Armenian calendar

The Armenian calendar is the calendar traditionally used in Armenia.

The older Armenian calendar was based on an invariant year length of 365 days. As a result, the correspondence between it and both the solar year and the Julian calendar slowly drifted over time, shifting across a year of the Julian calendar once in 1,461 calendar years (see Sothic cycle). Thus, the Armenian year 1461 (Gregorian 2010/2011) completed the first full cycle.

Armenian year 1 began on 11 July 552 of the Julian calendar, and Armenian year 1462 began on 11 July 2012 of the Julian calendar which co-incided with 24 July 2012 of the Gregorian calendar.

An analytical expression of the Armenian date includes ancient name of Day of week, Christian name of Day of week, named Day of month, Date, Month, Year number after 552 A.D. and the religious feasts.

The Armenian calendar is divided into 12 months of 30 days each, plus an additional (epagomenal) five days are called aweleacʿ ("superfluous"). Years are usually given in Armenian numerals, letters of the Armenian alphabet preceded by the abbreviation ԹՎ for t’vin "in the year" (for example, ԹՎ ՌՆԾԵ "in the year 1455").

Months

The Armenian month names show influence of the Zoroastrian calendar,[1] and, as noted by Antoine Meillet,[citation needed] Kartvelian influence in two cases. There are different systems for transliterating the names; the forms below are transliterated according to the Hübschmann-Meillet-Benveniste system.

Months of the year
# Armenian H-M
Romaniz.		 Meaning Etymology/Notes
1 նաւասարդ nawasard new year Avestan*nava sarəδa
2 հոռի hoṙi two From Georgian ორი (ori) meaning "two"
3 սահմի sahmi three From Georgian სამი (sami) meaning "three"
4 տրէ trē Zoroastrian Tïr
5 քաղոց kʿałocʿ month of crops From Old Armenian քաղեմ (kʿałem) meaning "to gather" from PIE *kʷl̥-
6 արաց aracʿ From old armenian արաց[2](aracʿ), meaning harvest time, harvest of grape/fruit
7 մեհեկան mehekan festival of Mithra Iranian *mihrakān-; Zoroastrian Mitrō
8 արեգ areg sun month From Old Armenian արեւ (arew) meaning "sun" from PIE *h₂rew-i- also meaning sun
9 ահեկան ahekan fire festival Iranian *āhrakān-; Zoroastrian Ātarō
10 մարերի mareri mid-year Avestan maiδyaīrya; Zoroastrian Dīn
11 մարգաց margacʿ
12 հրոտից hroticʿ Pahlavi *fravartakān; Zoroastrian Spendarmat̰
13 աւելեաց[3] aweleacʿ redundant, superfluous Epagomenal days

Days of the month

The Armenian calendar names the days of the month instead of numbering them – a peculiarity also found in the Avestan calendars. Zoroastrian influence is evident in five names.[1]

Days of the month
# Name Meaning/derivation
1 Areg sun
2 Hrand earth mixed with fire
3 Aram
4 Margar prophet
5 Ahrank’ half-burned
6 Mazdeł
7 Astłik Venus
8 Mihr Mithra
9 Jopaber tumultuous
10 Murç triumph
11 Erezhan hermit
12 Ani name of a city
13 Parkhar
14 Vanat host, refectioner of a monastery
15 Aramazd Ahura Mazda
16 Mani beginning
17 Asak beginningless
18 Masis Mount Ararat
19 Anahit Anahita
20 Aragats Mount Aragats
21 Gorgor name of a mountain
22 Kordvik 6th province in Armenia Major
23 Tsmak east wind
24 Lusnak half-moon
25 Tsrōn dispersion
26 Npat Apam Napat
27 Vahagn Zoroastrian Vahrām; Avestan Verethragna, name of the 20th day
28 Sim mountain
29 Varag name of a mountain
30 Gišeravar evening star

See also

References

  1. ^ a b L. H. Gray, "On Certain Persian and Armenian Month- Names as Influenced by the Avesta Calendar," JAOS 28 (1907), 339.
  2. ^ "արաց - Wiktionary". en.wiktionary.org. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  3. ^ Հին հայկական տոմար

External links

Literature

  • V. Bănăţeanu, “Le calendrier arménien et les anciens noms des mois”, in: Studia et Acta Orientalia 10, 1980, pp. 33–46
  • Edouard Dulaurier, Recherches sur la chronologie arménienne technique et historique (1859), 2001 reprint ISBN 978-0-543-96647-6.
  • Jost Gippert, Old Armenian and Caucasian Calendar Systems in The Annual of The Society for The Study of Caucasia", 1, 1989, 3-12.[1][2]
  • Louis H. Gray, On Certain Persian and Armenian Month-Names as Influenced by the Avesta Calendar, Journal of the American Oriental Society (1907)
  • P'. Ingoroq'va, “Jvel-kartuli c'armartuli k'alendari” (“The Old Georgian pagan calendar”), in: Sakartvelos muzeumis moambe (“Messenger of the Museum of Georgia”), 6, 1929–30, pp. 373–446 and 7, 1931–32, pp. 260–336
  • K'. K'ek'elije, “Jveli kartuli c'elic'adi” (“The Old Georgian year”), in: St'alinis saxelobis Tbilisis Saxelmc'ipo Universit'et'is šromebi (“Working papers of the Tbilisi State University by the name of Stalin”) 18, 1941, reprinted in the author's “Et'iudebi jveli kartuli lit'erat'uris ist'oriidan” (“Studies in the history of Old Georgian literature”) 1, 1956, pp. 99–124.