From ancient civilisations to modern nations, calendars have long served as tools to track time, organise society, and mark important events. While most of the world follows the Gregorian calendar, introduced in 1582 and now the global standard, some cultures continue to use traditional systems that reflect their unique heritage and history.
While most of the world has welcomed the year 2025, Ethiopia continues to follow a unique calendar system that puts the nation in the year 2018. Unlike the widely used Gregorian calendar, the Ethiopian calendar consists of 13 months, and it runs seven to eight years behind the rest of the world.
This intriguing difference stems from a decision made in 525 AD, when the Roman Church altered its calendar to what would eventually become the Gregorian system. Ethiopia, however, never adopted the change and has remained loyal to its ancient system ever since.
In the Ethiopian calendar, the first 12 months each have 30 days, while the 13th month, called Pagume, has 5 days, or 6 in a leap year. Due to this extra month, Ethiopia is often called “the country with 13 months of sunshine.”
Every year, Ethiopians celebrate their New Year September 11 (or September 12 in a leap year), a date that falls nearly four months before the rest of the world marks January 1 as the beginning of a new year. For instance, while the global community celebrated the new millennium in 2000, Ethiopia entered the year 2000 September 11, 2007.
Despite the calendar difference, Ethiopia functions seamlessly in a globalised world. Most Ethiopians are now familiar with the Gregorian calendar and often use both calendars interchangeably in daily life, especially for international communication and travel. The local calendar, however, remains an essential part of Ethiopian culture, tradition, and national identity.
The use of a different calendar also means that several important holidays and festivals in Ethiopia are celebrated on dates that do not align with international observances.
PNN
