Tibetan calendar
The
Tibetan calendar is a
lunisolar calendar, that is, the Tibetan year is composed of either 12 or 13
lunar months, each beginning and ending with a
new moon. A thirteenth month is added approximately every three years, so that an average Tibetan year is equal to the
solar year. The months have no names, but are referred to by their numbers.
The Tibetan
New Year celebration is
Losar.
The days of the week are named for
celestial bodies.
Each year is associated with an animal and an
element. The animals alternate in the following order:
| Hare | Dragon | Snake | Horse | Sheep | Ape | Bird | Dog | Pig | Mouse | Bull | Tiger |
The elements alternate in the following order:
Each element is associated with two consecutive years, first in its male aspect, then in its female aspect. For example, a
male Earth-Dragon year is followed by a
female Earth-Snake year, then by a
male Iron-Horse year. The sex may be omitted, as it can be inferred from the animal.
The element-animal designations recur in cycles of 60 years, starting with a (female)
Fire-Hare year. These big cycles are numbered. The first cycle started in
1027. Therefore,
2005 roughly corresponds to the (female)
Wood-Bird year of the 17th cycle.
This complicated calendar structure offers a promising field to
astrologers.
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