Ethiopian Calendar Guide
The Ethiopian calendar is not a curiosity or an anomaly. It is a living, actively-used timekeeping system with deep historical and religious roots. The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church has used this calendar for over 1,600 years to calculate the dates of fasting periods, feast days, and holy days.
The civil calendar of Ethiopia is also based on this system, which is why Ethiopian government documents, business contracts, and personal identity papers all use Ethiopian calendar dates. Understanding how the calendar works is practical knowledge for anyone dealing with Ethiopian documentation, scheduling, or culture. Ethiopian New Year falls in September, the calendar runs 7 to 8 years behind the Gregorian calendar, and the year has 13 months. None of these are approximations or mistakes, but features of a deliberately designed system with its own mathematical logic.
Ethiopia uses the Ge'ez calendar, which has 13 months, a different New Year, and a unique time-keeping system. It runs approximately 7–8 years behind the Gregorian calendar.
The 13 Months
| # | Ge'ez | Romanized | Gregorian Equivalent | Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | መስከረም | Meskerem | Sep 11 – Oct 10 | 30 |
| 2 | ጥቅምት | Tikimt | Oct 11 – Nov 9 | 30 |
| 3 | ህዳር | Hidar | Nov 10 – Dec 9 | 30 |
| 4 | ታህሳስ | Tahsas | Dec 10 – Jan 8 | 30 |
| 5 | ጥር | Tir | Jan 9 – Feb 7 | 30 |
| 6 | የካቲት | Yekatit | Feb 8 – Mar 9 | 30 |
| 7 | መጋቢት | Megabit | Mar 10 – Apr 8 | 30 |
| 8 | ሚያዚያ | Miazia | Apr 9 – May 8 | 30 |
| 9 | ግንቦት | Ginbot | May 9 – Jun 7 | 30 |
| 10 | ሰኔ | Sene | Jun 8 – Jul 7 | 30 |
| 11 | ሐምሌ | Hamle | Jul 8 – Aug 6 | 30 |
| 12 | ነሐሴ | Nehase | Aug 7 – Sep 5 | 30 |
| 13 | ጳጉሜ | Pagume | Sep 6 – Sep 10 | 5 / 6 |
Dates are approximate. Ethiopian months begin on fixed Gregorian dates that shift ±1 day in Gregorian leap years.
Days of the Week (የሳምንቱ ቀናት)
| Amharic | Romanized | English | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| እሁድ | Ehud | Sunday | First day of the Ethiopian week |
| ሰኞ | Segno | Monday | |
| ማክሰኞ | Maksegno | Tuesday | |
| ረቡዕ | Rebu | Wednesday | |
| ሐሙስ | Hamus | Thursday | |
| አርብ | Arb | Friday | |
| ቅዳሜ | Kidame | Saturday | Sabbath day in Ethiopian Orthodox Church |
Ethiopian Time System (የኢትዮጵያ ሰዓት)
Ethiopian time is offset by 6 hours from standard (12-hour clock) time.
Hour 1 in Ethiopian time starts at 6:00 AM (sunrise), not midnight. The day is divided into two 12-hour cycles: daytime (ቀን ke'en) and night (ሌሊት lelit).
Tip: To convert Ethiopian time to standard time, add 6 hours. To convert standard to Ethiopian, subtract 6 hours.
New Year: Enkutatash (እንቁጣጣሽ)
Ethiopian New Year falls on September 11 (Gregorian), or September 12 in Gregorian leap years. It marks the start of መስከረም (Meskerem) and the end of the rainy season.
Children traditionally exchange flowers and sing songs; families wear new clothes and celebrate with festive meals.
Pagume: The 13th Month (ጳጉሜ)
Pagume is the intercalary month with only 5 days (6 in Ethiopian leap years). It falls at the end of the Ethiopian year, bridging August and September.
In Ethiopian tradition, Pagume is considered a special transitional period. There is a saying, "ጳጉሜ ሌላ ዓለም ነው", meaning "Pagume is another world."
Ethiopian Public Holidays
| Holiday | English | Gregorian Date |
|---|---|---|
| ዘመን መለወጫ (እንቁጣጣሽ) | Ethiopian New Year | September 11 (Sep 12 in Gregorian leap years) |
| መስቀል | Finding of the True Cross | September 27 |
| ጥምቀት | Epiphany (Timkat) | January 19 (Jan 20 in Gregorian leap years) |
| ፋሲካ | Easter (Fasika) | Variable — Ethiopian Orthodox date |
| ኢትዮጵያ አዲስ ዓመት | Ethiopian Christmas (Genna) | January 7 |
| አድዋ ድል | Victory of Adwa | March 2 |
| ዓለም አቀፍ የሠራተኞች ቀን | International Workers' Day | May 1 |
| ኢትዮጵያ ብሔራዊ ቀን | Ethiopian National Day | May 28 |
Quick Year Conversion
The Ethiopian calendar is 7 years and ~8 months behind the Gregorian calendar:
Use the Date Converter tool for precise Gregorian ↔ Ethiopian date conversion.
About the Ethiopian Calendar
The Ethiopian calendar (የኢትዮጵያ ዘመን አቆጣጠር) is a solar calendar based on the ancient Coptic calendar of Egypt, itself derived from the Egyptian civil calendar. It has 13 months: 12 months of 30 days each and a 13th month called Pagume (ጳጉሜ) of 5 or 6 days. The Ethiopian calendar runs approximately 7 years and 8 months behind the Gregorian calendar because it uses a different calculation for the birth year of Jesus Christ. Ethiopian New Year (Enkutatash / እንቁጣጣሽ) falls on Meskerem 1, which is September 11 in non-leap years and September 12 in Gregorian leap years. Ethiopia is one of the only countries in the world still using this calendar system for official and civil purposes.