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⭐ In the context of the Attic calendar, the designation 'Greek calendar' is often applied, but this is primarily due to what factor?

The Attic calendar gained the informal title 'Greek calendar' not because it was universally used, but because of the substantial cultural influence and importance of Athens within the ancient Greek world.

⭐ Core Definition: Ancient Greek calendars

Various ancient Greek calendars began in most states of ancient Greece between autumn and winter except for the Attic calendar, which began in summer.

The Greeks, as early as the time of Homer, appear to have been familiar with the division of the year into the twelve lunar months but no intercalary month Embolimos or day is then mentioned, with twelve months of 354 days. Independent of the division of a month into days, it was divided into periods according to the increase and decrease of the moon. Each of the city-states in ancient Greece had their own calendar that was based on the cycle of the moon, but also the various religious festivals that occurred throughout the year.

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👉 Ancient Greek calendars in the context of Attic calendar

The Attic calendar or Athenian calendar is the lunisolar calendar beginning in midsummer with the lunar month of Hekatombaion, in use in ancient Attica, the ancestral territory of the Athenian polis. It is sometimes called the Greek calendar because of Athens's cultural importance, but it is only one of many ancient Greek calendars.

Although relatively abundant, the evidence for the Attic calendar is still patchy and often contested. As it was well known in Athens and of little use outside Attica, no contemporary source set out to describe the system as a whole. Further, even during the well-sourced 5th and 4th centuries BC, the calendar underwent changes, not all perfectly understood. As such, any account given of it must be a tentative reconstruction.

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