Months in Other Calendars: Seven Calendars from Islamic to Bahá’í
Seven calendars besides the Gregorian give their months names of their own, and this page lines them up by position in the year: the Islamic, Jewish, Hindu, Coptic, Persian solar, French Republican and Bahá’í months, each in its own script with a Latin transcription.
- 19months
- 7calendars
- 5scripts
01 · Seven calendars
Month by month: seven calendars side by side
Each row is a position in the year, and each column one calendar, with the month written in the script of its main language and a Latin transcription underneath. Rows 13 to 19 belong to the Coptic short month and the Bahá’í year of nineteen months. The filter finds a month by name or transcription; the script menu keeps the columns of one writing system.
19 months
| MonthCalendar → | IslamicArabic | JewishHebrew | HinduSanskrit | CopticBohairic | Persian solarPersian | French RepublicanFrench | Bahá’íPersian script |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Months 1 to 12 | |||||||
| Month 1 | محرمmuḥarram | ניסןnīsan | चैत्रःcaitraḥ | ⲐⲱⲟⲩⲧTʰōout | فروردینfarvardin | Vendémiaire | بهاء ؛ بهاBahá |
| Month 2 | صفرṣafar | איר | איירiyar | वैशाखःvaiśākʰaḥ | Ⲡⲁⲟ̄ⲡⲓPaòpi | اردی‌بهشتordibehešt | Brumaire | جلالJalál |
| Month 3 | ربيع الأولrabīʿu l-awwal | סיון | סיווןsīvan | ज्यैष्ठः; ज्येष्ठःjyaiṣṭʰaḥ; jyeṣṭʰaḥ | ⲀⲑⲱⲣAtʰōr | خردادxordâd | Frimaire | جمالJamál |
| Month 4 | ربيع الثانيrabīʿu ṯ-ṯānī | תמוזtamūz | आषाढःāṣāḍʰaḥ | ⲬⲟⲓⲁⲕKʰoiak | تیرtir | Nivôse | عظمتʿAẓamat |
| Month 5 | جمادى الأولىǧumādá l-ūlá | אבaṿ | श्रावणःśrāvaṇaḥ | ⲦⲱⲃⲓTōvi | مرداد ، امردادmordâd, amordâd | Pluviôse | نورNúr |
| Month 6 | جمادى الآخرةǧumādá l-āḫirâ | אלולelūl | भाद्रपदः; प्रौष्ठपदःbʰādrapadaḥ; prauṣṭʰapadaḥ | ⲘⲉⲭⲓⲣMekʰir | شهریورšahrivar | Ventôse | رحمتRaḥmat |
| Month 7 | رجبraǧab | תשרי; תישריtišrē | tišrī; tīšrē | tīšrī | आश्विनः; कुमारः; आश्वयुजःāśvinaḥ; kumāraḥ; āśvayujaḥ | ⲪⲁⲙⲉⲛⲱⲑḞamenōtʰ | مهرmehr | Germinal | کلماتKalimát |
| Month 8 | شعبانšaʿbān | מרחשון | מרחשוון; חשון | חשווןmarḥešvan; ḥešvan | कार्त्तिकःkārttikaḥ | ⲪⲁⲣⲙⲟⲩⲑⲓḞarmoutʰi | آبانâbân | Floréal | کمالKamál |
| Month 9 | رمضانramaḍān | כסלו; כיסלוkislev; kīslev | मार्गशीर्षः; आग्रहायणःmārgaśīrṣaḥ; āgrahāyaṇaḥ | ⲠⲁⲭⲱⲛPakʰōn | آذرâzar | Prairial | اسماءAsmá’ |
| Month 10 | شوالšawwāl | טבתṭeṿet | पौषः; पुष्यःpauṣaḥ; puṣyaḥ | Ⲡⲁⲱ̄ⲛⲓPaṑni | دیdey | Messidor | عزتʿIzzat |
| Month 11 | ذو القعدةḏū l-qaʿdâ | שבטšəṿaṭ | माघःmāgʰaḥ | ⲈⲡⲏⲡEpīp | بهمنbahman | Thermidor; Fervidor | مشیتMashíyyat |
| Month 12 | ذو الحجةḏū l-ḥiǧǧâ | אדרadar | फाल्गुनःpʰālgunaḥ | ⲘⲉⲥⲱⲣⲏMesōrī | اسفند ، اسفندارمزesfand, esfandârmoz | Fructidor | علمʿIlm |
| Months 13 to 19 | |||||||
| Month 13 | no entry | no entry | no entry | Ⲡⲓⲕⲟⲩϫⲓ ⲛ̄ⲁ̄ⲃⲟⲧ; ⲦⲉⲩⲧⲉⲣⲟⲛPikouǰi ənàvot; Teuteron | no entry | no entry | قدرتQudrat |
| Month 14 | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | قولQawl |
| Month 15 | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | مسائلMasá’il |
| Month 16 | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | شرفSharaf |
| Month 17 | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | سلطانSulṭán |
| Month 18 | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | ملکMulk |
| Month 19 | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | no entry | علاءʿAlá’ |
No months match this filter.
Lunar, lunisolar and solar years
The Islamic calendar is purely lunar. Its twelve months follow the phases of the moon and add up to 354 or 355 days, so Ramadan arrives about eleven days earlier each Gregorian year and passes through every season in roughly 33 years.
The Jewish and Hindu calendars are lunisolar. Their months also follow the moon, but a leap month is inserted whenever the lunar year has fallen too far behind the sun; the Jewish calendar does this in seven years out of nineteen. Each month therefore stays in its season, and the table below can tie it to a pair of Gregorian months.
The Coptic, Persian, French Republican and Bahá’í calendars are solar. The Coptic year has twelve months of 30 days and a short thirteenth. The Persian Solar Hijri year opens with Farvardin at the spring equinox, its first six months running to 31 days. The French Republican year also had twelve months of 30 days, closed by five or six complementary days, and the Bahá’í year divides into nineteen months of nineteen days.
Jewish and Hindu months in the Gregorian year
| No. | Jewish month | Hindu month | Usually falls in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nisan | Chaitra | March–April |
| 2 | Iyar | Vaishakha | April–May |
| 3 | Sivan | Jyeshtha | May–June |
| 4 | Tammuz | Ashadha | June–July |
| 5 | Av | Shravana | July–August |
| 6 | Elul | Bhadrapada | August–September |
| 7 | Tishrei | Ashvin | September–October |
| 8 | Cheshvan | Kartika | October–November |
| 9 | Kislev | Margashirsha | November–December |
| 10 | Tevet | Pausha | December–January |
| 11 | Shevat | Magha | January–February |
| 12 | Adar | Phalguna | February–March |
Approximate. Both calendars follow the moon and add a leap month, so a month can begin up to about four weeks apart from one year to the next; regional Hindu reckonings also differ by about half a month.
Coptic and Persian months with their Gregorian dates
| No. | Coptic month | Gregorian dates | Persian month | Begins on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thout | 11 Sep – 10 Oct | Farvardin | 21 March |
| 2 | Paopi | 11 Oct – 9 Nov | Ordibehesht | 21 April |
| 3 | Hathor | 10 Nov – 9 Dec | Khordad | 22 May |
| 4 | Koiak | 10 Dec – 8 Jan | Tir | 22 June |
| 5 | Tobi | 9 Jan – 7 Feb | Mordad | 23 July |
| 6 | Meshir | 8 Feb – 9 Mar | Shahrivar | 23 August |
| 7 | Paremhat | 10 Mar – 8 Apr | Mehr | 23 September |
| 8 | Paremoude | 9 Apr – 8 May | Aban | 23 October |
| 9 | Pashons | 9 May – 7 Jun | Azar | 22 November |
| 10 | Paoni | 8 Jun – 7 Jul | Dey | 22 December |
| 11 | Epip | 8 Jul – 6 Aug | Bahman | 21 January |
| 12 | Mesori | 7 Aug – 5 Sep | Esfand | 20 February |
| 13 | Epagomens | 6 Sep – 10 Sep |
Coptic dates for the years 1900 to 2099; in the year before a Gregorian leap year Thout begins on 12 September and the dates up to February move one day later. Persian dates for a year in which Nowruz, 1 Farvardin, falls on 21 March.
What the month names mean
Some sets describe the season. The French Republican months were coined for the calendar France adopted in late 1793: Vendémiaire from the grape harvest, Brumaire from fog, Nivôse from snow and Thermidor from heat. The Bahá’í months are named after attributes of God, from Bahá, splendour, through Jalál and Jamál, glory and beauty, to ʿAlá’, loftiness.
Others carry older names forward. The Jewish months come from the Babylonian calendar, and the Akkadian forms nisānu, du’ūzu and ulūlu stand in the Jewish table of the calendar months page next to Nisan, Tammuz and Elul. The Coptic months keep the month names of ancient Egypt, Thout after the god Thoth and Hathor after the goddess of that name. The Hindu months are named after the lunar mansions, Chaitra after Chitrā and Kārttika after Kṛttikā.
Questions about the months of other calendars
How many months does the Islamic calendar have?
Twelve, from Muharram to Dhu al-Hijjah, of 29 or 30 days each. Ramadan is the ninth month and Shawwal, which opens with the feast at the end of the fast, the tenth.
Which calendar has 13 months?
The Coptic calendar always has 13: twelve months of 30 days and Epagomens, a short month of five or six days at the end of the year. The Jewish calendar has 13 months in its leap years.
When does the Coptic year begin?
On 11 September, with the month Thout, or on 12 September in the year before a Gregorian leap year. The month names in many more languages are on the calendar months page.