CNN Video Featuring CalendarLink.org

admin — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 23:10:20 +0000

History of the Calendar

admin — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 19:34:54 +0000

The purpose of the calendar is to reckon past or future time, to show how many days until a certain event takes place—the harvest or a religious festival—or how long since something important happened. The earliest calendars must have been strongly influenced by the geographical location of the people who made them. In colder countries, the concept of the year was determined by the seasons, specifically by the end of winter. But in warmer countries, where the seasons are less pronounced, the Moon became the basic unit for time reckoning; an old Jewish book says that “the Moon was created for the counting of the days.”

Most of the oldest calendars were lunar calendars, based on the time interval from one new moon to the next—a so-called lunation. But even in a warm climate there are annual events that pay no attention to the phases of the Moon. In some areas it was a rainy season; in Egypt it was the annual flooding of the Nile River. The calendar had to account for these yearly events as well.

Where did the word calendar come from?

admin — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 19:19:45 +0000

The schedule of our lives is shaped by the movements of the earth, moon, and sun.

In ancient Rome, a priest observed the sky and announced a new moon cycle to the king. For centuries afterward, Romans referred to the first day of each new month as Kalends (from their word calare, which means “to proclaim”).

The word calendar derived from this custom.

Tidelines Tide Calendars

CNN Video Featuring CalendarLink.org

History of the Calendar

Where did the word calendar come from?