The Washington herald., 1922-01-01
new YEAR DAY
NOT JAN. | FOR
ALL THE WORLD
Astronomers Call Today
Julian Day 2,423,0 ,056.
j. p. 6635.
, SUNDAY. gASuAHY l. Isza
oLD-srYLE NEW YEAR
STARTS JANUARY Il.

oLD-srYLE NEW YEAR
STARTS JANUAKY II.
January ] 10 now celebrated a.
New Year Day among all christis n
nations that use the Gregorisn or
reformed Julian calendar.
Russians and Greeks still keep
the Old style or Julian calendar de-
vised by Julius Caesar with the ala
Of the astronomer sosigenes ana
introduced into home in Is r. c.
IL 30 based on the so-calied Julian
year OF exactly 1854 days which
Is eleven minutes and fourteen sec
onds longer than the true tropical
year, which is counted from eoui-
nox 20 equinox. The accumulated
difference between the two years
amounts TO three days in four hun
dred years.
The reformed calendar Of Pope
Gregory adopted by all Catholic
countries in 1881 allowed for an &C
cumuiatlon Of ten days up 20 that
year by calling the day after OCT.
4. 15e2. October Is instead Of Oct Z,
and provided that the first year OF
every century should not he count
ed as leap year unless divisible b.
four hundred The difference be-
tween the Old Style and New StyIs
Julian calendars now amounts 20
thirteen days So the New Year OF the
Russians and Greeks falls this year
on January IL.
Before the adoption of the Gre
gorisn calendar January l was not
so universally celebrated - New
Year Day by Christian nstion.~
Constantine. the first Christian RoH
man Emperor, proclaimed that New
Year Day should fall on Easter.
and in France New Year Day was
celebrated on Easter until tho year
l 1865 when IL was changed 60 Jana
usry / by Charles IX-
Among the ancient Persians. Baby.
| lonians and Syrians the favorit"
date for New Year Day was that
Of the vernsl equinox when IN, sun
crossed the equator going north Ia
Egypt the New Year began with
the maximum inundation of the
Nile. January ! was also celebrated
as New Year Day by certain tribes
and religious sscts even in the de
tant past because it fell near the
time Of the winter solstice. when
the sun started its northward jour
ney. The Druids began their New
Year about January / for this rea-
SON
The Chinese and japanese ss wcr
al religious sects Of different ldud-
began their New Year with the ac-
cession OF some emperor or with n
date OF some religious slEnifics ao..
At the present time, however. the
Chinese and japanese are generally
celebrating their New Year nav
on January first. Among the Chr.
nese this is considered the most
important holiday Of the year and
great preparations are made for IL
celebration. 4
The Mohammedsns and Jews have
preserved the lunar calendar -,
twelve Or thirteen lunations 10
year and so their New Year neccs-
ssrily falls continually in different
seasons. In 1922 the New Year OF
the Mohammedans will begin at sun
set on August % and the New Year
of the Jews at sunset on September
%.
Scientists and chronologists find IL
convenient TO use a Julian Period OF
1850 Julian years. each year con-
sisting OF 3s5k days The epoch. or
starting point, is January l. 47l5
B. c. and January I. A d. was Ju-
liam Period tTll. This furnishes =
universal calendar that makes II
possible 20 compare dates readily
The number OF days that have
elapsed since January 1, s7IS r. c.
is called the Julian Day. IL is pos
sible to tell at once how many Gays
have elapsed between two dates,
however, far apart, by simply COM
pairing their Julian Days. January
1. 1922 is Julian Day s.G23.O5S and
the year 1922 is Julian Period es55.
BY Isabel N. Lewis. Of the L. :.
Naval Observatory.
W. n. /,