Hebrew Calendar

views updated

HEBREW CALENDAR

Israelite time began on the day of Creation, set by tradition on 7 October 3760 b.c.e., a lag of 3760 years in relation to the Gregorian calendar. The Hebrew calendar was established definitively in the fifth century c.e., during the talmudic epoch. The Israelite year is a compromise between the lunar year and the solar year, its duration varying within a cycle of 19 years, which includes 12 common years of 12 months (29/30 days) and 7 embolismic years, each having an extra month of 30 days.

SEE ALSO Gregorian Calendar;Talmud.