dear Frank
I report you also the term 'sextile' from the Republican Calendar, similar
but with a different meaning.
Last year I enjoyed myself publishing the Republican Calendar of the year
224: from september 2015 (fall equinox) to september 2016.
The months of this calendar have 30 days, plus 5 days at the end of the year
which become 6 on the sextile years (sesto = sixth).
According with the rationalism of that age, the beginning of the year is the
fall equinox, calculated with the sun local time of the Observatory of
Paris. There were some indications how to calculated the sextile years but
none become a rule because this calendar was abandoned after 12 years, so
the most meaningful indication is to add the 6th day when useful to keep the
beginnning of the year, 1 Vendémiaire, on the fall equinox.
For the Gregorian Calendar the year 2016 is bissextile but the year 224 is
not sextile, we have to wait for the year 226 (2017-2018)
I found this calendar is funny, with the names of the months and days
dedicated to the seasonal flowers, fruits, greens, animals, tools and so on.
Furthermore these months are almost synchronized with the astronomical
months so it'd be possible to indicate the republican months instead of the
zodiacal signs, among the sun declination curves of a sundial.
I found an english translation as: Wheezy, Sneezy, Freezy, Slippy, Drippy,
Nippy, Showery, Flowery, Bowery, Hoppy, Croppy, Poppy instead of
Vendémiaire, Brumaire, Frimaire, Nivôse, Pluviôse, Ventôse, Germinal,
Floréal, Prairial, Messidor, Thermidor, Fructidor; the italian terms are
quite similar to the french ones.
In Italy there is also a sundial with the republican time (10 hours in a
day) www.sundialatlas.eu/atlas.php?so=IT2810
Approximately in the middle of your bissexstile messages every 4 years, I
think I'd send the sextile ones :-)
ciao, 5th Pluviôse 224, Fabio
Fabio Savian
fabio.sav...@nonvedolora.it
www.nonvedolora.eu
Paderno Dugnano, Milano, Italy
45° 34' 10'' N, 9° 10' 9'' E, GMT+1 (DST +2)
-----Messaggio originale-----
From: Frank King
Sent: Wednesday, February 24, 2016 9:11 AM
To: Sundial Mailing List
Subject: A Happy Leap Year Day to everyone
Dear All,
As is my four-yearly custom, I wish readers of
this list a Happy Leap Year Day.
I was delighted, in 2012, when I sent out a
similar greeting, that not a single reader
queried why I had sent out the message on
24 February.
I will add my four-yearly lament that the
perfectly good English term "bissextile year"
seems to be almost obsolete. Around 100 years
ago it was in fairly common use.
I continue to applaud the French, the Italians
and the Portuguese (just to give three examples)
who still use année bissextile, anno bisestile
and ano bissexto.
Let us hope that they do not indulge in the
dumbing-down from which we in the U.K. seem
to suffer.
Frank King
Cambridge, U.K.
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