The Baháʼí calendar used in the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...

is a

solar calendar A solar calendar is a calendar whose dates indicates the season or almost equivalently the apparent position of the Sun relative to the stars. The Gregorian calendar, widely accepted as a standard in the world, is an example of a solar calendar ...

consisting of nineteen months and four or five intercalary days, with new year at the moment of Northern spring

equinox A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun appears directly above the equator, rather than to its north or south. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise directly east and set directly west. This occurs twice each year, arou ...

. Each month is named after a virtue (''e.g.'', Perfection, Mercy), as are the days of the week. The first year is dated from 1844 CE, the year in which the

Báb The Báb (born ʻAlí-Muḥammad; ; ; 20 October 1819 – 9 July 1850) was an Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbai ...

began teaching. Years on the calendar are annotated with the date notation of BE (Baháʼí Era). The Baháʼí year BE on March .

History

The Baháʼí calendar started from the original Badíʿ calendar, created by the

in the '' Kitábu'l-Asmáʼ''Lambden, Stephen (2018).
Kitab al-asma' – The Book of Names
'. Lambden states that the "source did not, however, give precise details about where the calendral materials were located in the Kitab al-asma'." and the '' Persian Bayán'' (5:3) in the 1840s. An early version of the calendar began to be implemented during his time. It used a scheme of nineteen months of nineteen days, with the product of 361 days, plus intercalary days to make the calendar a

. The first day of the early implementation of the calendar year was

Nowruz Nowruz (, , () , () , () , () , Kurdish language, Kurdish: () , () , () , () , , , , () , , ) is the Iranian or Persian New Year. Historically, it has been observed by Iranian peoples, but is now celebrated by many ...

, while the intercalary days were assigned differently than the later Baháʼí implementation. The calendar contains many symbolic meanings and allusions including connections to prophecies of the Báb about the next Manifestation of God termed He whom God shall make manifest.

Baháʼu'lláh Baháʼu'lláh (, born Ḥusayn-ʻAlí; 12 November 1817 – 29 May 1892) was an Iranian religious leader who founded the Baháʼí Faith. He was born to an aristocratic family in Iran and was exiled due to his adherence to the messianic Báb ...

, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith, who claimed to be the one prophesied by the Báb, confirmed and adopted this calendar. Around 1870, he instructed Nabíl-i-Aʻzam, the author of '' The Dawn-Breakers'', to write an overview of the Badíʿ calendar. Momen, Moojan (2014)
The Badíʻ (Baháʼí) Calendar: An Introduction
In the '' Kitáb-i-Aqdas'' (1873) Baháʼu'lláh made Naw-Rúz the first day of the year, and also clarified the position of the Intercalary days to immediately precede the last month.. Baháʼu'lláh set Naw-Rúz to the day on which the sun passes into the constellation Aries. Baháʼís interpret this formula as a specification of the vernal equinox, though where that should be determined was not defined. The calendar was first implemented in the West in 1907. The Baháʼí scriptures left some issues regarding the implementation of the Badíʿ calendar to be resolved by the Universal House of Justice before the calendar can be observed uniformly worldwide. On 10 July 2014 the Universal House of Justice announced provisions that will enable the common implementation of the Badíʿ calendar worldwide, beginning at sunset 20 March 2015, coinciding with the completion of the ninth cycle of the calendar (see below). Before that time, the Baháʼí calendar was synchronized to the

Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It went into effect in October 1582 following the papal bull issued by Pope Gregory XIII, which introduced it as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian cale ...

by starting the year at sunset on March 20, regardless of when the vernal equinox technically occurs, meaning that the extra day of a leap year occurred simultaneously in both calendars. The intercalary days always stretched from 26 February to 1 March, automatically including the Gregorian leap day so that there were four intercalary days in a regular year, and five in a Gregorian leap year. The Universal House of Justice selected

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

, the birthplace of

, as the location at which the time and date of the vernal equinox is to be determined according to astronomical tables from reliable sources. These changes, which "unlocked" the Badíʿ calendar from the Gregorian calendar, came into effect at the start of year 172 BE.

Significance

As the name Badíʿ (''wondrous'' or ''unique'') suggests, the Baháʼí calendar is indeed a unique institution in the history of human culture. Sociologist Eviatar Zerubavel notes that the nineteen-day cycle creates a distinctive rhythm which enhances group solidarity. (Zerubavel argues that the nineteen-day cycle is more properly defined as a

week A week is a unit of time equal to seven days. It is the standard time period used for short cycles of days in most parts of the world. The days are often used to indicate common work days and rest days, as well as days of worship. Weeks are ofte ...

, rather than a

month A month is a unit of time, used with calendars, that is approximately as long as a natural phase cycle of the Moon; the words ''month'' and ''Moon'' are cognates. The traditional concept of months arose with the cycle of Moon phases; such lunar mo ...

, because it bears "no connection whatsoever" to the lunar cycle.) Furthermore, by finding the closest approximation of the

square root In mathematics, a square root of a number is a number such that y^2 = x; in other words, a number whose ''square'' (the result of multiplying the number by itself, or y \cdot y) is . For example, 4 and −4 are square roots of 16 because 4 ...

of the annual cycle, Baháʼís "have managed to establish the most symmetrical relationship possible between the week and the year, which no one else throughout history has ever managed to accomplish."

Years

Years in the Baháʼí calendar are counted from Thursday 21 March 1844, the beginning of the Baháʼí Era or Badíʿ Era (abbreviated ''BE'' or ''B.E.''). Year 1 BE thus began at sundown 20 March 1844. The length of each year is strictly defined as the number of days between the opening and closing days of the year, with the number of intercalary days adjusted as needed. The year ends on the day before the following vernal equinox.

Vernal Equinox

The first day of each year ( Naw-Rúz) is the day (from sunset to sunset) in

containing the moment of the vernal equinox. This is determined in advance by astronomical computations from reliable sources. Since the Gregorian calendar is not tied to the equinox, the Gregorian calendar shifts around by a day or two each year, as shown in the following table.Baháʼí Dates 172 to 221 B.E. (2015 – 2065; prepared by the Baha'i World Centre)
(pdf)

Months

The Baháʼí calendar is composed of nineteen months, each with nineteen days. The intercalary days, known as Ayyám-i-Há, occur between the eighteenth and nineteenth months. The names of the months were adopted by the Báb from the

Du'ay-i-Sahar Du'a al-Baha () (known as Du'a al-Sahar () is a Du'a recommended to Muslims to recite in pre-dawns during Ramadan, when Muslims usually eat Suhur. Since it is very common among Shia Islam, Shia, it is known Dua al-Sahar (supplication of pre-dawn) ...

, a Ramadan dawn prayer by

Imam Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...

Muhammad al-Baqir Muhammad ibn Ali al-Baqir (; ) was a descendant of the prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad and the fifth of the Twelve Imams, twelve Shia imams, succeeding his father, Ali al-Sajjad, and succeeded by his son, Ja'far al-Sad ...

, the fifth Imam of Twelver Shiʻah Islam. These month names are considered to be referring to attributes of God. In the '' Persian Bayan'' the Báb divides the months into four groups known as "fire", "air", "water" and "earth" – which are three, four, six and six months long respectively. Robin Mirshahi suggests a possible link with four realms described in Baháʼí cosmology.Mihrshahi, Robin (2013).
A Wondrous New Day: The Numerology of Creation and 'All Things' in the Badíʿ Calendar
'. Ismael Velasco relates this to the " arc of ascent". In the following table, the Gregorian date indicates the first full day of the month when Naw-Rúz coincides with 21 March. The month begins at sunset of the day previous to the one listed.

Ayyám-i-Há

The introduction of intercalation marked an important break from

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

, as under the

Islamic calendar The Hijri calendar (), also known in English as the Islamic calendar, is a lunar calendar consisting of 12 lunar months in a year of 354 or 355 days. It is used to determine the proper days of Islamic holidays and rituals, such as the Ramad ...

the practice of intercalation had been specifically prohibited in the Qurʼan. The number of the intercalary days is determined in advance to ensure that the year ends on the day before the next vernal equinox. This results in 4 or 5 intercalary days being added. These days are inserted between the 18th and 19th months, falling around the end of February in the Gregorian calendar. The number of days added is unrelated to the timing of the Gregorian leap year.

Significance in the Baháʼí Faith

The annual Nineteen Day Fast is held during the final month of ʻAláʼ. The month of fasting is followed by Naw-Rúz, the new year. The monthly

Nineteen Day Feast Nineteen Day Feasts are regular community gatherings, occurring on the first day of each month of the Baháʼí calendar (and are often nineteen days apart from each other). Each gathering consists of a Devotional, Administrative, and Social pa ...

is celebrated on the first day of each month, preferably starting any time between the sunset on the eve of the day to the sunset ending the day.

Days in a Month

The nineteen days in a month have the same names as the months of the year (above), so, for example, the 9th day of each month is Asmá, or "Names".

Weekdays

The Baháʼí week starts on Saturday, and ends on Friday. As in

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

and

, days begin at sunset and end at sunset of the following solar day. Baháʼí writings indicate that Friday is to be kept as a day of rest. In The practice of keeping Friday as a day of rest is currently not observed in all countries; for example, in the UK, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís confirmed it does not currently keep this practice.National Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís of the United Kingdom
Letter from the NSA to the Baháʼí Council for Wales
Retrieved July 11, 2014.

Cycles

Also existing in the Baháʼí calendar system is a nineteen-year cycle called Váḥid and a 361 year (19×19) supercycle called Kull-i-S͟hayʼ (literally, "All Things"). The expression Kull-i-Shayʼ was used frequently by the

.Ignác Goldziher (1850–1921), cited in It has its origins in

Sufism Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

and the significance of the numbers 19 and 361 were possibly already associated by Ibn Arabi (1165–1240). Each of the nineteen years in a Vahid has been given a name as shown in the table below. The tenth Váḥid of the 1st Kull-i-S͟hayʼ started on 21 March 2015, and the eleventh Váḥid will begin in 2034. The current Baháʼí year, year 182 BE (20 March 2024 – 20 March 2025), is the year Bahháj of the tenth Váḥid of the first Kull-i-S͟hayʼ. The second Kull-i-S͟hayʼ will begin in 2205. The concept of a nineteen-year cycle has existed in some form since the fourth century BCE. The Metonic cycle represents an invented measure that approximately correlates solar and lunar markings of time and which appears in several calendar systems. ;Years in a Váḥid

Notes

References

External links

Bahai.org: The Bahá'í CalendarBaháʼí Dates 172 to 221 B.E. (2015 – 2065; prepared by the Baha'i World Centre)
(pdf)
Slide Show: Introduction to the Badíʿ Calendar

Badíʻ Calendar Calculator
(detailed information about past and future dates, specific to location)
Wondrous-Badíʿ Today
(dynamic display of today's date for your location optimized for mobile browsers)

(archived)
Baháʼí Calendar, Baháʼí Events and Holy Days
(types: Persian, Islamic, Gregorian) (archived) * Momen, Moojan
The Names of the Bahá’í Months: Separating Fact from Fiction
(2012) {{DEFAULTSORT:Baha'i Calendar Specific calendars Solar calendars *