Sep 26, 2019 10:23 pm
The Covenant Lands have a 365-day calendar, just like Earth. However, in Imperial times, the calandar, and timekeeping in general, were rendered into a standardized system.
In point of fact, these changes were made by a somewhat insane emperor, and it was his fifth royal astronomer that succeeded in producing a system that pleased him. The first four were forcefully retired by the emperor.
The astronomer in question, Kaeleirai Xiiang, a half-elf, was struck by inspiration after being told on the day of the summer solstice - after a particularly ugly interview - that she had one more day to find a solution or go the way of her predecessors. While watching shadows in the palace ground, she was astonished to realize that while she had been trying to work from the top down on the problem, the sun itself was the solution. She just needed the sun to move across the land in an easily divisible number of seconds. So... change the second.
The math was relatively painless. She needed one hundred thousand seconds in a day. But that would make hours more than twice as long. But, there was day AND night. Ten hours a piece then. One hundred minutes in each, a hundred seconds in those. Each second would be forty-three percent of a current second.
She was pleased. Each second would be more precise now, the day and night would be metric (even if they weren't together) and oh what a boon for the watchmakers.
The year was more troubling. Here, she could do nothing. The year WAS the year. But... remove the extra five days and... 36 weeks of ten days each, every other year a Royal Precession week, also ten days, the Emperor would love that, and every fourth year, a special day to begin the year and hold elections. That would make up for the inconvenience of having to buy a new watch, she'd wager.
And thus was the Imperial Calendar born.
There were some adjustments, of course. The Emperor wanted a Royal Precession every year, and subsequent Emperors enlarged it so that now the weeks are typically gathered into groups of ten, separated by one week festivals, and with a four-week group beginning each year for the Royal Precession. The first week was typically when new Emperors were crowned.
Actual naming conventions to follow*:
2) I love puns and sodid the Emperors! I've names all these after flowers, but if you can come up with an alternate meaning that may have been assigned to that week (festivals, social occassions, etc.) that are a play on words with the week's name, please let me know and I'll add it in. Bonus no-points if you can identify all the flowers.Royal Precession
- Week Of Precession (even years ONLY)
- Week of Coronation
- Week of Inheritance
- Week of Regalia
- Week of Majesty
Northern Sun
- Week of First Bloom
- Week of the Pliable Virgin
- Week of Glass Snow
- Week of Eastern Wood
- Week of the Pink Fox's Tail
- Week of Cherry Blossoms
- Week of Rock Cress
- Week of the Fragrant Bundle
- Week of Bowing Maidens
- Week of the Three Dancers
Intercalated Week
- Week of Memorial
Southern Sun
- Week of the Sweet Flag
- Week of the Wolf Castle
- Week of the Elder Sister
- Week of Abundant Butterflies
- Week of Scarlet Spiders
- Week of Fragrant Mist
- Week of Early Autumn
- Week of the Traversing Sun
- Week of the Fickle Heart
- Week of Slipping Monkeys
Intercalated Day (years divisible by four ONLY)
- Day of Electors
Intercalated Week
- Week of Readiness
Clouded Sun
- Week of Bloody Grass
- Week of Royal Blossoms
- Week of Blue Stars
- Week of the Windflower
- Week of Shaded Snow
- Week of the Scarlet Mountain
- Week of Silver Grass
- Week of the Snow Queen
- Week of the Golden Octopus
- Week of Snowballs
* The week names are of course, area-specific for the Empire and its environs. In the far north, or in deserts, these names would be inaccurate, irrelevant, or even nonsensical. People in these areas who take up the Imperial calendar often rename weeks.
In point of fact, these changes were made by a somewhat insane emperor, and it was his fifth royal astronomer that succeeded in producing a system that pleased him. The first four were forcefully retired by the emperor.
The astronomer in question, Kaeleirai Xiiang, a half-elf, was struck by inspiration after being told on the day of the summer solstice - after a particularly ugly interview - that she had one more day to find a solution or go the way of her predecessors. While watching shadows in the palace ground, she was astonished to realize that while she had been trying to work from the top down on the problem, the sun itself was the solution. She just needed the sun to move across the land in an easily divisible number of seconds. So... change the second.
The math was relatively painless. She needed one hundred thousand seconds in a day. But that would make hours more than twice as long. But, there was day AND night. Ten hours a piece then. One hundred minutes in each, a hundred seconds in those. Each second would be forty-three percent of a current second.
She was pleased. Each second would be more precise now, the day and night would be metric (even if they weren't together) and oh what a boon for the watchmakers.
The year was more troubling. Here, she could do nothing. The year WAS the year. But... remove the extra five days and... 36 weeks of ten days each, every other year a Royal Precession week, also ten days, the Emperor would love that, and every fourth year, a special day to begin the year and hold elections. That would make up for the inconvenience of having to buy a new watch, she'd wager.
And thus was the Imperial Calendar born.
There were some adjustments, of course. The Emperor wanted a Royal Precession every year, and subsequent Emperors enlarged it so that now the weeks are typically gathered into groups of ten, separated by one week festivals, and with a four-week group beginning each year for the Royal Precession. The first week was typically when new Emperors were crowned.
Actual naming conventions to follow*:
OOC:
1) The Imperial Calendar begins at Winter Solstice.2) I love puns and sodid the Emperors! I've names all these after flowers, but if you can come up with an alternate meaning that may have been assigned to that week (festivals, social occassions, etc.) that are a play on words with the week's name, please let me know and I'll add it in. Bonus no-points if you can identify all the flowers.
- Week Of Precession (even years ONLY)
- Week of Coronation
- Week of Inheritance
- Week of Regalia
- Week of Majesty
Northern Sun
- Week of First Bloom
- Week of the Pliable Virgin
- Week of Glass Snow
- Week of Eastern Wood
- Week of the Pink Fox's Tail
- Week of Cherry Blossoms
- Week of Rock Cress
- Week of the Fragrant Bundle
- Week of Bowing Maidens
- Week of the Three Dancers
Intercalated Week
- Week of Memorial
Southern Sun
- Week of the Sweet Flag
- Week of the Wolf Castle
- Week of the Elder Sister
- Week of Abundant Butterflies
- Week of Scarlet Spiders
- Week of Fragrant Mist
- Week of Early Autumn
- Week of the Traversing Sun
- Week of the Fickle Heart
- Week of Slipping Monkeys
Intercalated Day (years divisible by four ONLY)
- Day of Electors
Intercalated Week
- Week of Readiness
Clouded Sun
- Week of Bloody Grass
- Week of Royal Blossoms
- Week of Blue Stars
- Week of the Windflower
- Week of Shaded Snow
- Week of the Scarlet Mountain
- Week of Silver Grass
- Week of the Snow Queen
- Week of the Golden Octopus
- Week of Snowballs
* The week names are of course, area-specific for the Empire and its environs. In the far north, or in deserts, these names would be inaccurate, irrelevant, or even nonsensical. People in these areas who take up the Imperial calendar often rename weeks.
