•The Babylonian year was divided into ret mtti 'begin- ning ot the year,' mitU satli ' the middle ol the year,' ana kit salti 'end ol the year.' Two of the terms are paralleled in Hebrew
iii. Months. — The Hebrew months have always been lunar, and extended from one now moon to anollier. The oldest Semitic word for month was arc/iu (nn;), which properly signilies the ' beginning; of the month' (Muss-Arnolt, p. 73. Much of the foUowinfc information is derived from this excel- lent antlioritv). The same word appears in Ara- ma-an (Kzr 6", Dn 4*), Phoenician, and Ethiopic. In Hebrew the word is common in the pre-exUic passages, but it became entirely superseded by aih. This last word, properly ' new-moon ' (which see), is employed (like the Assyrian uldixu) only for the beginninj; of the month, uj' other Semitic peoples ; its u.se for ' month ' was an innovation of the Israelites.
There are three sets of terms to distinguish the biblical months — («) old (Canaanite) names, (6) numbers, and (c) the Babylonian names.
(a) Of the first class only four have survived : these names are all derived from climatic and economic conditions. Similarly, the earliest epithets of the months among the IJabj'Ionians are connected with agriculture and the pastoral life.
Abib (3';!< month of the ripening ears, Ex IS* etc.), subsequently the 1st month.
Ziv (II month of flowers, 1 K 6'), subsequently t)ie '2nd month.
Ethanim (C-J.-N month of perennial streams, 1 K 8-), sub.sequeatly the 7th month.
Bui ('?i: rain month, 1 K 6^), subsequently the 8th month. The last two names also occur in Phoenician in- scriptions ; Etlmnim having been found in Cyprus (niiildle of 4tli cent. B.C.) and lUd in Sidon (4tli cent. B.C. ; see Driver in HoLjarth's Authority and Ari/ifBoliif/i/, pp. 137, 13S, and Buhl-Ge.senius, s.v.).
(6) In ihu time of the Exile these old Canaanite names were dropped, and the months were dis- tinguislied by numerals, as in parts of Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Kings (in the latter the old names are explained by numbers, IK 6'-^ 8-'), lastlj' in Ha"gai (1' 2') and Zecliariah (1' 7'). See Nowack, JleB. Arc/iaologie, i. p. 2i7.
((■) Prom the ExUe the new I5al)ylonian names begin to lind a delinite place in tlie Hebrew Calendar. The proofs for tlie Babylonian origin of these names may be found in Muss-Arnolt, in Schrader, COT {n. 69). Cf. Schiirer, Appendix iii. Ol the twelve names only seven occur in Scripture, but the whole twelve ap[)ear in the Meriillnlh Tnanith, which in its original form dates before the Christian era.
(1) Nisan ]<}•}, HovSiitis, Xanthicus, March-April.
The En^'Ush equivalents are inexact : Nisan mostly corre- fpond."* to part of March and part of April. Nisan occurs in Nth ii, Eat S'. The Or. form N/ri. (Ni/«-«l.]) occurs in 1 Et 0«, Ad. r.8t l*. and often in Joi^phus. The .Macedonian .\an- Ihu-iu ia found in 2 .Mac 113US3. aa. The first month in the BalA'lonian ^ear is Ni-ita.a(7i)-nu, from n««u (Ueb. VS3) to * move,' or 'start.' It is the openin;^ month of the ccclusi- ai«lical vear. Thut tlie vernal equinox occurred in Nisan is •Itcsted by Josephus (Ant. I. x. 5) and also in cuneiform lit<.'r.ilure (Muss-Arnolt, p. 77). Nisan corresponded to the llrst £odi;i'-al 8ii,'n (Aries) in which the vernal e<iuinox fell. That Jo8' phus frequently uses the .Macedonian names as eciuivalent lo the Heh..llal». does not imply that he thought that the two •eries ot months began on idenlical days.*
('2) lyyar tx, 'kpreinlaios, April-May.
Not named in Scripture, but found in Mlshns, Rogh HiiKlaina i. 3; Jos. Ant. vni. iii. 1 ("la/*), 11 i/pinnnrst . tl (H.a^); Bab. o-a-ru. Derivation uncertam ; perhaps connected witli liK • to t)e bright ' (so iJelitzsch), or TK ' to send forth, open, germinate,' whence arc ' flower ' (ho M\nw-AriMilt). This would make the meaning eoiiivaleiit to Zia and April {ajterirf). The Megillath Ta'anilli idtntilles lyyar with the 'ind monlb mentioned in 1 Moo 1S°1.
•The DIoscorlnthlusot 2 Msc II" is quit* obscure (cf. note In ItVm). It is hareiv probable that the author wrote Dion- eunuitha reading of U.L.), the name of the third Cretan montli (see Kuiphausen s note Id KauUsch's Apokr. ad loc.).
TIME (3) Sivan i^p, Aalo-toy, May-June.
i'Gc
Est 89 ; Mishna, Shekalim iii. 1, etc. Gr. "Steuit (Bar 1»). also 2(jij:-aE>. ; Bab. gi'ma(n)-nu, pronounced later ti-vanu. Uciilz^b {Uet/rtw and Assj/rian, p. 16) derives from tamu * to appoint' (D*C), Ilaupt from asamu * to mark.'
(4) Tammoz nee, UdyefioSf June-July.
The word but not the month mentioned in Bible (Kzk 8**)k Mishna, Tdanith iv. 6 ; Bub. dxt-uzu. LXX bad Uxu^i^.
(5) Ab 3K, Ayos, July-Au<^8t.
Not mentioned in Bible. Mishna, Pcsachim iv. 6, etc. ; Bab. a-hu', Jo8. Ant. iv. iv. 7, 'A;3a [Niese reads 2a,5a]. Delitzsch derives (rom Assyr. abxt 'hostile' (from excessive heat of month), Uaupt from ctbe * bulrushes* (cf. Job 9'» n:K), the season in which bulrushes were cut for building purposes. This, with two other months, was consecrated by the Baby- lonians to building.
(6) Elul h\h^, Tofyiriatosy August-September. Nehftl'*; Mishna, AVjfjrn^tm iii. l.etc.; 'E>K!t;x, 1 Mac 1427; Bab.
lUuIu. Perhaps from '?'>' (alaiu) * to shout for joy,* inasmuch as the month represented the resurrection of Tammuz-Adonia (Muss-Arnolt).
(7) Tishri n^jiSB/TTep^fpeTalos, September-October.
Not named in Scripture. Mi.shna, She^aliin iii. 1, etc.; Gr. Onrpi ; Jo9. Ant. viii. iv. 1 [as amended by Hudson ; Niese reads 'AQCfiu); Rib. tish-ri-tum. From surru 'begin,* 'dedicate.' Tlie AssjTians, like the Jews, had two new year days— Nisan for the sacred year, Tishri for the civil. The Seleucidean year began in Nisan, the Arsacidan with Tishri (Epping and Strass- maier, Astrononmchen aus Babi/lon, p. 177). The month was dedicated to the sun-god, and Halevy (M^laJufes de critiq^ie et d'hifttoire, p. 178) conjectures that this originated the later Jewish association of Tishri with the Creation and the Day of Judgment.