Thousands of years ago, ancient Greek astronomers calculated that the direction of the Earth’s axis is continually, albeit in a very slow way, changing in a uniform pattern. The change is very similar to the manner a spinning top slowly leans one way and then another as it slows down. It is a wobble that occurs as its axis alters direction.
The calendar is such a routine, everyday thing, but how much do you really know about the working of it. Why is it like that?
Even if you were to invent something earth-shattering, you would not earn any money out of it if you left the invention on your desk. The only way you can turn a profit from it is by selling it and in order to accomplish this, you have to inform people that it exists, that it is for sale and where they may get it from. In other words, you have to advertise it.
A lot of people predicted that the start of the new Millennium, the year 2000 would be the year of the apocalypse. However, fortunately, they were very wide of the mark.
There is no doubt that astronomy is the oldest science and there is also no hesitation that astronomy was being studied by everyone, not only the wise men, thousands and thousands of years ago.
Continue reading about Astronomy – Important Pre-Christian Dates
Christmas – is the celebration of Jesus’ birthday. Although the precise date of his birth is unknown, December 25th was most likely selected because it coincided with a pagan mid-winter festival. The ‘Twelve Days Of Christmas” mark the days between Christmas and Epiphany (January 6th), which was the day of the wise men’s visit.
It is a worldwide convention to give gifts for such occasions as birthdays and wedding days, but after that is where the countries start to differ. Britons and people tracing their history back there give gifts on Christmas Day as well.
Previous to their implementation of the Western solar calendar scheme, the Chinese almost exclusively followed their own lunar calendar for determining the times of planting and harvesting and festival days. Although people in China today use the Western calendar for almost all business, governmental and practical matters of daily life, the old system still serves as the basis for working out numerous recurring holidays. This coexistence of two calendar schemes has long been acknowledged by the people of China.
Although astronomy is the oldest science, it continues to be at the forefront of not only scientific thought, but that of the public at large too. Who has not looked up at the galaxy while walking home late at night and wondered? Having said that though, the ancient people of certainly the northern hemisphere, but probably both, knew the movements of the stars and planets better than most of us do nowadays.
Hereunder is a directory of minor holidays and occasions in the United States. Some of them are virtually unknown, and others are quite obscure.
