Presentation. History of the calendar

Yuri Ruban,
Ph.D. ist. Sciences, Ph.D. theology

Etymology of the term

Word " calendar" acquired different meanings in its history. The term itself goes back to the Latin calendae, calends is the name of the first day of each month in Ancient Rome. In turn, this noun comes from the archaic verb cal(e)o - “to proclaim,” “to convene,” because once in Rome the beginning of the month was proclaimed by learned priests. Then the word calendarium arose - this was the name of the debt book in which creditors recorded the interest paid on debts on the first day of each month. And still later, in the Middle Ages, the modern meaning appeared. Thus, a calendar (calendarium) is a specific system for counting long periods with their divisions into separate shorter periods (years, months, weeks, days).

A characteristic feature of the Christian calendar is that it combines the principles of two calendars - the Jewish lunisolar and Roman solar. The first corresponds to the holidays of the moving cycle; Moreover, even the names of the two most important Jewish holidays are preserved - Passover (in Greek transcription Easter) and Pentecost. The second calendar corresponds to the holidays of the fixed cycle; Moreover, the main one - the Nativity of Christ - the Church combined with the winter solstice (December 25) - the day of an important pagan solar holiday - the Birthday of the Invincible Sun, Dies Natalis Solis Invicti. The Roman solar calendar was reformed twice: first dramatically by Julius Caesar in 46 BC. e. (hence called Julian), and then, in order to make it more accurate, by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582 (this is our Gregorian calendar).

The need for a calendar

The need to measure time arose among people a long time ago. It is simply impossible to live without a counting system, be it measuring space (metrology) or time (calendar and chronology). The higher the level of culture and science, the more perfect the counting or measurement systems become.

Nature - or the Lord God, as one prefers - provided people with three periodic (observable even with the naked eye of a primitive man) processes that allow them to keep track of time:

1) change of day and night,

2) changing phases of the moon and

3) change of seasons.

On their basis, such concepts as day, month and year were formed. It is absolutely clear that the number of days in both a calendar month and a calendar year can only be an integer. Meanwhile, their astronomical prototypes - the synodic month and the tropical year - contain fractional parts of the day.

The synodic month (from the Greek “convergence”; during new moons, the Moon seems to converge with the Sun) is the period of time between two new moons; it ranges from 29.25 to 29.83 days (the reason is the ellipticity of the lunar orbit). The average length of a synodic month is 29.53059 days (= 29 days, 12 hours 44 minutes 3.0 seconds).

A tropical year (from the Greek - turn) is a period of time after which the height of the Sun above the horizon at noon, having reached its greatest value, decreases again. In other words, this is the period of time during which the Earth makes one revolution around the Sun. T = 365.24220 days.

Thus, neither the synodic month nor the tropical year contains an integer number of average solar days; therefore, all these three quantities are incommensurable. This means that it is impossible to simply express one of these quantities through the other, that is, it is impossible to select some integer number of solar years that would contain an integer number of lunar months and an integer number of average solar days. This is precisely the whole complexity of the calendar system and all the confusion that for many millennia reigned in the issue of counting large periods of time.

It is not surprising that the creation and improvement of calendar systems was previously available only to the priests - intellectuals of antiquity, who determined the dates of holidays, which were both church and civil, and by which ordinary people checked the time. Suffice it to remember that the calendar according to which Europe lived for 1600 years (and the Russian Orthodox Church still lives) was introduced by the high pagan priest of Rome (Julius Caesar); The reform of this (Julian) calendar was carried out in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII (the supreme Christian “priest”), and the chronology by which all humanity now compares time (the era from the Nativity of Christ, or Anno Domini, abbreviated AD) was developed and introduced in 525 g. Roman archivist Abbot Dionysius the Small.

Three kinds of calendars

The desire to at least to some extent coordinate the day, month and year with each other led to the emergence of three calendar systems:

1) a solar calendar based on the movement of the Sun, in which they tried to coordinate the day and year;

2) a lunar calendar based on the movement of the Moon, the purpose of which is to coordinate the day and the lunar month; finally,

3) lunisolar, in which an attempt is made to coordinate all three units of time.

Lunisolar calendar systems are much more complex than lunar and solar calendars. Here it is necessary that the beginnings of the calendar months be located as close as possible to the new moon, and the sum of a certain number of whole lunar months correspond as closely as possible to the true length of the tropical year. Calendar months have twenty-nine or thirty days. The basis of almost all active lunisolar calendars is the so-called Metonic cycle, named after the ancient Greek astronomer and mathematician Meton, who established this nineteen-year cycle in 432 BC. e. It serves to best coordinate changes in lunar phases with the movement of the Sun. In this cycle there are 12 years of 12 lunar months and 7 years of 13 months. The intercalary months are called "embolismic" (from the Greek - insertion). A year with 13 months is a leap year; The ancient Jews called it ibbur - "pregnant". They are located like this: 3, 6, 8, 11, 14, 17, 19.

The Jewish lunisolar calendar is the basis of the Christian Paschal (a system of rules and amendments for calculating the date of Easter for each year). Holidays and penitential days dependent on Easter (this is the Easter cycle) are recorded in our calendar, which is called movable (because its days move every year according to the dates of the month), or triode, because the liturgical texts of all these days are contained in a book with the Greek name Triodion .

Source: The Bible in Russian translation. RBO, Moscow, 1999

Help about calendars

1. Gregorian calendar(“new style”) introduced in 1582 AD. e. dad-sing Gri-go-ri-em XIII so that the day of the spring-of-the-equality of the co-responsibility-val is determined-de-len-no-mu day (March 21).

2. Julian calendar(“old style”) was introduced in 46 BC. e. Yuli-em Tse-za-rem and counted 365 days; appeared every third year. This mistake was corrected by im-per-ra-tor Augustus: from 8 BC. e. and until 8 AD e. The half-full days of the high years have passed.

3. Days of the week. Seven days of the week became a standard around the 3rd century AD. Named on the days of the week according to the heavenly bodies:

Why was the new style introduced?

Gri-go-ri-an-sky ka-len-dar gives a much more accurate approximation to the real duration of the year Yes. Since those centuries, the astro-no-mi-days have gradually shifted, to which they are associated there were agricultural work and re-legal holidays: spring and autumn and etc.

The main thing for the intervention of the Pope of Rome and the adoption of the new ka-len-da-rya has become gradually -new shift in relation to the July-an-sky ka-len-da-ryu of the spring day, for some reason -ro-mu determined-de-la-da-ta Easter. Before Pope Gregory XIII, Popes Pavel III and Pius IV had already tried to clarify the cal-len-da-rya, but they were not successful -stig-lee. The reforms are under preparation according to the instructions of Gregory XIII of the implementation of the as-ro-no-we Christophorus Clavius ​​and Alo-i -ziy Li-liy.

In 1583, Gregory XIII appointed Kon-stan-ti-no-pol-skomu pat-ri-ar-kh Jeremiah II as an embassy with the pre-lo- I'm not going to transfer to the new Ka-Len-Dar. At the end of 1583, at the council in Kon-stan-ti-no-po-le, the proposal was rejected, well, if not with- The ve-stvu-yu-shchee ka-but-no-che-pra-vi-lam celebration of Easter.

The transition to the Gri-go-ri-an-sky Ka-len-Dar brought the following from-me-not:

• the new calendar, immediately at the moment of arrival, shifted the current date by 10 days and corrected it for the beer-shi-e- all mistakes;
• in the new ka-len-da-re, a new, more precise, rule about the vi-so-kos-year began to operate - the year of vi- co-kosny, that is, lasts 366 days, if:
  1. number of year kra-ten 400 (1600, 2000, 2400);
  2. the rest of the years - the number of the year is 4 and not 100 (... 1892, 1896, 1904, 1908...);
  3. mo-di-fi-tsi-ro-va-lis pra-vi-la ras-che-ta chri-sti-an-skoy Easter.
• Over time, Yuli-an-sky and Gri-go-ri-an-sky Ka-len-da-ri are growing more and more, by three sous -current every 400 years.

The process of switching to the Gregorian calendar

In a number of cases, the move to the Gri-go-ri-an-sky Ka-len-Dar with-pro-led-give-seriously-seriously -ka-mi. For example, when the Polish king Stefan Ba-to-riy introduced a new calendar in Riga in 1584, local merchants supported nya-li-tezh, stating that a shift of 10 days disrupts their deadlines and leads to significant losses. I also destroyed the Riga church and killed several mu-zi-pal servants. It was only possible to cope with the “ka-len-dar-ny demons in a row” only in the summer of 1589.

In some countries that switched to the Gri-go-ri-an-sky ka-len-dar, subsequently the re-launch of Julian -skoe summer-counting as a result of their joining with other state-states.

In the transfer of the decision of the king of Ge-or-ga II to the Gri-go-ri-an-sky ka-len-dar on September 2, 1752 Bri-ta-nii had to move it forward not by 10, but by 11 days, since from the moment of entry into power the new I've been in the kon-ti-n-tal-noy Euro-pe mi-no-val for a whole century already and I've got one extra day to drink. After the 2nd, immediately on September 14th. The subjects were dissatisfied with the decision that made them senior. In the country there were pro-tests under the slogan: “Give us back one in ten days!” From time to time, you flare up, sometimes when you see people, for example, in Bristo-le .

In Sweden, it was decided to switch to the new ka-len-dar according to the ste-pen-no, abolishing the vi-so-kos-days from 1700 to 1740 years In 1700, the first Vi-so-kos-day was abolished. Then the war started and we forgot about the re-water. In this way, the country lived according to its own Swedish culture. In 1711, Charles XII recognized this as impractical and decided to return to the old style and add 2 days to February. That's why it was February 30, 1712 in Sweden. Only in 1753 was a new style introduced. Moreover, after February 17, immediately after March 1. The introduction of a new ka-len-da-rya also had serious financial consequences. In 1753 - the first full year according to the Gri-go-ri-an-sko-mu ka-len-da-ryu, the banks refused to pay on-lo-gi, waiting until 11 days after the end of collection - March 25th. As a result of the financial year in Vel-li-ko-bri-ta-nia, only 6 ap-re-la began. This data has been preserved to this day, as a symbol of great changes that took place 250 years ago.

Some countries have switched to the new style often, for example, various can- tones of Switzerland. no re-form-mu ka-len-da-rya for almost 120 years!

Unusual was the transition to the Gri-go-ri-an-sky ka-len-dar in Alaska after its sale to Russia, since there he co-che -tal-sya with per-re-no-som li-nii per-re-me-ny yes-you. That's why, after Friday, October 5, 1867, according to the old style, after another one, on Friday, October 18, 1867 -Teptember 1867 according to the new style.

In 1872, a decision was made about re-ho-de with tra-di-tsi-on-no-go (moon-no-sol-nech-no-go) ka-len-da-rya in Gri-go-ri-an-skiy pri-nya-la Japan, so the next day after the “second day of two-month the fifth year Maid-Zi" became on January 1, 1873, in the result of which the Ka-len-Dar of Japan was at -in compliance with the cal-len-da-rem of the main Western powers (excluding Russia). Nevertheless, in official do-ku-men-tas one-now-men-but-continues-to-use the si-ste-ma nen th. For example, the year 1868 could be considered the first year of Mei-ji, 1912 - Tai-sho 1, 1926 - Sho-wa 1, 1989 - Hei-s-ei 1, and etc. In ordinary practice, one-on-one, the number of years from the Birth of Christ to the “west” is taken. -no-mu ka-len-da-ryu” (seireki), which became the main one in Japan during the 20th century.

Ko-rea pri-nya-la gri-go-ri-an-sky ka-len-dar January 1, 1896. Although in agreement, when the ka-len-da-ryu was established, the correct nu-me-ra-tion of months and days, but still in for the years 1895-1897, the old number of years lasted according to the first year of the reign of the di-na-sty Cho-son, according to which 1896 gri-go-ri-an-sko-go ka-len-da-rya with-from-veterity-val 1392 to the year Cho-son. Then, I started counting the years from various historical events, until, since 1962, I haven’t gotten tired of counting down the years, identical gri-go-ri-an-sko-mu ka-len-da-ryu. In North Korea, since July 8, 1997, a new “year-old Juche” has been introduced, the beginning of which -la-et-xia 1912 is the year of birth of Kim Il Sung.

Ki-Thai Res-pub-li-ka ofi-tsi-al-but pri-nya-la gri-go-ri-an-skiy ka-len-dar with its pro-voz-gla-she- Institute since January 1, 1912. With the unification of China under the rule of Guo-ming-da-na in October 1928, the National Government of It became clear that from January 1, 1929, the Gri-go-ri-an-sky ka-len-dar will be used. Nevertheless, China co-kept the Chinese tradition for many months, and at the beginning The first year of the pro-establishment of the Chinese Republic was designated - 1912. This system is still in use in Taiwan, which considers itself a successor to the Chinese Republic. ki. After the pro-government of the Chinese People's Republic in 1949, the con-ti-nen-tal China pro-dol -lived to use the Gri-go-ri-an-sky Ka-len-Dar, but was from-me-not-at-nu-me-ra-tion and le-to-count-le -introduced by the previous government, and the establishment in correspondence with the anniversary of the birth of -Christianity, adopted in the USSR and in the West.

In Russia(on ter-ri-to-rii, na-ho-div-shay-sia under the control of So-ve-tov) Gri-go-ri-an-sky ka-len-dar introduced de- cre-tom of January 26, 1918 Sov-nar-ko-ma, according to someone in 1918 after January 31- follows February 14th. On the territories of the former Russian Empire, which were under the control of other state -ra-zo-va-niy, arose after the pa-de-niy of the Time-government, yes-you are an official of the introduction -de-niya but-in-go style from-whether-cha-yut-sya. Thus, the Temporary Siberian Government introduced a new style de-cre-tom on August 31, 1918, according to Sta-no-Viv consider the day of October 1, 1918 as the day of October 14, 1918.

One of the last to cross the Gri-go-ri-an-sky Ka-len-Dar was Greece in 1924, Turkey in 1926 and Egypt -pet in 1928. Until now, only Efi-o-piya and Ta-i-land have not moved to the Gri-go-ri-an-sky Ka-len-Dar.

Changing calendars in the Church

Since 1923, the majority of the Local Right-Glorious Churches, with the exception of the Russian, Jerusalem, and Georgian Zin-skaya and Serbian, similar to the Gri-go-ri-an-sky “no-vo-yuli-an-sky” ka-len-dar, more precisely ny and owl-pa-da-yu-schiy with gri-go-ri-an-sky until 2800.

Also, the Gri-go-ri-an-sky ka-len-dar was introduced by pat-ri-ar-hom Ti-kho-n for recognition in the Russian Orthodoxy Church on October 15, 1923. However, this is a new introduction, although almost everyone was there, you called There was confusion among many church hierarchs, which was unnecessary in this difficult time, so it was already November 8, 1923. -ri-arch Ti-hon ordered the “all-local and obligatory introduction of a new style into the church” the new required time to live.” In this way, the new style was in effect in the Russian Orthodox Church for only 24 days.

In 1948, at the Moscow meeting of the Right-Glorious Church, it was announced that Easter, just like everyone else -re-ho-day-holidays-should-be-calculated according to the Alec-San-Driy Pass-kha-lia (Yuli-an-sko-mu ka-len -da-ryu), and the non-per-re-ho-dya-things - according to the ka-len-da-ryu, according to which the Local Church lives.

How to recalculate past dates?

If the whole world hadn't bothered to talk about how and what kind of ka-len-dar to use for yes- ti-rov-ki is-to-ri-che-events, this would lead to different-but-fight and su-my-ti-tse in determining dates .

What errors would there be in re-counting dates?

1. In connection with the recent transition of countries to the Gri-go-ri-an-sky ka-len-dar, facts can be introduced errors in perception: for example, sometimes it is said that In-ka Gar-si-la-so de la Vega, Mi-gel de Ser Van Tes and William Shakespir died on the same day - April 23, 1616. In fact, Shex-pir died 10 days later than In-ka Gar-si-la-so, since in some Is-pa-nia there is a new style acted from the very introduction of his father, and Ve-li-ko-bri-ta-nia moved to the new calendar only to in 1752 and 11 days later than Ser-van-tes (who died on April 22, but was killed on April 23).
2. There are other types of mistakes, when, for the sake of getting it, yes, you are -an-sko-mu ka-len-da-ryu for something to-add-la-yut the number of days that make up the difference between ka-len-da -rya-mi at the moment re-ho-da countries to a new style of ka-len-da-rya, that is, they are spreading out different numbers days of ka-len-da-rey deep into the centuries. Such a mistake about-de-mon-stri-ro-va-la our State Duma, the national holiday is on November 4th - de-pu-ta-you to the taking of Ki-tai-Go-ro-da on October 22, 1612 for 13 days, although not once -tsa between ka-len-da-rya-mi then with-sta-la-la only 10 days. This is no longer talking about the fact that the Kremlin itself, or rather the Kremlin gar-ni-zon of the Polish troops, surrendered much later to this day.
   In addition to this, the State Duma also be-s-dum-but on-know-la some memorable military yes-you:
   . Ice-before-howling happened on April 5, 1242, a memorable date on April 28 (one time again 13 days);
   . Victory Day of the Russian regiments led by the Great Prince Dmit-ri Donsky over the Mon-go-lo-ta-tar-ski troops -mi in the Battle of Ku-li-Kov; happened on September 8, 1380, yes-to-know-on on September 21 (13 days);
   Moreover, these errors are selective, most of the dates are correct, which is especially true for negligence. -re-counted the previously mentioned dates:
   . Victory day of the Russian army under the command of Peter I over the Swedes in the Battle of Poltava; happened on June 27, 1709, yes, it was right on July 8 (11 days);
   . Day of Bo-ro-din-sko-th battle of the Russian army under the co-man-do-va-ni-em M.I. Ku-tu-zo-va with the French ar-mi-it happened on August 26, 1812, yes-that's right on July 5-7 (12 days);
3. If two countries take part in an historical co-existence, in different centuries they switched to a new style, Careless is-to-ri-ki of both countries can cause an even greater mess, unknowingly re-calculating the old Yes, everyone in their own way. The same Swedes at the Battle of Neva (July 15, 1240 according to Yuli-an-sky Ka-len-da-ryu) could have mis-re-counted on July 26 according to Gri-go-ri-an-sko-mu ka-len-da-ryu (+ 11 days), and the same go-re-is-to-ri-ki per-re-counted that would be on July 28 (+ 13 days).

For the sake of the right way, you are the right person to re-re-vo-da dates:

• To indicate all dates before 1582 AD. e. most often used is the Yuli-An-Kalen-Dar, introduced only on January 1, 45 BC. e.
• Yes, before the introduction of the Yuli-an-sko-go ka-len-da-rya on January 1, 45 BC. e. denoted by the so-called about-lep-ti-che-sko-mu yuli-an-sko-mu ka-len-da-ryu. Pro-lep-ti-che-sky (from the Greek “before-resurrection-scha-yu-shiy”) ka-len-dar - ka-len-dar, extended on per-ri -od before its introduction. Simply put, yes, you consider it according to Yuli-an-sky ka-len-da-ryu, despite the fact that the ka-len-dar has not yet been pri-du-man.
• To re-count dates after 1582 in those countries where, at the moment of this event, the action continued -to put the Yuli-an-sky ka-len-dar, yes-tu re-count-you-va-yut in the gri-go-ri-an-sky ka-len-dar, adding that number -lot of days, for which there were a lot of ka-len-da-ri for the moment of completion of the event.
• In re-gi-o-nah, where the Yuli-an-sky ka-len-dar is not used, yes-ti-rov-ka of all events is pro-from-in dit-xia according to the pro-lep-ti-che-mu gri-go-ri-an-sko-mu ka-len-da-ryu (definition-de-la-yu-sche-mu-da-ti-rov -ku so-by-tiy according to the pra-vi-lams of the gri-go-ri-an-sko-go ka-len-da-rya before his appearance on October 15, 1582 ).

There are several opinions about when and where the first calendar appeared. In Ancient Rus' there was a legend that the calendar was given to people by Kolyada. This is where the name of the calendar comes from: Kolyada’s Gift. Another name is Chislobog’s circle. It is a circle with months and seasons inscribed in it. True, their number and names differ from the current ones. The ancient Romans are also credited with creating the calendar. They needed a calendar to work in the fields, to predict river floods, so as not to destroy the harvest. Another version says that the debt book was called a calendar, and debtors paid interest on the day of the calendar, that is, the first days of the month. The Romans went further than just creating a calendar - they included holidays and other useful information in it.

The ancient Egyptian calendar also differs from the modern one: it is based not on the movement of the Sun or the Moon, but on the position of the brightest star Sirius in the sky. The time interval between two successive heliacal risings of Sirius is a year. Heliacal rising of a star is its appearance in the firmament before sunrise. Literally, in the first rays of dawn. Thanks to this star, the year was divided into 365 days. The appearance of Sirius coincided quite accurately with the flood of the Nile, which was important information for farmers.

Differences between the calendars of the peoples of the world

Calendars of different nations differ from each other. The ancient Egyptian calendar has twelve months, and the Mayan calendar has 18. I would especially like to mention the ancient Greek calendar. The most famous are its three versions: from Solon, Meton and Kalypos. The first took 8 years for a cycle and the third, fifth and eighth were leap years. The second considered a cycle of 19 years and considered leap years 3, 5, 8, 11, 13, 16 and 19 years of the cycle. The third sage increased the cycle to 76 years, and there were only four leap years in his cycle.

The predecessor of the modern calendar was invented by the Roman emperor Julius Caesar together with Alexandrian astronomers, and introduced on January 1, 45 BC.

The Gregorian calendar is now accepted in most countries. It was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in Catholic countries on October 4, 1582, replacing the old Julian one: and the next day after Thursday, October 4, became Friday, October 15. Thus, the Julian calendar lags behind the Gregorian calendar by several days.

began more than six thousand years ago. The word “calenda” is of ancient Roman origin; in those days, this was the name of the manuscripts in which moneylenders wrote down the accumulated interest to debtors.

Calendar year in ancient civilizations

History of the creation of the calendar went through three main stages, when the lunar, solar, solar-lunar reference systems were used. In modern world The solar cycle is in demand; chronology is based on observations of the main luminary of the solar system - the Sun.

History of the calendar roots go back to the distant past.

• The oldest references to the calendar ordering of days were found in what is now Iraq. The Sumerians lived on the territory of this country; they divided the year into 354 days.
• In Babylon, the priests, based on the results of astronomical observations, found out that there are more days in the year - 365 and a half, they reworked the calendar familiar to those times into a lunisolar one.
• In Persia, the date of the longest night was called the winter solstice; it fell on December 22. On this significant holiday, ancient farmers from almost all countries performed a number of obligatory rituals designed to help the arrival of spring.
• In Ancient Rome, the year began on January 1, when the consuls changed.
• In Ancient Greece, summer began on the summer solstice - June 22. The Greek calendar of those times began with the first Olympic Games, held in honor of the hero Hercules.
• After the emergence of Christianity, the birthday of Christ began to be celebrated - December 25, which coincided with the celebration of the winter solstice.

In 46 BC. e. Julius Caesar reformed the calculation of years according to the Egyptian model, in which he relied on the solar year. The calendar was named Julian, it made it possible to reduce the gap between the natural change of seasons and the official months. The average length of a year over four years was taken to be 365.25 days, which most accurately corresponded to the real state of affairs. Over time, the difference between nature and calendar calculation accumulated, seconds added up to days.

In 1582, Catholic Pope Gregory XIII carried out another major reform, replacing the old Julian with a revised one. So the old style was transformed into a new one, which was caused by the need to overcome the lag between the official seasons and the natural course of events. The vernal equinox was celebrated on March 21, chronology became more accurate, and most countries accepted it.

History of the calendar in Russia

In Rus', the Julian style of chronology was in effect for a long time, and the names of the days of the week and months were Roman. In pre-Petrine times, Russians celebrated the beginning of the year after harvesting cereal crops, in September, others - in March, on the spring solstice. Tsar Peter I issued a strict decree on the universal celebration of the New Year on January 1, as in European countries.

Until 1917, Russia adhered to the Julian calendar, differing in dates from European countries by two weeks. The Soviet government issued a decree in which February 1, 2018 was renamed 14. It turned out that after January 31, 1917, February 14, 1918 immediately followed. in Russia The year 1918 turned out to be thirteen days shorter than usual, and the Russian calendar became like in Europe.

An attempt to clarify the chronology was made at the UN in 1954, when a draft of an updated calendar was being considered. In it, the first day of each quarter began on Sunday. Each first month of the quarter lasted 31 days, and the second and third – 30. The project was supported by the USSR, but the USA objected, and as a result the reform was rejected.

Today it is used in the international community. To keep up with the times, we recommend products from Ideaprint, which produces excellent quality calendars to order.

The name “calendar” comes from the Latin “calendarium”, which translates as “debt book”. With the help of a calendar, long time periods are counted, the calculation of which is based on the movement of space objects observed from the Earth, for example the Moon, the Sun, and, of course, the Earth.

In the calendar currently in use, a week is defined as a period of time consisting of 7 days. But earlier, some calendars provided for division not into weeks, but into decades. This construction was adopted in Egypt and France. The ancient Mayan calendar provided for weeks that consisted of 13 or 20 days.

The Gregorian calendar, currently accepted in Europe, originated from the Roman one by improving it, first into the Julian calendar, and then into the one we are familiar with today. The first Roman calendar was inaccurate, since it was based only on the movement of the Moon and the Sun, and the chronology began from the date of the founding of Rome.

The Romans measured time by "consuls". The beginning of the year corresponded to the modern March 1, and the duration was determined by 304 days or 10 months. The peculiarity of this calendar was that it had an unnumbered and uncountable period that fell during winter. It began at the end of 304 days and lasted until the first day of spring. The control of this period was carried out by special priest-pontiffs. In fact, they made serious mistakes, partly due to lack of education, and partly because they pursued their own selfish interests. This consisted in the fact that on the day of the “calendar” it was customary to repay debts and pay interest. This is where the name “calendarium” comes from.

The Roman emperor Gaius Julius Caesar began to bring the calendar into strict framework. He reformed the calendar into the so-called “Julian”. According to the new calendar, the year consisted of 365.25 days. However, it was also inaccurate: over 128 years the error was 1 day. Also, to increase accuracy, the calendar provided for a leap year of 366 days once every 4 years, which was 1 day more than a normal year. For these and other merits in the field of military art and politics, the month of July was named in honor of the above-mentioned great emperor.

The next time the calendar was improved was after Christianity spread throughout the world. The new calendar took the date of birth of Jesus Christ as its starting point. This event, as well as the Resurrection of the Lord, were included in the Gregorian calendar with highlighted dates.

This calendar was designed so that the date of the equinox always coincided with March 21 (the date of the equinox in 325, during the Council of Nicaea).

The modern Gregorian calendar is used by most of the world's population. It was put into effect by decree of Pope Gregory in February 1582. At the same time, 10 days were allowed to pass in the period from October 4 to October 15, 1582. All countries professing the Catholic religion have adopted this calendar.

Calculation in Russia

Since then, when Prince Vladimir ruled in Rus', the Byzantine chronology system was used on the territory of the principalities. Time was counted from the day of the creation of Adam, namely from March 1 of the year of creation. Subsequently, the countdown of the new year began from September 1. This decision is attributed to Tsar Ivan III.

For more than 2 centuries, residents of Rus' celebrated the New Year on September 1. Peter I brought our calendar to a common chronology with Europe. His decree ordered that the year be calculated from January 1, and recognize the year 7208 “from the creation of the world,” 1700 from the birth of Christ. The complete transition of our country to the Gregorian calendar occurred only in 1918 and was secured by a decree of the Council of People's Commissars.

For a long time, people have tried to organize their lives and used various methods of chronology to do this. In ancient times, the measure was the movement of celestial bodies, on the basis of which calendars were compiled. But the problem was that different tribes interpreted in their own way the principles by which time must be counted, therefore, in order to answer the question of what a calendar is, we will find out how it appeared and what it was like among different peoples.

The concept of "calendar"

The calendar is a number system for large periods of time, depending on the periodicity of the movement of various celestial bodies, such as the Sun or the Moon.

The concept itself arose thanks to debt books, on the basis of which people had to pay. Debt repayment was usually scheduled at the beginning of the month. These days were called Kalends. This is where the word calendarium comes from.

But different peoples considered completely different events to begin counting time. So, for the ancient Romans, the starting point was the founding of Rome, and for the Egyptians - the date of the emergence of a new ruling dynasty.

Types of calendars

To understand what a calendar is, you need to know what underlies it. Until now, many peoples have different concepts of the year, and the starting point of chronology creates confusion. Let's turn to history.

The ancient Greek calendar included 354 days. It represented an attempt to harmonize the length of the lunar month and the solar year. Because of this, every eight years an extra 90 days were added to the year. Because there were too many days, they were divided into several months.

The ancient Roman calendar began on March 1 and contained 304 days, which were divided into 10 equal parts. It was constantly reformed, and in the end the starting point was January 1. Two more months were also added.

Julius Caesar, observing natural phenomena, identified a certain periodicity in them. This is how the Julian calendar appeared, which was calculated with mathematical precision. It consisted of 365.25 days. It was Caesar who introduced the concept of “leap year.” Its length increased by exactly one day. Observing the movement of the Sun made it possible to avoid inaccuracies and the appearance of extra days in the year.

Gregorian calendar

During the time of Pope Gregory XIII, a new style of chronology was introduced. Its main goal was to fix the date of the vernal equinox, which was constantly shifting. It was on March 21 that day equaled night, and this is as close as possible to the tropical year, where the difference is only 26 seconds. For this period to equal a day would take about 3,300 years. The Gregorian calendar has such incredible accuracy.

Beginning in 1918, a new style was approved in Russia and the Gregorian calendar was introduced, which was 13 days ahead of the old one. This is why many people celebrate the Old New Year, which would fall on January 13th.

Moon as a measure of time

When a lunar calendar is compiled for the year, the change in phases of the earth's satellite is taken as a basis. Thus, the month is 29.53 days. But the resulting “tail” after the decimal point is not displayed in the calendar, and therefore, over 30 years, another 11 extra days gradually accumulate. But there are adherents and followers of this type of time calculation. Muslim countries serve as a striking example.

Based on the lunar calendar, recommendations are developed, following which you can attract good luck and achieve success. Many gardeners check the satellite phases to begin certain land work. Creativity, money matters and personal relationships are also associated with the influence of the Moon. Some even take its position into account when making a haircut.

Reversible option

Until recently, many families often used a desk calendar. But even now this type is quite popular. However, his appearance has changed somewhat. Manufacturers add a convenient plastic stand and colorfully design each page.

Every day a page on the calendar must be torn off. You can also simply open a new page. Along with the name of the month, day of the week and date, a variety of interesting information related to this day is placed on the sheet. It is very convenient to use such a calendar in offices. They are often used as a corporate gift.

Wall calendar

Many people are accustomed to hanging a calendar on the wall or refrigerator door. Its peculiarity lies in the fact that the whole year is visible. It is immediately clear when holidays or weekends occur. After all, they are highlighted in color.

As a rule, wall calendars are made of glossy paper. There are also more expensive plastic options. The popularity of wall calendars is explained by ease of use, beautiful appearance and obtaining maximum information in a rather limited area.

Holiday calendar

If there is a need to find out which holiday will occur on a particular day, a wall view will not be a good help. To do this, you will need a special holiday calendar, which is easy to find in electronic form on the Internet. You can also purchase it there. On such a calendar, next to each date, absolutely all the holidays that occur on that day will be listed, even little-known ones.

Pocket calendar

A convenient option when you need to always have a calendar at hand is a pocket version. It is a small card with dates and some kind of design on the back. Companies often leave their advertising images on such calendars and hand them out to visitors. With their help, it is convenient to track holidays and mark important dates. Pocket calendars are often used as bookmarks. They are easy to carry with you at all times.

Church chronology

Many people, coming to the temple, are faced with a completely different calendar. The fact is that the Orthodox calendar adheres to the Julian style, so there is a discrepancy. After all, over the millennia of existence, it gradually began to lag behind real time, and now the difference is two weeks.

Catholic countries took this fact into account and came to the Gregorian calendar. But Orthodox people did not take into account the new style and adhere to the old calendar. However, the Orthodox calendar of some countries has changed. It was called New Julian, which now coincides with Gregorian.

In general, church calendars have their own characteristics. Therefore, when understanding what a calendar is, it is important to take into account the country of its origin and the religion of its people. So, there are Vedic, Buddhist, Islamic, Coptic chronology systems. In this case, different measures are used: the Moon, the Sun, the stars, the emergence of a dynasty. Therefore, their time differs from that officially adopted in European countries.

Work and rest schedule

An indispensable assistant in work is a production calendar. It is especially useful for accountants. The production calendar not only helps in calculating work hours, but also facilitates the calculation of sick leave and vacation pay. In addition, the number of days that are officially considered working days varies from year to year due to holidays and the transfer of days that fall on weekends. The production calendar is an official document where all days are distributed by decree of the Government of the Russian Federation.

The document is important not only for accounting, but also necessary for personnel officers. With its help, wages and bonuses are calculated based on official working hours and an accurate schedule of working days is drawn up. In addition, a production calendar is necessary for timely submission of reports to various official structures and for calculating sick leave and vacations.

Depending on whether official holidays fall on weekdays or weekends, they are transferred. Every year their order is announced and enshrined in legislative acts. Thus, a calendar is developed for the year with holidays and weekends. It takes into account all the requirements of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

On the eve of the New Year holidays, many are worried about the calendar for December, but unlike the first month of the year, there are usually no special changes. It often happens that on December 31, when everyone is preparing for the New Year, you have to go to work. The December calendar can only please you if the 31st falls on a weekend, but then the January holidays may be shortened.

Conclusion

When studying the question of what a calendar is, it is important to take into account the method of chronology and the place of its use. So, in Russia there are still two types in use. The public lives according to the Gregorian calendar. But the church adheres to the old style.

Now there are several types of calendars. But differing in some content, they all have the same basis. Their functions and purpose are generally similar. They are necessary for planning time and accurately organizing all events.