COLOR: The Egyptian Calendar

The Egyptian Calendar

The Egyptian civilization is one of the oldest in the world. The Egyptian calendar dates back to 4241 BC, and the Sothic cycle they used is 1,468 years. In ancient Egyptian mythology, Thoth was the god of the moon, god of wisdom, the measurer of time, and the inventor of writing and numbers. He is credited with devising the standard 365-day year.

The Egyptian calendar clearly took into account the lunar cycles, as it, according to Herodotus, "consist[ed] of twelve divisions of the seasons." and they used forms of intercalation to keep the lunar calendar seasonally consistent. "the Egyptians, reckoning thirty days to each of the twelve months, add five days in every year over and above the total, and thus the completed circle of seasons is made to agree with the calendar." Seemingly, the solar calendar was included indirectly in their consideration of the seasons.

Creation Story

Shu (shoe), the son of the sun god, Re (ray), reigned as king of Egypt for many years. When his daughter Nut (newt) fell in love with the god Geb (gebb), Shu was wildly jealous. To keep the lovers far apart, he turned Nut into the sky and Geb into the earth. Then he cursed Nut with barrenness, proclaiming that there were no months of the year in which she could give birth.

Thoth, the god of the moon, time, and measure, took pity on Nut and Geb. He challenged the reigning gods to a game of dice and soundly beat them all. As his prize he asked the gods to give him five days in addition to those that already existed. Thoth in turn presented the five extra days to the sky goddess, Nut. Because these five extra days did not belong to any particular month, they did not fall under Shu's curse. Thus, the goddess was able to use them to produce five children, including Osiris (oh-SIGH-rus) and Isis (EYE-sus).

Prior to Thoth's gift, each of the twelve months of the Egyptian calendar had 30 days, resulting in a 360-day year. Thoth's act of kindness reconciled the Egyptian calendar with the earth's actual 365-day cycle.

Thoth

Thoth had many roles. In addition to being the god of the moon, the god of wisdom, and the measurer of time, he was scribe, moralist, messenger, and supreme magician. The ancient Egyptians credited him with inventing writing. He was the patron god of all arts, sciences, and intellectual pursuits. Ancient Egyptians believed that before the dead could enter the Afterworld, their hearts were weighed against a feather of truth to determine whether they had led good and honest lives. In his role as scribe, Thoth recorded the results of each judgment.

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