KA LF:NDAR, • register or distribution of the year, accommodated to the uses of life, containing the order of days, weeks, months, festi vals, as they occur in the course of the year. It is so called from the Katracier, or 'Calends, which among the Romans denoted the first day of every month. The kalendar, 'mini of civil institution, varies according to the different distributions of time in different countries. Those which we shall take more particular notice of are, the Roman, the Julian, the Gregorian. and the Reformed kalendar: a slight mention of the others will lie sufficient Itemultis, according to tradition, formed what is deemed the original Roman kalendar, by which the year was divided into ten months only, consisting of an unequal number of days, and began with March. The total number of days was 301. It war however soon discovered that the civil year, as thus constituted, was much shorter than the solar year. Iteenultut therefore added two Intervalary months to every year ; but thews mouths were not inserted in the kalendar, nor were any name. assigned to them until the following reign. Some Roman anti• queries. maintained that the old kalendar continual in use till the time of Tarquinlus Ptiscus.
NUM*, in Imitation of the Greeks, divided the year into twelve weighs, according to the course of the moon, consisting in all of 354 — — days : according to l'liny (' Hist. Nat., xxxiv. 7), he afterward, added one day more to make the number odd, which was thought a more fortunate number. But as 10 days, 5 hours, 40 minutes (or rather 48 minutes 5S seconds) were wanting to make the lunar year correspond to the course of the sun, ho intercalated every other year an extraordi nary month, called Menus intercaletris, or 11cm-dottier's, between the 23rd and 24th of February. This month appears to have consisted alternately of 22 and 23 days during periods of 22 years. the last biennium in the 22 years being entirely platted over. The intercalation of this month was left to the discretion of the pontifices, who, by inserting more or fewer days, used to make the current year longer or shorter, as was most couveuient for themselves or their friends; for instance, that a magistrate might sooner or later resign Ids office, or contractors fur the revenue have longer or shorter time to collect the taxes. In consequence of this licence the months were transposed from their proper seasons ; the winter months carried back into autumn, and the autumnal into summer. Some critics are of opinion
that there is a reference to this confusion in ono of Cicero's letters to his friend Atticus (x. 17).
Julius Caesar, when he had made himself master of the state, resolved to put an end to this disorder, by abolishing the use of the intercala tions; and for that purpose (s.c. 47) adjusted the year accenting to the course of the sun, and assigned to the months the number of drys which they still contain. Ile also added an intercalary day to February every four years. [Brestarrte.] To make everything proceed regu larly, from the 1st of the ensuing January, he inserted in the current year, besides the interadary month of 23 days, which fell into it, two extraordinary months between November and December, the one of 33, the other of 34 days; so that this year, which was called the last year of confusion, consisted of 15 months, or 445 days. (Sueton., Vit. J. Qrs., e. 40.) These 67 days were inserted in order to set the year right, which was 67 days in advance of the true time.
All this was effected by the care and skill of Sosigenes, an astro. nomer of Alexandria, whom Caesar had brought to Rome for that purpose • and a new kalendar was formed from his arrangement by Flavius;digested according to the order of the Roman festivals, and the old manner of computing the days by kalende, 111011C8, and ides, which was published and authorised by the dictator's edict.
This is the Julian or Solar year, which continues in use to this day in all Christian countries, without any other variation than that of the old and new style, which was occasioned by a regulation of Pope Gregory X111., a.n.1582, who, observing that the vernal equinox, which at the time of the council of Nice, A.D. 325, had been on the 21st of March, then happened on the 10th, by the advice of astrouomera caused ten days to be thrown out of the current year, between the 4th and 15th of October ; and to make the civil year for the future to agree with the real one, or with the annual revolution of the earth round the sun, or, as it was then expressed, with the annual motion of the suit ill the ecliptic, which is completed in 365 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes, he ordained that every 100th year should not be leap-year, excepting the 400th ; so that the difference will hardly amount to a day in 7000 years, or, according to is more accurate computation of time length of the year, to a day in 5200 years.