ALMANACK, a book or table, containing a calendar of days and months, the rising and setting of the sun, the age of the moon, the eclipses of both luminaries, &c.— Authors are divided with regard to the etymology of the word; some deriving it from the Arabic particle al, and manach, to count; some from almanach, new-year's. gifts, because the Arabian astrologers used at the beginning of the year to make presents of their ephemerides; and others from the Teutonic almaen achte, observations on all the months. Dr Johnson derives it from the Arabic particle al, and the Greek j cmjv, a month. But the most simple etymology appears from the common spelling; the word being composed of two Arabic ones, Al ĩdanack, which signify tAβ Diary. All classes of the Arabs are commonly much given to the study of astronomy and [7:2:532]astrology; to both of which a pastoral life, and a sort of husbandry, not only incline them, but afford time and opportunity to cultivate them. They neither sow, reap, plant, travel, buy or sell, nor undertake any expedition or business, without previously consulting the stars, or, in other words, their almanacks, or some of the makers of them. From these people, by their vicinity to Europe, this art, no less useful in one sense than trifling and ridiculous in another, has passed over hither; and those astronomical compositions have still everywhere not only retained their old Arabic name, but were, like theirs, for a long while, and still are among many European nations, interspersed with a great number of astrological rules for planting, sowing, bleeding, purging, &c. down to the cutting of the hair and paring of the nails. Regiomontanus appears to have been the first in Europe, however, who reduced almanacks into their present form and method, gave the characters of each year and month, foretold the eclipses and other phases, calculated the motions of the planets, &c. His first almanack was published in 1474.

The essential part of an almanack is the calendar of months and days, with the risings and settings of the sun, age of the moon, &c. To these are added lists of posts, offices, dignities, public institutions, with many other articles, political as well as local, and differing in different countries.

England has abounded in almanacks, some of them of no very creditable description, though widely circulated among the people for a long period of years. Such, in particular, were Moore's Almanach, and Poor Robins Almanack, now happily, with several others of the same class, either extinct or about to become so. This change has been mainly owing to the publication of an entirely new almanack by the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge. The following statement is extracted from a curious article upon English Almanacks, in the London Magazine, third series, vol. ii. p. 591. “For a century and a half, the two-universities and the Stationers’ Company held the monopoly of them, by letters patent of James I. During this period, according to the condition of the patent, almanacks received the imprimatur of the archbishop of Canterbury and the bishops of London; and yet it would be difficult to find, in so small a compass, an equal quantity of ignorance, profligacy, and imposture, as was condensed into these publications. By the persevering exertions of one individual, the monopoly was overthrown about 1779; and the parties claiming the patentright then applied to parliament for an act to confirm it. That bill was introduced by the minister of the day; but Erskine, then first coming into repute, appeared at the bar to oppose it,—and the monopoly was destroyed for ever, by a solemn vote of the House of Commons. From that time the Stationers’ Company proceeded upon a different course. They secured their monopoly by buying up all rival almanacks; and they rendered the attempts of individuals to oppose them perfectly hopeless, by those arts of trade which a powerful corporation knew how to exercise. For the last fifty years they have rioted, as of old, in every abomination that could delude the vulgar to the purchase of their commodity. On a sudden a new almanack started up, under the superintendence and authority of a society distinguished for its great and successful labours to improve’ the intellectual condition of the people. For the first time in the memory of man, an almanack at once rational and popular was produced. 'From that hour the empire of astrology was at an end. The public press, infinitely to their honour, took up the cause. The blasphemy of Francis Moore, and the obscenity of Poor Robin, were denounced and ridiculed through all quarters of the kingdom. In one little year the obscene book was discontinued, the blasphemous book retreated into pure stupidity, and the publishers of the blasphemy and the obscenity applied themselves, in imitation of the first powerful rival they had ever encountered, to make a rational and useful almanack.” The almanack of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge is entitled the British Almanack; the improved one, published in imitation of it by the Stationers’ Company, is called the Englishmans Almanack.

The French Almanack Royal is one of the most extern sive publications of this class, the volume for 1829 extending to nearly a thousand octavo pages.

ALMANACK, Nautical. This, which in some respects is a national almanack, is published under the sanction of the Board of Longitude, and is designed chiefly to facilitate the use of Mayer’s Lunar Tables, by superseding the necessity of making calculations to determine the longitude at sea. It commenced with the year 1767, and has ever since been continued annually, but two or three years in advance. The late Dr Maskelyne was the originator of this very valuable publication. It is now published under the immediate superintendence of the secretary to the Board. Similar to this almanack is the French publication entitled Connoissance des Terns, directed by the Bureau, de Longitude, and which commenced so early as the year 1698.

Almanacks, among Antiquaries, is also the name given to a kind of instrument, usually of wood, inscribed with various figures and Runic characters, and representing the order of the feasts, dominical letters, days of the week, and golden number, with other matters necessary to be known throughout the year; used by the ancient northern nations in their computations of time, both civil and ecclesiastical. Almanacks of this kind are known by various names among the different nations in which they have been used, as rimstocks, primstaries, runstocks, runstaffs, Scipiones Runici, Bacculi Annales, clogs, &c. They appear to have been used only by the Swedes, Danes, and Norwegians. From the second of these people their use was introduced into England, whence divers remains of them in the counties. Dr Plot has given the description and figure of one of these clogs, found in Staffordshire, under the title of The Perpetual Staffordshire Almanack. The external figure and matter of these calendars appear to have been various. Sometimes they were cut on one or more wooden leaves, bound together after the manner of books; sometimes on the scabbards of swords, or even daggers; sometimes on tools and implements, as portable steelyards, hammers, the helves of hatchets, flails, &c. Sometimes they were made of brass or horn; sometimes of the skins of eels, which being drawn over a stick properly inscribed, retained the impressions of it But the most usual form was that of walking staves, or sticks, which they carried about with them to church, market, &c. Each of these staves is divided into three regions; whereof the first indicates the signs, the second the days of the week and year, and the third the golden number. The characters engraven on them are, in some, the ancient Runic; in others, the latter Gothic characters of Ulfilas. The saints’ days are expressed in hieroglyphics, significative either of some endowment of the saint, the manner of his martyrdom, or the like. Thus, against the notch for the first of March, or St David’s day, is represented a harp; against the 25th of October, or Crispin s day, a pair of shoes; against the 10th of August, or ðt Lawrence’s day, a gridiron; and, lastly, against New-year’s day, a horn, the symbol of liberal potations, which our ancestors indulged in at that period.
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