Kurdish calendar
The Kurdish calendar is a calendar used in the Kurdistan region of Iraq alongside the Islamic and Gregorian calendar.
History
The start of the calendar is marked by the Battle of Nineveh, a conquest of the Assyrians by the Medes and the Babylonians in 612 BC. A historical event in the history of Kurds which roughly correspondents to the establishment of the Median Empire.Although the calendar is officially adopted in Iraqi Kurdistan its use is limited. Kurds in Iran use the calendar extensively as it is nearly identical to the Iranian Calendar. The calendar is not used by Kurds in Turkey and Syria as it is associated with Kurdish Nationalism and clashes with the official state calendars.
Details of the Kurdish calendar
The calendar is made to fit into society's constructions by being divided into two seasons. The year is divided into four seasons consisting of 12 months with each month having seven days. Months that fall into the summer season are 31 days long while months that fall into the winter season are 30 days long. The exception to this is the last month of winter which acts as a leap year and therefore will variate between 29 and 30 days..Month names
The names for the months are often derived from society's events in that month| Order | Days | Native Script | Romanized | Likely Meaning |
| 1 | 31 | خاکەلێوە | Xakelêwe | |
| 2 | 31 | گوڵان | Gullan | Likely derived from the Kurdish word 'Gul' meaning flower. |
| 3 | 31 | زەردان | Zerdan | |
| 4 | 31 | پووشپەڕ | Pusper | |
| 5 | 31 | گەلاوێژ | Gelawêj | Named after the Gelawêj star that becomes visible in this month. |
| 6 | 31 | خەرمانان | Xermanan | Likely derived from the word Kurdish word 'Xerm' meaning warm. |
| 7 | 30 | ﺑﺊﺮﺍﻥ | Beran | |
| 8 | 30 | گێزان | Xezan | |
| 9 | 30 | ﺳﺎﺮﺍﻦ | Saran | |
| 10 | 30 | بەفران | Befran | Likely derived from the word 'Befr' meaning snow. |
| 11 | 30 | ڕێبەندان | Rêbendan | |
| 12 | 29/30 | ڕەشەمە | Reşeme |