Kurdish Calendar - Kurdish Months

Kurdish Months

The Kurdish names for each month were designated depending on the geographical division and the lifestyle of specific Kurdish tribes. The name for a former tribe might be different from a nomadic or agricultural tribe in Kurdistan. Remarkable similarity exists between the names of these months, which put the natural events at the center of choice for the certain name. For ex. "Gelawéjh" (ca. 23 July – 23 Aug), the second month of summer, is the Kurdish name of a star, which appears at this time of the year in the sky above Kurdistan.

In northern areas of Kurdistan, the ban on Kurdish cultural and language education has diminished the significance of the role that Kurdish names of the months play in the daily lives of Kurds. Military actions forced many civilian Kurds to lose their land and property in rural areas and move to cities, a process that causes people to break ties with their generations' long traditional lifestyles. In the case of Kurdistan, where the practice of "Kurdishness" is itself considered a crime, it is clear that the Kurdish farmer, nomad, and agriculturist who moved to major cities has not found it necessary to maintain the tradition of his ancient Kurdish calendar.

The Kurdish calendar that is used today in the northern part of Kurdistan is a combination of non-Kurdish names of the months—taken mainly from the Babylonian calendar--and Kurdish names, or in some cases non-Kurdish names that have been transformed. This solution has made the names more acceptable among Kurds, for example in the case of Shabatu, which has become Shevba (the windy nights) in Badínaní, or Nisanu, which has become Nîskan or Adar has become Avdar.

The influence of the Babylonian calendar was seen in many continued customs and usages of its neighbor and vassal states long after the Babylonian Empire had been succeeded by others. In particular, the Hebrew calendar in use at relatively late dates employed similar systems of intercalation of months, month names, and other details. The Jewish adoption of Babylonian calendar customs dates from the period of the Babylonian Exile in the 6th century BC. The Babylonian month names were Nisanu, Ayaru, Simanu, Du`uzu, Abu, Ululu, Tashritu, Arakhsamna, Kislimu, Tebetu, Shabatu, Adaru. The month Adaru II was intercalated six times within the 19-year cycle but never in the year that was 17th of the cycle, when Ululu II was inserted. Thus, the Babylonian calendar until the end preserved a vestige of the original bipartition of the natural year into two seasons, just as the Babylonian months to the end remained truly lunar and began when the New Moon was first visible in the evening. The day began at sunset. Sundials and water clocks served to count hours.