Dating System

Three major dating systems are in use when referring to historical events — Terran, Vilani, and Imperial. A fourth system (Zhodani olympiads) is of passing interest.

Terran dates center on a year about midway through the period of Vilani ascendance. After that date, years ascend, and are suffixed AD; before that date, years descend, and are suffixed BC. There is no year zero. Terran years have 365 days and are considered a standard for length of year. Years are further subdivided into months and weeks, although these divisions have fallen into disuse outside the Solomani Sphere.

Vilani Dates count from the year of the Establishment of the First (or Vilani) Imperium. Those before are suffixed PI (pre-lmperium), those after are suffixed VI (Vilani Imperium). There is no year zero. Vilani years are approximately 1.33 standard years in length. Vilani years are further divided into seasons, months, and weeks.

Imperial dates count from the year of the founding of the Third Imperium, specifying the year zero as a holiday year. Dates before that are negative, dates after that are positive, with the sign usually suppressed. Imperial dating uses a Julian system for specifying days. Each day in the year is consecutively numbered beginning with 001. Thus, in the year 1105, the first day of the year is 001-1105. Weeks of seven days and months of 28 days are used to refer to lengths of time, but rarely to establish dates.

Zhodani dating is counted in olympiads (obviously a translation). Each olympiad is of three Zhodani years; each zhodani year is .75 standard years. The first olympiad corresponds to 2209 BC. The dating system itself has been in more or less continuous use since then, with minor lapses due to war or temporary decline of ruling parties.

- Source: Supplement 8 Library Data (A-M)

Non-Canon

Feel free to enter further information and/or personal experiences with dating systems.