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The Tamil Calendar is followed by the Tamil speaking state of Tamil Nadu and Kerala in India, and by the Tamil population in Malaysia, Singapore & Sri Lanka. There are several festivals in Tamil Nadu based on the Tamil Hindu Calendar. The Tamil calendar is based on the solar cycle. It has a sixty years cycle and each year has twelve months. The Tamil New Year follows the nirayan vernal equinox and generally falls around April 14 of the Gregorian year. Tropical vernal equinox fall around 22 March, and adding 23 degrees of trepidation or oscillation to it, we get the Hindu sidereal or nirayan Mesha Samkranti ( Sun's transition into nirayan Aries). Hence, Tamil calendar begins with the same date which is observed by most traditional calendars of rest of India. The 60 year cycle is also very ancient and is observed by most traditional calendars of India and China, and is related to 5 revolutions of Jupiter according to popular belief, or to 60 year orbit of Nakshatras as mentioned in Surya Siddhanta . Image File history File links Circle-question. ... A Tunisian calendar showing Gregorian, Islamic and Berber dates // Afghan calendar (Afghan Calendar Project) Armenian calendar Astronomical year numbering Baháí calendar Bengali calendar Berber calendar Buddhist calendar Chinese calendar Coptic calendar Ethiopian calendar Fiscal year Germanic calendar (still in use by Ásatrúar) Gregorian calendar Hebrew calendar Hindu calendars Indian... The Islamic calendar or Muslim calendar (Arabic: التقويم الهجري; at-taqwÄ«m al-hijrÄ«; Persian: گاه‌شماری هجري قمری ‎ Gāhshomāri-ye hejri-ye qamari; also called the Hijri calendar) is the calendar used to date events in many predominantly Muslim countries, and used by Muslims everywhere to determine the proper day on which to... The Gregorian calendar is the most widely used calendar in the world. ... The ISO week date system is a leap week calendar system that is part of the ISO 8601 date and time standard. ... Astronomical year numbering is based on BCE/CE (or BC/AD) year numbering, but follows normal decimal integer numbering more strictly. ... The Revised Julian calendar is a calendar that was considered for adoption by the Eastern Orthodox churches at a synod in Istanbul in May 1923. ... A lunisolar calendar is a calendar whose date indicates both the moon phase and the time of the solar year. ... A solar calendar is a calendar whose dates indicate the position of the earth on its revolution around the sun (or equivalently the apparent position of the sun moving on the celestial sphere). ... A lunar calendar is a calendar oriented at the moon phase. ... The Baháí calendar, also called the Badí‘ calendar, used by the Baháí Faith, is a solar calendar with regular years of 365 days, and leap years of 366 days. ... The Bengali calendar (Bengali: , Assamese: Vaskar), is the traditional calendar used in Bangladesh and eastern regions of India in the state of West Bengal, Assam and Tripura. ... The Berber calendar is the annual calendar used by Berber people in North Africa. ... The Buddhist calendar is used on mainland southeast Asia in the countries of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar (formerly Burma) in several related forms. ... The Coptic calendar, also called the Alexandrian calendar, is used by the Coptic Orthodox Church. ... The Hebrew calendar (Hebrew: ‎) or Jewish calendar is the annual calendar used in Judaism. ... A page from the Hindu calendar 1871-72. ... The Javanese calendar is a calendar used by the Javanese people. ... Malayalam calendar (also known as Malayalam Era or Kollavarsham) is a solar Sideral calendar used in the state of Kerala in South India. ... The Maya calendar is actually a system of distinct calendars and almanacs used by the Maya civilization of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, and by some modern Maya communities in highland Guatemala. ... The Nanakshahi (Punjabi: , ) calendar is a solar calendar that was adopted by the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee to determine the dates for important Sikh events. ... Bikram Samwat (Bikram Sambat, Devnagari:बिक्रम संवत, abbreviated B.S.) is the calendar established by Indian emperor Vikramaditya. ... Nepal Sambat (Nepal Bhasa: नेपाल सम्बत) is a lunar calendar. ... The Tamil Calendar is followed by the Tamil speaking state of Tamil Nadu and Kerala in India, and by the Tamil population in Malaysia, Singapore & Sri Lanka. ... The Thai lunar calendar or Patitin Chantarakati (Thai: ปฏิทินจันทรคติ) was replaced by the Patitin Suriyakati (ปฎิทินสุริยคติ) Thai solar calendar in AD 1888 2431 BE for most purposes, but the Chantarakati still determines most Buddhist feast or holy days, as well as a day for the famous Loy Krathong festival. ... The Thai solar, or Suriyakati (สุริยคติ), calendar is used in traditional and official contexts in Thailand, although the Western calendar is sometimes used in business. ... The Tibetan calendar is a lunisolar calendar, that is, the Tibetan year is composed of either 12 or 13 lunar months, each beginning and ending with a new moon. ... The Zoroastrian calendar is a religious calendar used by members of the Zoroastrian faith, and it is an approximation of the (tropical) solar calendar. ... The Julian calendar was introduced in 46 BC by Julius Caesar and came into force in 45 BC (709 ab urbe condita). ... The Runic calendar (or Rune staff) appears to have been a medieval Swedish invention, whereas clog almanacs appear in several European countries. ... Tamil ( ; IPA ) is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamils in India and Sri Lanka, with smaller communities of speakers in many other countries. ... Tamil Nadu (தமிழ் நாடு, Land of the Tamils) is a state at the southern tip of India. ... , Kerala ( ; Malayalam: കേരളം; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of southwestern India. ... Illumination of Earth by Sun on the day of equinox The vernal equinox (or spring equinox) marks the beginning of astronomical spring. ... This article aims at providing a thorough (but not verse by verse) exposition of most important topics of and problems related to Surya Siddhanta and its comparison with ancient and modern astronomy, together with its use in astrology. ...

The Tamil calendar is based on the Hindu solar calendar also used in Assam, Bengal, Kerala, Nepal, Manipur, Orissa and the Punjab. It in turn influenced the calendars of Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Sri Lanka and Thailand where the traditional new year falls around April 14 as well. The Hindu lunar calendar is conversely used in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra where the traditional year begins on the new moon preceding April 14.

The Seven Days of the Week

The days of the Tamil Calendar relate to the celestial bodies in the solar system. Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn, in that order. The week starts with Sunday

The following list compiles the days of the week in Tamil Calendar:

The Months of a Tamil Calendar

The Tamil Hindu Calendar starts around April 14 of the Gregorian Calendar each year. It consists of twelve months. The number of days in a month can vary between 29 to 32. The Gregorian calendar is the most widely used calendar in the world. ...

The following list compiles the months of the Tamil Calendar.

The Sixty-Year Cycle of Tamil Calendar

The 60 year cycle of Tamil Calendar is found in most of North Indian traditional calendars,with same name and sequence of years. Its earlist reference is to be found in Surya Siddhanta, which Varah Mihir (AD 550) believed to be most accurate and esteemed of all theories of astronomy (cf. Panchsiddhantika,edited by G.Thibaut and Pandit Sudhakar Dwidedi). But in the Surya Siddhantic list, first year was Vijaya and not Prabhava as currently believed.This 60 year cycle was prevalent in China too from earlist known eras. There 60 year cycle of Tamil Calendar was inserted into the Tamil Calendar system relatively late. After the completion of sixty years, the calendar starts anew with the first year. This corresponds to the "Hindu century". The Vakya or Tirukannitha Panchangam (the traditional Tamil almanac) outlines this sequence. This article aims at providing a thorough (but not verse by verse) exposition of most important topics of and problems related to Surya Siddhanta and its comparison with ancient and modern astronomy, together with its use in astrology. ...

The following list presents the current 60-year cycle of the Calendar:

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Significance of Tamil Calendar

The Hindus had developed a system of calendrics that encapsulates vast periods of time. For computing the age of the earth and various geological and other epochs, as well as the age of mankind, they still employ a Tamil calendar derived from ancient astronomical data, known as the "Tirukkanida Panchanga" (cf. The Secret Doctrine, 2:49-51).

This calendar contains a calculation of something over three hundred millions of years for the age of the present earth since sedimentation occurred, and a period of somewhat more than eighteen million years since the first appearance of our mankind.

The months of the Tamil Calendar gains more significance and are deeply rooted to the faith of the Tamil Hindus. Some months are considered very auspicious while a few are considered inauspicious as well.

The 10th Tamil month called Thai, falls in the mid-January every year. It is celebrated with much enthusiasm among the Tamil Community all over the world. It is marked by gifting new dresses for the family members and giving prayers to God wishing for prosperity among the people for the coming year. The month of Thai and the fifth month of Aavani are considered very auspicious and most marriages usually happen during those months than the other months of the year.

The fourth month of Aadi is considered inauspicious that usually weddings do not happen in the month. Aadi is also the month of preparation for next crop cycle by farmers. Hence, farming communities avoid major events like weddings in this month. On the contrary (or as advantage) the communities that don't actively contribute/participate in farming - take the advantage of having important functions like wedding in this month. For example, the business community prefers this month for wedding. It is usually the worst month for thriving businesses and recently this situation has changed a lot, as the businesses started providing discount shopping during that particular month. Each Tuesday of this month is set aside for prayer and worship.

And another important point to note that for the newly married couple is also an inauspicious month to sleep together. The reason being if the girl who is conceived in this month will deliver the baby in the month of May, the hottest month in Tamil Nadu ('Agni natchathiram ' [pinezu] last 7 days of Chitharai and [munezu] first 7 days of Vaigasi ) and it will be tough period for baby delivery.

The fifth month of Aavani is considered auspicious among the Tamil orthodox people, and the special occasion of Aavani Avittam marks the month. Each Sunday of this month is set aside for prayer.

The sixth month of Purattaasi is auspicious to the effect that, most of the non-vegetarian Tamil people do not eat meat during the month. This faith can be considered much similar to the fasting by Muslims during the month of Ramadan. Each Saturday of this month is set apart to venerate the planet saturn.

The full moon days and the new moon days have considerable importance among the Tamil people. One of the famous festivals, the Deepavali, is celebrated on the new moon day, in the seventh month of Aipassi. The month of Aipassi is usually characterised by the North-East Monsoon in Tamil Nadu, which has given birth to a phrase, Aipassi Adai Mazhai meaning the 'Non-stop Downpour'.

The Festival of Thirukaarthigai is celebrated during the eighth month of Kaarthigai. Each Monday of this month is dedicated to the worship of Lord Murugan. The ninth month of Maargazhi is characterised by the winter in Tamil Nadu, and considered auspicious for maiden women to find their groom. The Shaivite fast of Tiru-vembaavai and the Vaishnava fast of Tiru-paavai are observed in this month.

The tenth month of Thai is the month of Harvest in Tamil Nadu. The festival of Pongal or Makara Sankranti is celebrated to mark the harvest in the first day of that month.

The total number of days in a Tamil Calendar is an average 365 days and day's name are also similar to the western calendar. In temples and for day to day purpose 'Vakiya Panchangam' is used and for Astrological calculations 'Trikanitha Panchangam' is used.

Festivals of Tamil Nadu

The Tamil Calendar gains so much significance in the life of the Tamil-speaking people that most of the Festivals of Tamil Nadu are based on it. Some of Festivals include Tamil New Year, Thai Pongal, Deepavali, Panguni Uthiram, Thirukaarthigai, Aadiperukku, Navaratri etc.

External links

• Online Free Dynamic Tamil Calendar year 1900 to 2100
• Tamil Calendar

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