So, it is December 21, 2012. I am still here, as are all of you. It appears as though the Mayan calendar incorrectly predicted the end of the world. If you are anything like me, you are not surprised. I am one of those people who rolls their eyes every time the word “apocalypse” is mentioned. I’ve been known to walk out of the room any time an apocalypse – themed movie is being viewed. In short, any apocalypse – related discussion annoys me to no end. I am simply not concerned about when and how the world will end.
Apocalypse annoyances aside, the reason that I mention the Mayan calendar is that there have been many calendaring systems used by many different people in many different places over the years. In genealogy, we concern ourselves with dates, among other things. The dates that we reference for the past few generations of our ancestors are dates that work with our current calendaring system.
If we were to dig back further and further into time, and to ancient lands and civilizations, we would run into different calendaring systems and therefore different dates. For example, the Gregorian calendar is said to have replaced the Julian calendar in 1582. However, it took hundreds of years for people all over the world to get on the same page with their calendars (yes that pun was totally intended). In fact, it took until about 1923.
Depending upon where you are researching and how far back in time you are going, you may need to familiarize yourself with a different calendar so that you can record the dates accurately in your research findings. Don’t stress too much if you have trouble calculating a date exactly. Do your best, and use a range of dates if you must. After all, it’s not the end of the world if you don’t calculate it perfectly – sorry, I simply could not resist that one.
Photo by kconnors on morguefile.com.