626 
the month in which it occurred, but in relation 
to the particular kalends, nones, or ides, which 
it immediately preceded. The kalends, from 
calando or vocando, alluded to the calling or pro- 
claiming of new moon by the high priest; the 
nones or none were, inclusively, ‘the ninths’ 
before the ides; and the ides, from a word sig- 
nifying ‘to divide,’ were ‘ dividers’ of the month, 
cutting each into nearly equal parts. 
The calendar used throughout Persia, is pecu- 
liar to that country, and dates from a peculiar 
era. ‘The Mahommedan or Arabian calendar is 
used in every Mahommedan country except Per- 
sia, and dates from the era in Mahommed’s life 
called the Hegira. The Jewish calendar, or that 
at present used by the Jews, is not of higher date 
than the second century, or very probably was 
not known till the fourth century, or even till a 
later period.—The calendar of the French repub- 
lic was established in 1793, and abolished in 1805; 
and yet, though of such short continuance, it was 
| so peculiar in itself, and has left such broad traces 
in history, that it will long figure as a subject of 
great curiosity. This calendar divided the year 
into twelve months of thirty days each, and a 
supplementary or festival period of five days, 
called the Sanscullotides ; it divided each month 
into three decades or ten-day weeks; it ap- 
pointed leap-year intercalations in the same 
manner as the Gregorian calendar; it constituted 
each cycle of four years, ending with a leap-year 
or olympic year, a Franciade; and it gave to 
the respective months new and peculiar names, 
| which were intended to be descriptive of the 
several characters of the months in the calendar 
of nature. Its month nivose, or the snowy, ex- 
tended from the 21st of December till the 20th 
of January ; pluviose, or the rainy, from the 20th 
of January till the 19th of February; ventose, 
or the windy, from the 19th of February till the 
2ist of March ; and so on with the others. 
_ January was the first of the two months added 
by Numa to the original Roman calendar; and, 
though not treated as the first month of our year 
till 1752, it was regarded, from the time of the 
establishment of the Numan calendar, as the first 
month of the Roman year. Janus, whom it com- 
memorates, was one of the deities of the heathen 
Romans, represented with two faces, and is 
usually supposed to have been a very ancient 
king of Italy; but he was really the impersona- 
tion of Noah, looking backward, with an old 
and sorrowful countenance, to the antediluvian 
world, and forward with a young and joyous 
countenance, to the world after the flood. The 
heathen Saxons called January Wolfmonth, on 
account of its being the season when wolves 
were most dangerous; and the Christian Saxons 
called it Afteryule, on account of its succeeding 
the festival of Christmas. — February was the 
second of the two months added by Numa, and 
was named in honour of the heathen goddess 
; Juno, who, under the designation of Februa, 
CALENDAR. 
Februara, or Februalis, was supposed to preside 
over the purification of women. ‘The Saxons 
called it Solmonth; and the Flemings call it 
pruning-month.—March was the first month of 
the original Roman calendar; and was named in 
honour of Mars, whom the heathen Romans 
worshipped as the god of war, and as the sup- 
posed tutelar deity of the city of Rome. The 
heathen Saxons called it Rhedmonth, in honour 
of their goddess Rheda; and the Christian Sax- 
ons called it Lentmonth or the month of spring. 
—April was named by the Romans, from the 
verb aperire ‘to open,’ in allusion to the open- 
ing vegetation of spring; and was afterwards, 
for a brief period, called Neronus, in honour of 
the infamous tyrant Nero. The heathen Saxons 
called it Easter-month, in honour of their god- 
dess Easter ; and the Christian Saxons continued 
this name, but with altered allusion to the Chris- 
tian passover.—May was named by the Romans, 
either in honour of Maia, the mother of Mercury, 
or in honour of the goddess Rhea, under her 
name of Maia. The Saxons called it the three- 
milk-month, in allusion to a supposed threefold 
abundance of milk, from the succulency and 
stimulation of the young and profuse herbage.— 
June was named by the Romans in honour of 
their goddess Juno. The Saxons called it the 
feed-month, because it matured the meadows for 
the depasturing of cattle, and the mild or navi- 
gable month, because it rendered the seasons 
calm and propitious for the passage of their small 
and fragile sailing -craft—July was originally 
designated by the Romans Quintilis or the fifth 
month ; and it received its present name, by or- 
der of Mark Antony, in honour of Julius Ceesar. 
The Saxons called it hay-month, because it was 
the time of their hay-harvest, and meadow-month 
because it was the season of their meadow-grasses 
rushing up to flower.— August .was originally 
designated by the Romans Sextilis or the sixth 
month, and it received its present name in honour 
of Augustus Czsar. The Saxons called it barn- 
month, in allusion to its being the season of har- 
vest.—September was named by the Romans 
from two words signifying “seven,” and “a | 
shower,” the former alluding to its numerical 
place in the original Roman Calendar, and the 
latter to its forming the commencement of the 
rainy season. The heathen Saxons called it bar- 
ley-month, and the Christian Saxons holy-month, 
—the:latter in allusion to the numerousness or 
the prominence of religious observances.—Octo- 
ber was called by the Saxons wine-month and 
winter-fall,—the latter in allusion to the approach 
of winter. November was called by them wind- 
month, in allusion to the storminess of the wea- 
ther, and slaughter-month, in allusion to the 
slaughtering and salting of a large portion of 
flocks in consequence of the paucity of winter 
provender; and December was called by the 
heathen Saxons winter-month, in allusion to the 
frostiness of the weather, and by the Christian 
