TheThai solar calendar (Thai:ปฏิทินสุริยคติไทย,RTGS: patithin suriyakhati thai, "solar calendar") was adopted by KingChulalongkorn (Rama V) in 1888CE as the Siamese version of theGregorian calendar, replacing theThai lunar calendar as the legalThai calendar (though the latter is still also used, especially for traditional and religious events). Years are now counted in the Buddhist Era (B.E.):พุทธศักราช, พ.ศ.RTGS: Phutthasakkarat (lit. 'era of the ShakaBuddha') which is 543 years ahead of the Gregorian calendar.
TheSiamese generally used two calendars, asacred and apopular (vulgar in the classical sense). The vulgar orminor era (จุลศักราช,chula sakarat) was thought to have been instituted when the worship of Gautama was first introduced,[1][2] and corresponds to thetraditional Burmese calendar (abbreviated ME or BE, the latter not to be confused with the abbreviation for the Buddhist Era, which is the sacred era.)
King Chulalongkorn decreed a change in vulgar reckoning to theRattanakosin Era (รัตนโกสินทรศก,Rattanakosin Sok abbreviated ร.ศ. and R.S.) in 1889 CE. Theepoch (reference date) for Year 1 was 6 April 1782 with the accession ofRama I, the foundation of theChakri dynasty, and thefounding of Bangkok (Rattanakosin) as capital. To convert years in R.S. to the Common Era, add 1781 for dates from 6 April to December, and 1782 for dates from January to 5 April.
In Thailand the sacred, orBuddhist Era, is reckoned to have an epochalyear 0 from 11 March 543 BC, believed to be thedate of the death ofGautama Buddha. KingVajiravudh (Rama VI) changed year counting to this Buddhist Era (abbreviated BE) and moved the start of the year back to 1 April in 2455 BE, 1912 CE. As there is no longer any reference to a vulgar or popular era, the Common Era may be presumed to have taken the place of the former.
New Year, the time at which a newcalendar year begins and the calendar's year count is incremented, originally coincided with thedate calculated for Songkran, when the Sun transits the constellation ofAries, the firstastrological sign in theZodiac as reckoned bysidereal astrology: thus the year commenced on 11 April 1822.[1] As previously noted, Rama VI moved the start of the year back to 1 April in 2455 BE, 1912 CE, so that 130 R.S. only lasted for 356 days from 11 April 1911 to 31 March 1912.
On 6 September 1940, Prime MinisterPhibunsongkhram decreed[3] 1 January 1941 as the start of the year 2484 BE, so year 2483 BE had only nine months running from 1 April to 31 December 1940. To convert dates from 1 January to 31 March prior to that year, the number to add or subtract is 542; otherwise, it is 543. Example:
| Month | 1–3 | 4–6 | 7–9 | 10–12 | 1–3 | 4–6 | 7–9 | 10–12 | 1–3 | 4–6 | 7–9 | 10–12 | 1–3 | 4–6 | 7–9 | 10–12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CE | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | ||||||||||||
| BE | 2481 | 2482 | 2483 | 2484 | 2485 | |||||||||||
| Thai Month | 10–12 | 1–3 | 4–6 | 7–9 | 10–12 | 1–3 | 4–6 | 7–9 | 1–3 | 4–6 | 7–9 | 10–12 | 1–3 | 4–6 | 7–9 | 10–12 |
Today, both theCommon Era New Year's Day (1 January) and the traditionalThai New Year (สงกรานต์,Songkran) celebrations (13–15 April) are public holidays in Thailand. In thetraditional Thai calendar, the change to the nextChinese zodiacal animal occurs at Songkran (now fixed at 13 April.)[4] ForThai Chinese communities in Thailand, however, theChinese calendar determines the day that aChinese New Year begins, and assumes the name of the next animal in thetwelve-year animal cycle.
Names of the months derive fromHindu astrology names for thesigns of the zodiac. Thirty-day-month names end in-ayon (-ายน), from Sanskrit rootāyana, meaning the arrival of; 31-day-month names end in-akhom (-าคม), from Sanskritāgama (cognate to English "come") that also means the arrival of.
February's name ends in-aphan (-าพันธ์), from Sanskritbandha, meaning "fettered" or "bound". The day added to February in a solarleap year isAthikasurathin (อธิกสุรทิน, respelled to aid pronunciation (อะทิกะสุระทิน) from Sanskritadhika: "additional"; andsura: "move".[5]
| English name | Thai name | Abbr. | Thai pronunciation | Sanskrit word | Zodiac sign |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | มกราคม | ม.ค. | mákàraa-khom ormókkàraa-khom | Makara ("sea-monster") | Capricorn |
| February | กุมภาพันธ์ | ก.พ. | kumphaa-phan | Kumbha ("pitcher", "water-pot") | Aquarius |
| March | มีนาคม | มี.ค. | miinaa-khom | Mīna ("fish") | Pisces |
| April | เมษายน | เม.ย. | meesaǎ-yon | Meṣa ("ram") | Aries |
| May | พฤษภาคม | พ.ค. | phrɯ́tsaphaa-khom | Vṛṣabha ("bull") | Taurus |
| June | มิถุนายน | มิ.ย. | míthùnaa-yon | Mithuna ("a pair") | Gemini |
| July | กรกฎาคม | ก.ค. | kàrákàdaa-khom orkàrákkàdaa-khom | Karkaṭa ("crab") | Cancer |
| August | สิงหาคม | ส.ค. | sǐnghǎa-khom | Siṃha ("lion") | Leo |
| September | กันยายน | ก.ย. | kanyaa-yon | Kanyā ("girl") | Virgo |
| October | ตุลาคม | ต.ค. | tùlaa-khom | Tulā ("balance") | Libra |
| November | พฤศจิกายน | พ.ย. | phrɯ́tsajìkaa-yon | Vṛścika ("scorpion") | Scorpio |
| December | ธันวาคม | ธ.ค. | thanwaa-khom | Dhanu ("bow", "arc") | Sagittarius |
| Day | Thai name | Color of the day[6][7] | Celestial Body | God of the day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday | วันอาทิตย์ | Red | Sun | Surya |
| Monday | วันจันทร์ | Yellow or Cream | Moon | Chandra |
| Tuesday | วันอังคาร | Pink | Mars | Mangala |
| Wednesday | วันพุธ | Green | Mercury | Budha |
| Thursday | วันพฤหัสบดี | Orange | Jupiter | Brihaspati |
| Friday | วันศุกร์ | Light Blue | Venus | Shukra |
| Saturday | วันเสาร์ | Purple | Saturn | Shani |
Using Buddhist era could easily cause confusion between itself and Anno Domini in the historical context. For example, Anno Domini 2025, and Buddhist year 2025 (which corresponds to AD 1482). Two-digit year numbering could cause even more confusion.
Another problem is the counting of the Buddhist era, which has changed several times in the past, including the inclusion of year 0, and the change of New Year's Day from April to January in 1941, has caused confusion in historical context as well. For example, many Thai people regard the establishment of theAyutthaya Kingdom to be in 1350, which is direct conversion from Buddhist era 1893, while the actual date is 1351.
In computer programming, using the Buddhist era has sometimes caused the computer programs to void the license immediately, as the input values of the Buddhist era would exceed the expiration date for the program. Some users report that dates appear in future dates, due to the input data being the Buddhist era, while the computer is designed to acceptAnno Domini.
The Siamese year does not commence with the first month, but corresponds with that of the Chinese. In the year 1822, the new year fell on 11 April, being the 5th day of the dark half of the moon.... The Siamese have two epochs, or, as they describe them,Sa-ka-rat. The sacred one dates from the death of Gautama, and the year which commenced on 11 April 1822, was the year 2365, according to this reckoning.
The Siamese have two epochs, sacred and popular. The sacred era dates from the death of Gautama, and the year 1833 corresponded to the 2376 year. The vulgar era was instituted when the worship of Gautama was first introduced; and the year 1833 corresponded with the year 1194, and was the fifth, orDragon year.
| Systems | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| In wide use | |||||
In more limited use | |||||
| Historical | |||||
| By specialty |
| ||||
| Reform proposals | |||||
Displays and applications | |||||
Year naming and numbering |
| ||||
| Fictional | |||||
