I need my calendar like I need oxygen. It doesn’t matter how clear I think my memory is— if I don’t write every task and event down, something is sure to slip through the cracks and I may find myself unprepared, late, or double-booked.
It is thanks to the Ancient Romans we have our calendar, today. Julius Caesar introduced the Julian calendar which is almost identical to our Gregorian calendar. Caesar created a 7-day week with a 12-month year—each month based roughly on the phases of the moon.
Most days of the week (Tuesday through Saturday) were named after Roman gods while others (Sunday and Monday) were named after heavenly bodies. Those of us who speak a romance language may have wondered in our lifetimes why September, October, November, and December are not the 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th months consecutively. This is because these for months were pushed back to make room for the months named after the leaders Iulius (Julius) Caesar and Augustus Caesar (July and August).
The Romans had three Reckoning Days within a month: the Kalends (where we get the word calendar) on the 1st, the Nones on the 5th or 7th, and the Ides on the 13th or 15th.
Because sundials and water-clocks were a hit-and-miss approximation of time keeping, Ancient Romans were most accurate by simply telling the days at sunrise and sunset.
Thank you Romans! For the most part, I love the calendar. It really is so nice. What did they do before they had that? How did anyone know when things were or when to meet or anything? It would be interesting to know.
ReplyDeleteMy friends and I joke about having a sundial for a watch. It's dumb, but sometimes I wonder what it would have been like to use one on a regular basis. I also wonder why it would be inaccurate.
ReplyDelete