separate, AI opens up information to the majority of users.

To maintain the emotional connection and trust of the brand-consumer relationship in a technologically driven world, according to Sorrell, understanding individual motivation is increasingly crucial.

“Insights into culture, insights into language, into custom, into belief, into family, into country, that knowledge becomes critically important, far more so in a globalized world,” he said.

The diversity and knowledge of global and local organizations are essential for the success of any company, but the value of personalization means that local knowledge may take the lead, he added.

Quoting Harvard Business School professor Ted Levitt, Sorrell continued: “because remember, consumers will consume everything in the same way everywhere.”

Advising young professionals in tech, media and other industries operating in an AI-powered future, Sorrell said that rather than stripping away opportunities from creatives, avoiding the risk of “bombarding” consumers with much of the same, AI means “creativity becomes even more important.”

Additionally, creatives need to familiarize themselves with the skills and roles that are complementary to the new world: “I think every creative should learn Chinese. I think every creative should learn Spanish, probably Arabic too … and they should learn code.”

“The skills of the ‘Mad Men’, that Don Draper had or his colleagues … are very different to what you need now.”


Saudi Arabia has launched 22 new routes this year as part of tourism drive, ACP’s CEO says

The CEO of the Air Connectivity Program Majid Khan speaks at the Umrah+ Connect event in London on Monday November 4, 2024. (AN
Updated 25 min 14 sec ago
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Saudi Arabia has launched 22 new routes this year as part of tourism drive, ACP’s CEO says

  • Kingdom has attracted 12 new airlines to date in 2024

LONDON: Saudi Arabia has launched 22 new routes from various destinations to the Kingdom this year, increasing tourist seating capacity by nearly 2 million, the CEO of the Air Connectivity Program has said.

Speaking at the Umrah+ Connect business-to-business event in London on Monday, Majid Khan said the Kingdom had attracted 12 new airlines to date in 2024.

Khan said: “There has been good expansion out of the UK. Virgin Atlantic is going to start daily flights from Heathrow to Riyadh in March; British Airways launched flights to Jeddah yesterday; Wizz Air will also be operating Gatwick to Jeddah flights daily.

“We are definitely focusing on our own carriers as well, because they are definitely our first priority; Flynas, flyadeal, Saudia, and Riyadh Air in the future.

“But we are also proactively working with international carriers in order to help us to get a higher share of inbound tourism to the Kingdom, as they have their sales and marketing channels in this part of the world.

“We know that the majority of BA travelers are not Saudis. They are actually travelers from the UK market, from their network in Europe and North America.”

Saudi Arabia has a strong, strategic location and travelers can reach more than half of the world within a six-hour flight, Khan said. He added that the ACP was working to deliver 150 million tourists to the Kingdom as part of Saudi Vision 2030.

He said: “Saudi Arabia is like one continent. We have 1,700 km of coastline, the new Maldives that’s actually the Red Sea, the two holiest sites for Muslims in the world, and mountainous regions.

“In the south we have Abha and Jazan, which I would personally call the Switzerland of Saudi Arabia. So it’s definitely an untouched wonder.”

An exhibition at the event highlighted new tourism developments in the Kingdom that British pilgrims can enjoy, including religious sites and activities that promote an understanding of Saudi cultural heritage.

Khan said the ACP was trying to revolutionize the way pilgrims travel, allowing them to holiday in the Kingdom after performing their religious rituals.

He said: “If we take the UK market, travelers typically have one Umrah ticket in their pocket to perform the minor pilgrimage with their family and friends. They then come back again to the UK, and have a separate ticket to either Dubai, Istanbul, or Malaga.

“This is something we would like to change. Travelers can perform Umrah, see the sacred places, and then save their tickets and continue to travel around the Kingdom. That’s the way we try to position Saudi Arabia.”

Rashid Mohammed, the organizer of Umrah+ Connect, said that Monday’s event had provided an opportunity for Umrah travel agents to network and grow their businesses.

Rashid Mohammed, the organizer of Umrah+ Connect (fourth from right), poses with the team from the Pilgrim Experience Program. (Umrah+ Connect)

Mohammed said: “We’ve brought you a diverse experience here in London, and it’s for you to use these tools, through connecting with people, to create packages that enhance and enrich pilgrim experiences.

“We’re also grateful for the support of the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, and the Umrah and Ziyarah Forum, who are here today and have really backed us to put on this show.”


Saudi minister receives German foreign ministry official

Updated 5 sec ago
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Saudi minister receives German foreign ministry official

  • Discussions focused on enhancing relations, regional and international developments and issues of common concern

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Minister for Political Affairs Saud Al-Sati received Gregory Bledjian, head of the Middle East division at the German Foreign Ministry, and several accompanying officials, in Riyadh on Tuesday.

During the meeting, they discussed ways to enhance relations, regional and international developments, and issues of common interest, the Foreign Ministry wrote on X.

Meanwhile, Shoura Council Speaker Dr. Abdullah bin Mohammed Al-Asheikh received Turkiye’s Ambassador to the Kingdom Emrullah Isler in Riyadh on Tuesday, the Saudi Press Agency reported.