The Mayan calendar is a fascinating and complex system used by the ancient Maya civilization in Mesoamerica. It was actually made up of multiple interconnected cycles that tracked time in different ways. There are three primary calendars that the Maya used:
1. The Haab’ Calendar (Solar Calendar)
This was a 365-day calendar, which closely resembles the modern Gregorian calendar. It was divided into 18 months of 20 days each, plus a final month of 5 days (called Wayeb). So, it had:
- 18 months × 20 days = 360 days
- Plus 5 additional days = 365 days in total.
The months had names like Pop, Wo’, and K’an, and the year was marked by the combination of these month names and the days.
2. The Tzolk’in Calendar (Divine Calendar)
This was a 260-day ritual calendar, often used for divination and religious purposes. It was made up of two cycles:
- 13 numbers (from 1 to 13)
- 20 named days, like Imix, Ik’, and Ak’b’al.
The combination of these cycles created a unique day every 260 days, which was often used for ceremonial and agricultural timing. It’s thought that this calendar might be linked to the cycles of human gestation or agricultural seasons.
3. The Long Count Calendar (Historical Calendar)
The Long Count calendar was used to track longer periods of time, especially for historical events. It was a linear, non-repeating calendar that started at a “creation date” corresponding to August 11, 3114 BCE in the Gregorian calendar (the Maya believed this was the day the world was created). It kept track of days from this point onward.
The Long Count is expressed in terms of baktuns and smaller units:
- 1 baktun = 144,000 days (about 394 years)
- 1 katun = 7,200 days
- 1 tun = 360 days
- 1 winal = 20 days
- 1 k’in = 1 day
A typical Long Count date might look something like 12.18.17.12.12, which would mean 12 baktuns, 18 katuns, 17 tuns, 12 winals, and 12 k’íns since the creation date. Each of these units represents a very large span of time.
Key Features:
- The calendars were closely intertwined, with the Tzolk’in and Haab’ calendars interlocking, meaning each specific date could be represented by a unique combination of both.
- The Maya also had the Calendar Round, which was a 52-year period in which every combination of a Tzolk’in date and Haab’ date would repeat.
- Ecliptic events and astronomical cycles (like the movements of Venus) were crucial in their timekeeping, and the Maya were extremely knowledgeable about these.
The End of the Calendar:
One of the most famous aspects of the Mayan calendar is the “end” of the 13th baktun, which occurred on December 21, 2012. This event did not signify the end of the world, as some mistakenly believed, but simply marked the completion of a cycle, after which a new cycle would begin.
The Mayan calendar is a remarkable piece of ancient knowledge, showcasing the Maya’s advanced understanding of astronomy, time, and the cyclical nature of the universe.