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In what is a rare occurrence, most Indonesian Muslims will celebrate Idul Fitri on the same day this year, although several minority Islamic groups have marked the day earlier.

The government announced Monday that the festival would begin Wednesday, as the teams deployed to nine areas across the country did not sight hilal (the new moon), which signifies the end of Ramadan and the start of the month of Syawal.

“Syawal will begin on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2008,” Religious Affairs Minister Maftuh Basyuni said after presiding over a meeting to determine the date for Idul Fitri at his office Monday evening.

The meeting was attended by Information and Communications Minister Muhammad Nuh and representatives from Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, the country’s two largest Muslim organizations.

The official Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and other Muslim organizations were also represented in the forum.

Senior Religious Affairs Ministry official Muhtar Ilyas said that because none of the observers in 25 provinces across Indonesia had observed hilal on Monday, Idul Fitri must start the day after Tuesday.

Idul Fitri falls at the beginning of the month of Syawal, ending the Ramadan fasting month.

Years are counted from Hijra, when Prophet Muhammad migrated to Medina from the city of Mecca in AD 622. The Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar with 12 lunar months in a year of about 354 days.

Muhammadiyah had already decided that Idul Fitri would be celebrated this Wednesday.

For years, Indonesian Muslims were divided over when to celebrate Idul Fitri, as the NU and Muhammadiyah used different methods to determine the start of a new month on the Islamic calendar.

The NU uses hisab (astronomical calculations) and rukyatul hilal (crescent moon sightings) to determine the beginning of Syawal, whereas Muhammadiyah depends only on hisab.

“(Based on our calculations), Syawal 1 will fall at sunset of Tuesday, Sept. 30. Therefore the Idul Fitri prayer will be conducted on Wednesday, Oct. 1,” local Muhammadiyah leader Oman Fathurohman told a press conference in Yogyakarta on Monday.

However, some Islamic congregations celebrated Idul Fitri in advance. About 200 members of the Naqsyabandiyah sect in Pasar Barau in Padang, West Sumatra, celebrated Idul Fitri on Monday.

“Our calculations tell us that Idul Fitri falls today. We also started the fasting month earlier, on Aug. 30,” group spokesman Syahbadar said.

Followers of the An Nadzir group in Gowa, South Sulawesi, celebrated Idul Fitri on Tuesday, and members of the Muhdhor sect in Tulungagung, East Java, celebrated the festival on Sunday.

The Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia said it would decide Monday night whether to perform the Idul Fitri prayers on Tuesday or Wednesday.