Almanac › Time & the calendar

The Hebrew year

Also called Lunisolar calendar, Jewish calendar.

Twelve lunar months with a thirteenth added when they drift — and two new years, one for kings and one for counting.

The year runs on the moon, and twelve lunar months fall about eleven days short of a solar year. Left alone the calendar would walk backwards through the seasons, and Passover — which is fixed to the barley harvest — would eventually land in winter. So a thirteenth month is added when the harvest is not ready, keeping the feasts in their seasons. There are also two starting points: the religious year opens at Nisan in the spring, counted from the Exodus, while the civil year opens at Tishri in the autumn. A date given as "the seventh month" is therefore the seventh from spring, even though the year it belongs to began in autumn.

The Hebrew year A wheel of the twelve lunar months, beginning with Nisan in the spring at the top, each with its rough place in today's calendar. Marked on it: Passover and Unleavened Bread in Nisan with the barley harvest; Weeks, or Pentecost, fifty days on with the wheat; Trumpets, Atonement and Tabernacles in the seventh month, Tishri, where the civil year begins; Dedication in winter; and Purim in Adar, the last month, after which a thirteenth month is added when the barley is late. Nisan1Mar–AprIyyar2Apr–MaySivan3May–JunTammuz4Jun–JulAv5Jul–AugElul6Aug–SepTishri7Sep–OctHeshvan8Oct–NovKislev9Nov–DecTevet10Dec–JanShevat11Jan–FebAdar12Feb–Mara thirteenth montha second Adar, added whenthe barley is latePassoverthe 14th of Nisan, then seven daysof Unleavened Bread (Leviticus 23:5–6),with the barley harvestWeeks, or Pentecostfifty days on, with the wheat(Leviticus 23:15–16; Acts 2:1)the seventh monthTrumpets on the 1st, Atonement onthe 10th, Tabernacles from the 15th(Leviticus 23), with the ingatheringDedication“it was winter” (John 10:22)Purimthe 14th and 15th of Adar(Esther 9:21)the year begins(Exodus 12:2)the civil yearbegins12 moons
Twelve lunar months fall about eleven days short of a solar year, so a thirteenth is added whenever the barley is not ready by Nisan, which keeps Passover in the spring. The month names are the later ones; the Bible also numbers the months, and a few carry older names such as Abib and Ethanim. Today’s months are only rough equivalents, because the lunar months drift against them.

Where it appears

All 84 almanac entries