How is Ramadan celebrated across the Arab world?

1. The “Boutabla”, in the Maghreb

The Boutabla means “the man with the drum” in the Maghreb dialect. This ancestral tradition from North Africa is generally practiced by a man, whose role is to wake up the inhabitants of a neighborhood or a small town for the hour of “s’hour”, the meal before sunrise, just before the fast of the day. With the help of a drum, he strolls through the streets singing “wake up for s’hour”! A practice that is less and less practiced, but still exists in Tunis, the Tunisian capital, where a man perpetuates the tradition by drumming on his “tabbel” to wake up the neighbors of a cafe in the Ariana district. 

2. The midfa al iftar, in the Levant

It is said that this custom of Ramadan was born in Egypt more than 200 years ago, under the Ottoman Empire. Governor Khosh Qadam is said to have inadvertently fired a cannon at sunset during the inspection of the military artillery. The sound of the cannon then resounded throughout the Egyptian capital, which the inhabitants interpreted as the signal to break the fast. This incident became a tradition, and is now mostly practiced in Lebanon, in the Levant.

3. Gargeean, in the Gulf 

Gargee’an is a festival celebrated mainly in the Gulf, on the 15th night of Ramadan, during which children ring the doors of their neighbors in search of sweets, in exchange for which they sing traditional songs. This tradition has existed for hundreds of years and is deeply rooted in some parts of the Gulf culture.