Festival of Sacrifice / Eid al-Adha in Melilla
When is it celebrated
Eid al-Adha is celebrated from the 10th day of dhu al-hijjah, the last month of the Islamic calendar, in connection with the end of the pilgrimage to Mecca. Being governed by a lunar calendar, it moves back approximately ten or eleven days with respect to the Gregorian calendar each year, and the equivalence may differ by one day depending on the method followed to fix the beginning of the month. The official calendar of Melilla indicated Wednesday, 27 May for 2026; In later years the published date must be consulted again.
Is it a holiday or a working day?
The Festival of Sacrifice is a public holiday throughout the Autonomous City of Melilla when its annual calendar so provides. For 2026, the agreement published in the BOME included 27 May among the fourteen festivities, and the BOE included it as Melilla's own holiday. This recognition does not extend by itself to the rest of Spain and must be verified every year because both the Gregorian date and its formal inclusion are variable.
Origin and geographical link
It is a religious festival common to global Islam, also known as Aid al-Adha, Aid el-Kebir or Feast of the Lamb, and not a celebration born in Melilla. Its presence in the city's calendar responds to the roots of the Melilla Muslim community and the public recognition of local cultural and religious plurality.
Regular events
The celebration brings together festive prayer, congratulations, family visits and meals and, for those who follow this practice, the ritual sacrifice of an animal with subsequent distribution of meat. In Melilla, the City prepares authorized facilities every year so that the slaughter can be carried out with veterinary and health control. In 2025, for example, it opened the municipal slaughterhouse and nine temporary facilities distributed throughout several neighbourhoods.
Usual duration of events
The work calendar reserves a day, which concentrates prayer and a good part of family gatherings. The religious holiday and visits can continue beyond that day, while the effective hours and days of the slaughter facilities depend on the operation of each edition. Therefore, the social or religious duration should not be confused with the only day declared a non-working day.
Traditions and history
Eid al-Adha commemorates the story of the obedience of Ibrahim (Abraham), willing to sacrifice his son by divine command before he was replaced by an animal. The tradition of sacrifice remembers that episode, but the festival also includes prayer, family reunion and solidarity: the meat is shared among the home, relatives and people in need. Its celebration also accompanies the end of the hajj or pilgrimage to Mecca.
Where is it celebrated
In Melilla people live in mosques, homes and meeting spaces of the Muslim community. Sacrifices can only be carried out in authorized places. The 2025 device included the municipal slaughterhouse and temporary points at the Cabrerizas sports track, the Palmeras park, the Monte María Cristina track and the National Shooting and Averroes areas; These locations are a reference to that edition and may change in subsequent years.
Who participates
It is carried out by Melilla Muslim families and communities, along with their religious entities. The Autonomous City intervenes in the declaration of the holiday and in the health device, which mobilizes Public Health services, veterinarians, slaughterhouses, authorized livestock farmers and support personnel. Family, friends and recipients of the solidarity distribution of food also participate, within a celebration closely linked to local community life.