Coptic calendar, also called
the Alexandrian calendar, is a liturgical calendar used by the Coptic Orthodox
Church based on the ancient Egyptian calendar and still in use today in Egypt. A reform of the ancient
Egyptian calendar was introduced at the time of Ptolemy III (Decree of Canopus,
in 238 BC) that consisted of the intercalation of a sixth (intercalary) day
every fourth year. However, the Egyptian priests opposed this reform, and the
idea was only adopted later in 25 BC, when the Roman Emperor Augustus formally
reformed the calendar of Egypt, keeping it forever synchronized with the newly
introduced Julian calendar. To distinguish it from the Ancient Egyptian
calendar, which remained in use by some astronomers until medieval times, this
reformed calendar is known as the Coptic calendar. Its years and months
coincide with those of the Ethiopian calendar but have different numbers and
names.
The Coptic year is the extension
of the ancient Egyptian civil year, retaining its subdivision into the three
seasons, four months each. Special prayers in the Coptic Liturgy commemorate
the three seasons. This calendar is still in use all over Egypt by farmers to
keep track of the various agricultural seasons (note: with accuracy to days).
The Coptic calendar has 13 months,
12 of 30 days each and one intercalary month at the end of the year of 5 days
in length, except in leap years when the month is 6 days. Today, and until
2099, the year starts on 11 September in the Julian calendar or on the 12th in
the year before Leap Years.
Coptic Christmas is observed on
what the Julian calendar labels 25 December; a date that currently corresponds
with January 7 on the more widely used Gregorian calendar (which is also when
Christmas is observed in Eastern Orthodox countries such as Russia).
The 25 December Nativity of Christ
was attested very early by Hippolytus of Rome (170–236) in his Commentary on
Daniel 4:23: "The first coming of our Lord, that in the flesh, in which he
was born in Bethlehem, took place eight days before the calends of January, a
Wednesday, in the forty-second year of the reign of Augustus, 5500 years from
Adam."
Another early source is Theophilus
Bishop of Caesarea (115–181): "We ought to celebrate the birth-day of our
Lord on what day so ever the 25th of December shall happen." (From origin
Festorum Christianorum). However, it was not until 367 that December 25 has
begun to be universally accepted. Before that, the Eastern Church had kept
January 6 as the Nativity under the name "Epiphany."
FEBRUARY / MARCH |
Solstice |
The religious competition was
fierce. In AD 274, Emperor Aurelian had declared a civil holiday on 25 December
(the "Festival of the birth of the Unconquered Sun") to celebrate the
deity Sol Invictus. Finally, joyous festivals are needed at that time of year,
to fight the natural gloom of the season (in the Northern Hemisphere).
DECEMBER / JANUARY |
This is the reason why
Old-Calendrists (using the Julian and Coptic calendars) presently celebrate
Christmas on 7 January, 13 days after the New-Calendrists (using the Gregorian
calendar), who celebrate Christmas on 25 December.
Starting AD 2100, the Coptic
Christmas should be celebrated on January 8th according to the Gregorian calendar, if no harmonized Christians celebrations are put in place.
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