Abstract
II. THE year—that is, the period bringing back the recurrence of the seasons—is not a primitive means of dividing time, but the result of many observations. The simplest way of marking time is by seasons, and the system is still employed by some savage nations in Africa. A season does not correspond to one year, and more than one may be in a year; seasons, however, generally correspond to the year period. As to the division of the year, it must have varied according to the climate and region, but the simplest is by ten, as ten is the most common dividing number, and such was the one originally adopted by the Semites and Egyptians. This year of ten months, or rather ten parts, has left traces among the Semites and in classical authors. The Babylonians assimilated their first ten kings to the ten parts of the year. At Rome, we are told that the year before Numa Pompilius was composed of ten months only.
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Babylonian Astronomy.1. Nature 40, 261 (1889). https://doi.org/10.1038/040261a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/040261a0