Assyrian calendar

The Assyrian calendar (Syriac: ܣܘܼܪܓܵܕ݂ܵܐ ܐܵܬ݂ܘܿܪܵܝܵܐ sūrgāḏā ʾĀṯōrāyā) is a solar calendar used by modern Assyrian people.

History

Historically and also in some sources in the modern day, Assyrians dated their calendar according to the Seleucid reckoning (Syriac: ܕܝܲܘܢܵܝܹ̈ܐ d-yawnāyē, literally "of the Greeks"), beginning on the first day of Tešrīn Qḏīm in 312 BC.^[1]

The modern Assyrian calendar, however, uses a different reckoning: 4750 BC was set as its first year in the 1950s,^[2] based on a series of articles published in the Assyrian nationalist magazine Gilgamesh; the first came in 1952 and written by Nimrod Simono and dealt with the Akitu festival, then an article by Jean Alkhas in 1955 (April, issue 34) fixed the year 4750 BC as the starting point.^[3] Alkhas referenced his information to a French archaeologist, whom he did not name, as stating that a cuneiform tablet dating to 4750 BC mentioned the year of the calming of the great flood and beginning of life.^[4]

New year

The year begins with the first sight of Spring. In the Julian calendar, the vernal equinox moved gradually away from 21 March. The Gregorian calendar reform restored the vernal equinox to its original date, but since the festival was by now tied to the date, not the astronomical event, Kha b-Nisan remains fixed at 21 March in the Julian reckoning, corresponding to 1 April in the Gregorian calendar.^[5] and the calendar adopted by the ancient Assyrians had the month "Nisan" at the beginning of the calendar^[6] lending to the term "Kha b-Nisan", or the "first of Nisan".

Months

Assyrian calendar^[1]
Season	Syriac	Transliteration	Arabic Julian/Gregorian equivalent	Hebrew calendar equivalent	Hebrew Julian/Gregorian equivalent	English Julian/Gregorian equivalent
Spring	ܐܵܕܲܪ	ʾĀḏar	آذَار (ʾĀḏār)	אֲדָר (ʾĂḏār)	מֵרְץ (Mērṣ)	March
	ܢܝܼܣܵܢ	Nīsān	نَيْسَان (Naysān)	נִיסָן (Nīsān)	אַפְּרִיל (ʾAprīl)	April
	ܐܝܼܵܪ	ʾĪyār	أَيَّار (ʾAyyār)	אִיָּר (ʾĪyyār)	מַאי (Máy)	May
Summer	ܚܙܝܼܪܵܢ	Ḥzīrān	حَزِيرَان (Ḥazīrān)	סִיוָן (Sīwān)	יוּנִי (Yūnī)	June
	ܬܲܡܘܼܙ	Tammūz	تَمُّوز (Tammūz)	תַּמּוּז (Tammūz)	יוּלִי (Yūlī)	July
	ܐܵܒ\ܛܲܒܵܚ	ʾĀb/Ṭabbāḥ	آب (ʾĀb)	אָב (ʾĀḇ)	אוֹגוּסְט (ʾÔḡūsṭ)	August
Autumn	ܐܝܼܠܘܼܠ	ʾĪlūl	أَيْلُول (ʾAylūl)	אֱלוּל (ʾĔlūl)	סֶפְּטֶמְבֶּר (Sepṭember)	September
	ܬܸܫܪܝܼܢ ܐ	Tešrīn Qḏīm	تِشْرِين ٱلْأَوَّل (Tišrīn al-ʾAwwal)	תִּשׁרִי (Tišrī)	אוֹקְטוֹבֶּר (ʾÔqṭôber)	October
	ܬܸܫܪܝܼܢ ܒ	Tešrīn [ʾ]Ḥrāy	تِشْرِين ٱلثَّانِي (Tišrīn aṯ-Ṯānī)	מַרְחֶשְׁוָן (Marḥešwān)	נוׁבֶמְבֶּר (Nôḇember)	November
Winter	ܟܵܢܘܿܢ ܐ	Kānōn Qḏīm	كَانُون ٱلْأَوَّل (Kānūn al-ʾAwwal)	כִּסְלֵו (Kislēw)	דֵּצֶמְבֶּר (Dēṣember)	December
	ܟܵܢܘܿܢ ܒ	Kānōn [ʾ]Ḥrāy	كَانُون ٱلثَّانِي (Kānūn aṯ-Ṯānī)	טֵבֵת (Ṭēḇēṯ)	יָנוּאָר (Yānūʾār)	January
	ܫܒ݂ܵܛ	Šḇāṭ	شُبَاط (Šubāṭ)	שְׁבָט (Šḇāṭ)	פֶבְּרוּאָר (P̱ebrūʾār)	February

References

^ ^a ^b Coakley, C. F. (2013). Robinson's Paradigms and Exercises in Syriac Grammar (sixth ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 148. ISBN 978-0-19-968717-6.
^ Wozniak, Marta (2012). "Far from Aram-Nahrin: The Suryoye Diaspora Experience". In Eamer, Allyson (ed.). Border Terrains: World Diasporas in the 21st Century. Inter-Disciplinary Press, Oxford. p. 78. ISBN 978-1-84888-117-4.
^ Paulissian, Robert (1999). "Tasheeta d'zoyakha d'rish sheta Khatta d'Atoraye w'Bawlaye (Part II) [Assyrian and Babylonian New Year Celebrations (Part II)]". Journal of Assyrian Academic Studies. 13 (2): 35. ISSN 1055-6982.
^ Daniel, Sennacherib (2001). "Modern Festival, Ancient Tradition" (PDF). Nakosha. 39: 3. OCLC 49885037.
^ E. Elochukwu Uzukwu. Worship as Body Language: Introduction to Christian Worship : an African. Published by Liturgical Press, 1997.
^ William Ricketts Cooper. "An Archaic Dictionary: biographical, historical and mythological: from the Egyptian, Assyrian, and Etruscan monuments". Published by S. Bagster and Sons, 1876.

[Coakley-1] Coakley, C. F. (2013). Robinson's Paradigms and Exercises in Syriac Grammar (sixth ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 148. ISBN 978-0-19-968717-6.

[2] Wozniak, Marta (2012). "Far from Aram-Nahrin: The Suryoye Diaspora Experience". In Eamer, Allyson (ed.). Border Terrains: World Diasporas in the 21st Century. Inter-Disciplinary Press, Oxford. p. 78. ISBN 978-1-84888-117-4.

[3] Paulissian, Robert (1999). "Tasheeta d'zoyakha d'rish sheta Khatta d'Atoraye w'Bawlaye (Part II) [Assyrian and Babylonian New Year Celebrations (Part II)]". Journal of Assyrian Academic Studies. 13 (2): 35. ISSN 1055-6982.

[4] Daniel, Sennacherib (2001). "Modern Festival, Ancient Tradition" (PDF). Nakosha. 39: 3. OCLC 49885037.

[5] E. Elochukwu Uzukwu. Worship as Body Language: Introduction to Christian Worship : an African. Published by Liturgical Press, 1997.

[6] William Ricketts Cooper. "An Archaic Dictionary: biographical, historical and mythological: from the Egyptian, Assyrian, and Etruscan monuments". Published by S. Bagster and Sons, 1876.

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History

New year

Months

See also

References