Scotland Dates and Calendars

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Dates and Calendars

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• Genealogical Feast Day Calendars

Background

Early Traditions

• Pre-Christian times likely lacked a formal calendar system. People likely relied on natural cycles like solstices and lunar phases to mark time.
• Festivals based on these cycles probably played a significant role, potentially tied to agricultural activities or seasonal changes.

Medieval Influences

• With Christianity's arrival (around 5th-6th centuries AD), the Julian calendar, used in Europe, gained influence. This calendar was based on the solar year and included leap years, but wasn't perfectly aligned.
• The "Laws of Hywel Dda" (completed around 966 AD), though a Welsh text, offers insights into early Scottish calendars. These laws established Christian holidays (Christmas, Easter, Whitsun) as important dates alongside existing festivals like Calan Gaeaf (first day of winter).

Shifting the Start of the Year (1600)

• Scotland differed from England in its treatment of the new year. In 1600, King James VI proclaimed that Scotland would officially begin the year on January 1st, aligning with most of Europe. England continued using March 25th as the New Year until 1752.

Adopting the Gregorian Calendar (1752)

• By the 18th century, the Julian calendar's leap year system caused a slight misalignment with the solar year. To address this, Great Britain, including Scotland, adopted the Gregorian calendar in 1752.
• This "New Style" calendar introduced a more accurate leap year system and shifted the start of the year to January 1st throughout Britain. To realign with the solar cycle, eleven days were effectively "skipped" during the transition. Dates written between January and March before 1752 might appear in a "double dating" format to account for this shift.