Holocene calendar

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The Holocene calendar, also known as the Holocene Era or Human Era (HE), is a year numbering system that adds exactly 10,000 years to the currently dominant (AD/BC or CE/BCE) numbering scheme, placing its first year near the beginning of the Holocene geological epoch and the Neolithic Revolution, when humans shifted from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle to agriculture and fixed settlements. The current year by the Gregorian calendar, AD 2024, is 12024 HE in the Holocene calendar. The HE scheme was first proposed by Cesare Emiliani in 1993 (11993 HE), [1] though similar proposals to start a new calendar at the same date had been put forward decades earlier. [2] [3]

Contents

Overview

Cesare Emiliani's proposal for a calendar reform sought to solve a number of alleged problems with the current Anno Domini era, also called the Common Era, which number the years of the commonly accepted world calendar. These issues include:

Instead, HE uses the "beginning of human era" as its epoch, arbitrarily defined as 10,000 BC and denoted year 1 HE, so that AD 1 matches 10,001 HE. [1] This is a rough approximation of the start of the current geologic epoch, the Holocene (the name means entirely recent). The motivation for this is that human civilization (e.g. the first settlements, agriculture, etc.) is believed to have arisen within this time. Emiliani later proposed that the start of the Holocene should be fixed at the same date as the beginning of his proposed era. [5]

Benefits

Human Era proponents claim that it makes for easier geological, archaeological, dendrochronological, anthropological and historical dating, as well as that it bases its epoch on an event more universally relevant than the birth of Jesus. All key dates in human history can then be listed using a simple increasing date scale with smaller dates always occurring before larger dates. Another gain is that the Holocene Era starts before the other calendar eras, so it could be useful for the comparison and conversion of dates from different calendars.

Accuracy

When Emiliani discussed the calendar in a follow-up article in 1994, he mentioned that there was no agreement on the date of the start of the Holocene epoch, with estimates at the time ranging between 12,700 and 10,970 years BP. [5] Since then, scientists have improved their understanding of the Holocene on the evidence of ice cores and can now more accurately date its beginning. A consensus view was formally adopted by the IUGS in 2013, placing its start at 11,700 years before 2000 (9701 BC), about 300 years more recent than the epoch of the Holocene calendar. [6]

Equivalent proposals

In 1924 Gabriel Deville proposed the use of Calendrier nouveau de chronologie ancienne (CNCA), which would start 10,000 years before AD 1, which is identical to Emiliani's much later proposal. [2]

Since 1929, Dievturība adherents use Latviskā ēra (the Latvian Era) which begins at the same point; this coincides with the first inhabitants’ influx to the territory of present Latvia (10500–10047 BCE). According to the Latvian Era, 12025 is written for 2025 CE. Detailed explanation of Latvian Era by Ernests Brastiņš was first published in 1934. [7] [8] [9]

In 1963 E.R. Hope proposed the use of Anterior Epoch (AE), which also begins at the same point. [3]

Conversion

Conversion from Julian or Gregorian calendar years to the Human Era can be achieved by adding 10,000 to the AD/CE year. The present year, 2024, can be transformed into a Holocene year by adding the digit "1" before it, making it 12,024 HE. Years BC/BCE are converted by subtracting the BC/BCE year number from 10,001.

Calendar epochs and milestones in the Holocene calendar
Gregorian year ISO 8601 Holocene yearEvent
10002 BC-10001-1 HE
10001 BC-100000 HE
10000 BC-9999 [lower-alpha 1] 1 HEBeginning of the Holocene Era
9701 BC-9700300 HEEnd of the Pleistocene and beginning of the Holocene epoch [6]
4714 BC-47135287 HE Epoch of the Julian day system: Julian day 0 starts at Greenwich noon on January 1, 4713 BC of the proleptic Julian calendar, which is November 24, 4714 BC in the proleptic Gregorian calendar [10] : 10 
3761 BC-37606240 HEBeginning of the Anno Mundi calendar era in the Hebrew calendar [10] : 11 
3102 BC-31016899 HEBeginning of the Kali Yuga in Hindu cosmology [11]
2250 BC-22497751 HEBeginning of the Meghalayan age, the current and latest of the three stages in the Holocene epoch. [12] [13]
45 BC-00449956 HEIntroduction of the Julian calendar
1 BC000010000 HE Year zero at ISO 8601
1 AD000110001 HEBeginning of the Common Era and Anno Domini , from the estimate by Dionysius of the Incarnation of Jesus
622062210622 HEMigration of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina (Hijrah), starting the Islamic calendar [14] [15] at 1 AH
1582158211582 HEIntroduction of the Gregorian calendar [10] : 47 
1912191211912 HE Epoch of the Juche [16] and Minguo calendars [17]
1950195011950 HE Epoch of the Before Present dating scheme [18] : 190 
1960196011960 HE UTC Epoch
1970197011970 HE Unix Epoch [19]
1993199311993 HEPublication of the Holocene calendar
2024202412024 HECurrent year
10000+1000020000 HE
  1. ↑ Emiliani [1] states his proposal would set "the beginning of the human era at 10,000 BC" but does not mention the Julian or Gregorian calendar.

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Anno Domini</i> Western calendar era

The terms anno Domini (AD) and before Christ (BC) are used when designating years in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. The term anno Domini is Medieval Latin and means "in the year of the Lord" but is often presented using "our Lord" instead of "the Lord", taken from the full original phrase "anno Domini nostri Jesu Christi", which translates to "in the year of our Lord Jesus Christ". The form "BC" is specific to English, and equivalent abbreviations are used in other languages: the Latin form, rarely used in English, is Ante Christum natum (ACN) or Ante Christum (AC).

<i>Ab urbe condita</i> Ancient Roman calendar era

Ab urbe condita, or anno urbis conditae, abbreviated as AUC or AVC, expresses a date in years since 753 BC, the traditional founding of Rome. It is an expression used in antiquity and by classical historians to refer to a given year in Ancient Rome. In reference to the traditional year of the foundation of Rome, the year 1 BC would be written AUC 753, whereas AD 1 would be AUC 754. The foundation of the Roman Empire in 27 BC would be AUC 727. The current year AD 2024 would be AUC 2777.

Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar, the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the original Anno Domini (AD) and Before Christ (BC) notations used for the same calendar era. The two notation systems are numerically equivalent: "2024 CE" and "AD 2024" each describe the current year; "400 BCE" and "400 BC" are the same year.

An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth.

The Julian calendar is a solar calendar of 365 days in every year with an additional leap day every fourth year. The Julian calendar is still used as a religious calendar in parts of the Eastern Orthodox Church and in parts of Oriental Orthodoxy as well as by the Amazigh people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Year</span> Time of one planets orbit around a star

A year is the time taken for astronomical objects to complete one orbit. For example, a year on Earth is the time taken for Earth to revolve around the Sun. Generally, a year is taken to mean a calendar year, but the word is also used for periods loosely associated with the calendar or astronomical year, such as the seasonal year, the fiscal year, the academic year, etc. The term can also be used in reference to any long period or cycle, such as the Great Year.

AD 1 (I) or 1 CE was a common year starting on Saturday or Sunday, a common year starting on Saturday by the proleptic Julian calendar, and a common year starting on Monday by the proleptic Gregorian calendar. It is the epoch year for the Anno Domini (AD) Christian calendar era, and the 1st year of the 1st century and 1st millennium of the Christian and Common Era (CE).

The proleptic Julian calendar is produced by extending the Julian calendar backwards to dates preceding AD 8 when the quadrennial leap year stabilized. The leap years that were actually observed between the implementation of the Julian calendar in 45 BC and AD 8 were erratic.

In chronology and periodization, an epoch or reference epoch is an instant in time chosen as the origin of a particular calendar era. The "epoch" serves as a reference point from which time is measured.

The 10th millennium BC spanned the years 10,000 BC to 9001 BC. It marks the beginning of the transition from the Palaeolithic to the Neolithic via the interim Mesolithic and Epipaleolithic periods, which together form the first part of the Holocene epoch that is generally believed to have begun c. 9700 BC and is the current geological epoch. It is impossible to precisely date events that happened around the time of this millennium, and all dates mentioned here are estimates mostly based on geological analysis, anthropological analysis, and radiometric dating.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chronology</span> Science of arranging events in order of occurrence

Chronology is the science of arranging events in their order of occurrence in time. Consider, for example, the use of a timeline or sequence of events. It is also "the determination of the actual temporal sequence of past events".

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The Era of the Martyrs, also known as the Diocletian era, is a method of numbering years based on the reign of Roman Emperor Diocletian who instigated the last major persecution against Christians in the Empire. It was used by the Church of Alexandria beginning in the 4th century AD and it has been used by the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria from the 5th century until the present. This era was used to number the year in Easter tables produced by the Church of Alexandria.

<i>Anno Mundi</i> Calendar era based on the biblical account of creation

Anno Mundi, abbreviated as AM or A.M., or Year After Creation, is a calendar era based on the biblical accounts of the creation of the world and subsequent history. Two such calendar eras have seen notable use historically:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shaka era</span> Hindu calendar era

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anno Lucis</span> Dating system used in Freemasonry

Anno Lucis is a dating system used in Masonic ceremonial or commemorative proceedings, which is equivalent to the Gregorian year plus 4000. It is similar to Anno Mundi.

A year zero does not exist in the Anno Domini (AD) calendar year system commonly used to number years in the Gregorian calendar ; in this system, the year 1 BC is followed directly by year AD 1. However, there is a year zero in both the astronomical year numbering system, and the ISO 8601:2004 system, the interchange standard for all calendar numbering systems. There is also a year zero in most Buddhist and Hindu calendars.

The Spanish era, sometimes called the era of Caesar, was a calendar era commonly used in the states of the Iberian Peninsula from the 5th century until the 15th, when it was phased out in favour of the Anno Domini (AD) system. The epoch of the Spanish era was 1 January 38 BC. To convert an Anno Domini date to the corresponding year in the Spanish era, add 38 to the Anno Domini year, such that Era 941 would be equivalent to AD 903. A date given in the Spanish era always uses the word era followed by a feminine ordinal number. This contrasts with the AD system that uses the masculine anno (year): i.e., era millesima octava versus anno millesimo octavo.

The Meghalayan age is the name given in 2018, by the International Commission on Stratigraphy, to the current age or latest geologic age – or uppermost stage of the Quaternary. It is also the upper, or latest, of three subdivisions of the Holocene epoch or series. This way of breaking down time is based only on geology; for example, it is unrelated to the three-age system of historical periods into which human development is sometimes divided.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Emiliani, Cesare (1993). "Correspondence – calendar reform". Nature. 366 (6457): 716. Bibcode:1993Natur.366..716E. doi: 10.1038/366716b0 .
  2. 1 2 Naudin, Claude (2001). De temps en temps: Histoires de calendrier[From time to time: Calendar stories]. Le Grand Livre du Mois. ISBN   2-7028-4735-8.
  3. 1 2 Hope, E.R. (1963). "The arithmetical reform of the calendar, Part I". Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. 57 (1): 14–23. Bibcode:1963JRASC..57...14H.
  4. ↑ Rahner, Karl (2004). Encyclopedia of theology: a concise Sacramentum mundi. Continuum. p. 732. ISBN   978-0-86012-006-3. Archived from the original on July 27, 2020. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  5. 1 2 Emiliani, Cesare (1994). "Calendar reform for the year 2000". Eos. 75 (19): 218. Bibcode:1994EOSTr..75..218E. doi:10.1029/94EO00895.
  6. 1 2 Walker, Mike; Jonsen, Sigfus; Rasmussen, Sune Olander; Popp, Trevor; Steffensen, Jørgen-Peder; Gibbard, Phil; Hoek, Wim; Lowe, John; Andrews, John; Björck, Svante; Cwynar, Les C.; Hughen, Konrad; Kershaw, Peter; Kromer, Bernd; Litt, Thomas; Lowe, David J.; Nakagawa, Takeshi; Newnham, Rewi; Schwander, Jacob (2009). "Formal definition and dating of the GSSP (Global Stratotype Section and Point) for the base of the Holocene using the Greenland NGRIP ice core, and selected auxiliary records" (PDF). Journal of Quaternary Science. 24 (1): 3–17. Bibcode:2009JQS....24....3W. doi: 10.1002/jqs.1227 . Archived (PDF) from the original on 2013-11-04.
  7. ↑ Nastevičs, Uģis (2022). "Latvian Dievturība: A Study of Rituals, Their Sacred Space and Texts". Dievturu Vēstnesis. 43 (3): 2467–2481. ISSN   2661-5088.
  8. ↑ Nastevičs, Uģis (2022). Latviešu dievturība un japāņu šintō. Rituāli, to sakrālā telpa un teksti salīdzinošā aspektā. Puzuri. ISBN   9789934906725.
  9. ↑ Brastiņš, Ernests (1934). "Latviskais laiks". Labietis. 5: 72–73. ISSN   0456-9571.
  10. 1 2 3 Dershowitz, Nachum; Reingold, Edward M. (2008). Calendrical Calculations (3rd ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN   978-0-521-70238-6.
  11. ↑ See: Matchett, Freda, "The Puranas", p 139 and Yano, Michio, "Calendar, astrology and astronomy" in Flood, Gavin, ed. (2003). Blackwell companion to Hinduism. Blackwell Publishing. ISBN   978-0-631-21535-6.
  12. ↑ "ICS chart containing the Quaternary and Cambrian GSSPs and new stages (v 2018/07) is now released!". Archived from the original on February 19, 2020. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
  13. ↑ Conners, Deanna (September 18, 2018). "Welcome to the Meghalayan age". Archived from the original on February 2, 2019. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
  14. ↑ Aisha El-Awady (2002-06-11). "Ramadan and the Lunar Calendar". Islamonline.net. Archived from the original on 2006-12-14. Retrieved 2006-12-16.
  15. ↑ Hakim Muhammad Said (1981). "The History of the Islamic Calendar in the Light of the Hijra". Ahlul Bayt Digital Islamic Library Project . Archived from the original on 2011-06-10. Retrieved 2006-12-16.
  16. ↑ Hy-Sang Lee (2001). North Korea: A Strange Socialist Fortress. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 220. ISBN   978-0-275-96917-2.
  17. ↑ Endymion Wilkinson (2000). Chinese History: A Manual. Harvard Univ Asia Center. pp. 184–185. ISBN   978-0-674-00249-4.
  18. ↑ Currie Lloyd A (2004). "The Remarkable Metrological History of Radiocarbon Dating [II]" (PDF). Journal of Research of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. 109 (2): 185–217. doi:10.6028/jres.109.013. PMC   4853109 . PMID   27366605. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-12-06. Retrieved 2018-06-24.
  19. ↑ "The Open Group Base Specifications Issue 7, Rationale, section 4.16 Seconds Since the Epoch". The OpenGroup. 2018. Archived from the original on 2017-11-15. Retrieved 2018-06-24.

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