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The epagomenae were originally intercalary, falling between the eighth and ninth months. These days were later moved to occur after the 12th month, thus becoming true epagomenae. In this section, the days are called epagomenae, regardless of their position. This wrinkle causes the calendar to share some characteristics of both a purely mobile and a Julian calendar, for the purposes of computation. In this implementation of the calendar, the original rule is followed consistently. |
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The epoch of the calendar is A.D. 632 June 16, the first day of the civil year in which Yazdagird III ascended the throne of Persia. |
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Years in the era are denoted as years A.Y., an abbreviation for Anno Yazdagirdis. |
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By the rules of the traditional Persian calendar in use at the time of the Sasanid emperors, one month was intercalated every 120 years to realign the calendar with the solar year. This intercalation was neglected after the Arabian conquest and apparently was also neglected for at least half a century before that time. Because this rule was honored more in the breach than the observance and does not apply to the years following the death of Yazdagird, which constitute the bulk of the usage of the calendar, this intercalation is not included in this calendar. |
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9.8.2.1.2
Historical Background |
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This calendar has several kinds of beginnings. Structurally, the calendar is a continuation of the traditional Persian solar calendar, based upon a vague year of 365 days. Historically, it is a continuation of another Persian tradition, that of regnal epochs. |
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In the immediate sense, it is a Sasanid calendar, which began, according to traditional usage, with the accession of a monarch of the Sasanid dynasty to the throne. By this system, with the accession of each new monarch, a new era came into being, beginning as a rule with the first day of the year during which the king came to the throne and ending with the close of the civil year during which his rule came to an end, when he was succeeded by another Sasanid monarch. |
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Thus, the story may be said to begin with the formation of the Sasanid dynasty, somewhere around A.D. 222. The early chronology of Sasanid rulers is much in dispute, and dates of accession vary by several years. One Papak, descended from Sasan, established a capital at Istakhr near Persepolis. He and his son Ardashir I extended the frontiers of their principality at the expense of Parthia. After the death of Ardashir in A.D. 240, the chronology of succession becomes clearer. |
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The history of the Sasanids is largely one of periodic war with Rome and other neighbors during the succeeding centuries. Sasanid power peaked under Khusrau II Parviz (591628) and then suffered a rapid decline. Khusrau was assassinated in 628, and Sasanid rulers followed one another in rapid succession until Khusrau's grandson, Yazdagird III, ascended the throne in A.D. 632. The civil year in which this event occurred began on 16 June 632, which is taken as the epoch for the era. |
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The Sasanid empire had but a short time to live, however. Islam had already begun its rapid rise in Arabia and was sweeping north in a series of military conquests. In the famous battle of al-Qadisiyah in A.D. 637, the Persian armies of Yazdagird were |
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