The History Of The Calendar
The history of the calendar is long and winding
, dating back to thousands of years ago when ancient Sumerians, Mayans, Greeks and Romans, in addition to other less popular peoples, needed to keep track of the passage of time. Calendars mark the passage of days, weeks, months and years, with days being the smallest unit of time; fractions of a day are considered timekeeping. The history of our calendar as we know it today is not quite as far-reaching, though it does have its roots in various different ancient methods. As a matter of fact, the calendar we use today is the Gregorian calendar, which is 365 days sectioned into 12 months that have either 30 or 31 days; with the exception of February, which has 28 days, 29 every 4 years.
Why Calendars in History?
Calendars and their history has been based of various different methods of keeping track, from lunar cycles to seasons to even the days predating and preceded by significant historical events. No matter how you look at it, though, calendars have always had a substantial importance in peoples lives; from knowing when to expect seasonal changes to knowing how many days until their next dentist visit, calendars help us to keep track of the days as they pass.
That importance leads to the fact that almost everyone, at some point or another throughout the course of their day, will glance at a calendar to see what day it is. Calendars are everywhere, from the walls in offices to homes, computer screens, cell phones; it seems you can find out what day it is no matter where you look. We all rely on calendars to know what important events are upcoming, or how long since the last one, or just so you know what date to put on your rent check. And yet, very few people really know the history of the calendar, and just how the segmenting of days into weeks, weeks into months and months into a year really came about.
Understanding the Role Historically
The
history of our calendar, used by the majority of the worlds population, is the Gregorian calendar; prior to that was the Julian calendar, which has many similarities to the Gregorian version, but eventually fell into disuse due to the imperfections that caused the Julian calendar to shift inevitably out of synch over the passage of centuries. Instated by Pope Gregory XIII, who lived in the 1500s, the actual calendar didnt come into use until the 1800s due to much political and religious jostling.
Its just an interesting, if odd, fact that despite their significance and effect over our day to day lives, most people dont even give a thought to
calendars and their history. But the truth is, calendars are used to track the days, the weeks, the months and the years out of our lives, and are integral to the way we live each day. Everyone has access to at least one calendar in their homes and offices, though most have several with which to keep track of the date. So, though its not something you might think about on a regular basis, never ever underestimate the importance, the influence, of the calendar.
by: Uncle Sumi
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