← National days · Northern Cyprus (TRNC)
12 Rabi al-Awwal in the Islamic calendar; moves about 11 days earlier each year· Holiday
TRNC: Mawlid (the Prophet's Birthday)
The night of the Prophet Muhammad's birth — an official holiday by law in the TRNC.
Mevlid Kandili is the night of the Prophet Muhammad's birth, falling on 12 Rabi al-Awwal in the Islamic calendar. Under the 1984 Official Holidays and Commemoration Days Law it is an official holiday in the TRNC — the only one of the eight Turkic states to make it a day off.
As the Islamic calendar is lunar, Mevlid Kandili moves about 11 days earlier each year; the exact date is announced annually by government circular.
How it is marked
At night mosques hold recitations of Süleyman Çelebi's Mevlid poem and the Quran, prayers are said, and families bake sweets to share with neighbours.
Photos
Selimiye Mosque in Lefkoşa · Jules Verne Times Two / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 
Arabahmet Mosque in Lefkoşa · Pemav / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 
Dome of the Arabahmet Mosque · Michal Klajban / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 
Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque in Famagusta · A.Savin / Wikimedia Commons · FAL 
Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque · Ayratayrat / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 
Selimiye Mosque, North Nicosia · Michal Klajban / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Northern Cyprus (TRNC): other days
- January 1New Year's Day
- April 23Türkiye: National Sovereignty and Children's Day
- May 1Labour Day
- May 19Türkiye: Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day
- July 20Northern Cyprus: Peace and Freedom Day
- August 1Northern Cyprus: Social Resistance Day
- August 30Türkiye: Victory Day
- October 3Founding of the Organization of Turkic States
- October 29Republic Day of Türkiye
- November 15Founding of Northern Cyprus
- December 21Northern Cyprus: Week of National Struggle and Martyrs
- 10 Dhu al-Hijjah in the Islamic calendar — the feast of the Hajj pilgrimage; moves about 11 days earlier each yearEid al-Adha
- 1 Shawwal in the Islamic calendar — the end of the Ramadan fast; moves about 11 days earlier each yearEid al-Fitr