Aseer Residents Revive Ramadan Memories With Iftar In Historic Palaces

Residents in Aseer Region are using historic homes and fortresses to keep Ramadan memories alive, gathering for Iftar and Suhoor in restored heritage sites. These meetings bring together elders and younger people, linking present traditions with customs that shaped community life in earlier decades.

The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) visited Al-Jarman Palaces in Khamis Mushait Governorate, where residents described how they now meet regularly in the renovated buildings. They use these palaces to recall social and spiritual practices that once defined Ramadan in villages across the mountainous Aseer Region.

Al-Jarman Palaces have been renewed and lit as part of a wider cultural effort that focuses on Ramadan memories. The complex now hosts collective Iftar and Suhoor meals, congregational prayers in old village mosques, and educational sessions designed to reinforce links with local heritage among younger generations.

Community elders lead many of these events, sharing stories about work, worship, and daily life in past Ramadans. Their accounts explain how people balanced normal duties with fasting, and how communities organised simple meals, prayer gatherings, and social support during the holy month in the Aseer Region.

Local resident Rashid Ali bin Jarman said that earlier Ramadans remained full working days for most people. Farmers stayed in their fields and shepherds tended flocks until Iftar, when families gathered to break the fast with very limited food and simple local ingredients.

"Families gathered around a few dates, water, and milk," he said. "If bread was available, it was made from local wheat, barley, or corn and baked in a tandoor oven or over embers in a method called ‘marmouda.’ Meat was rare. Afterward, people performed Maghrib and Isha prayers together and slept early to prepare for the next day."

Eighty-year-old Mohammed Rafie bin Ruwaib described how residents once confirmed the start of Ramadan by watching for the new moon from high ground, then announcing it with gunfire. Mohammed Rafie bin Ruwaib also highlighted the security and calm now present in the Kingdom, saying Ramadan still underlines solidarity and compassion across communities.

With inputs from SPA