The "first month"
of the Jewish calendar is the month of Nissan,
in the spring, when Passover occurs. However, the Jewish New Year is in Tishri, the
seventh month, and that is when the year number is increased. This concept of
different starting points for a year is not as strange as it might seem at
first glance. The American "new year" starts in January, but the new "school
year" starts in September, and many businesses have "fiscal
years" that start at various times of the year. Similarly, the Jewish
calendar has different starting points for different purposes.
The names of the months of the Jewish
calendar were adopted during the time of Ezra, after the return from the
Babylonian exile. The names are actually Babylonian month names, brought back
to
The Jewish calendar has the following
months:
|
Jewish Months |
Number |
Length |
Gregorian Equivalent |
|
Nissan |
1 |
30 days |
March-April |
|
Iyar |
2 |
29 days |
April-May |
|
Sivan |
3 |
30 days |
May-June |
|
Tammuz |
4 |
29 days |
June-July |
|
Av |
5 |
30 days |
July-August |
|
Elul |
6 |
29 days |
August-September |
|
Tishri |
7 |
30 days |
September-October |
|
Cheshvan |
8 |
29 or 30 days |
October-November |
|
Kislev |
9 |
30 or 29 days |
November-December |
|
Tevet |
10 |
29 days |
December-January |
|
Shevat |
11 |
30 days |
January-February |
|
Adar I (leap years only) |
12 |
30 days |
February-March |
|
Adar (called Adar II in leap
years) |
12 (13 in leap years) |
29 days |
February-March |