of the their Month. veral reafons, particularly the obliquity of the Zodiack, the variable Latitude of the Moon, the apparent inequality of its Motion, the different qualities of the Summer and Winter Air, &c. But after all it feems to be certain, that in Palestine about the Spring Equinox the Moon appears within 27 Hours after the Conjunction, though at other times the distance between the Conjunction and Appearance is diverfified. S. 11. The Arabians, and the Turks, and indeed all Turks and that make ufe of the Epocha of Hegyra, ufually reckon Arabians their Month from the first Phafis, being very careful to make the firft Day of the Month come after the Conjunction, left an Eclypfe of the Sun which might then happens fhould pall the joy and mirth that attends the Calends, which to them are folemn and sacred. For this reafon the Turks always place upon their Turrets and Turbants the figure of a New Moon. Some allot the fame way of Computation to the antient Fews; but others are of the opinion that they made ufe of a perpetual Lunar Calculation, and at the fame time had a regard to the Phafis of the Moon, not to determine from thence the Neomentas but that they might fanctifle it, and receive the firft Sight of the fame, with this Prayer, Be thou a good Omen to us and to all Ifrael! As alfo that they might examine the exadiness of their Tables, and of the Calculation taken from thence, tains. S. iz. As for the Britains, they anciently obferved The Cuftom the Phafts of the Moon; but fince by reason of the of the Bri- great Winds and Clouds arifing from the Ocean, the Moons Phafis could not be well difcerned, they followed á more certain Gaide, namely the Tydes; according to the Ebbing and Flowing, of which they do at this Day make confiderable Computations. See Lang, de ann. Chrift.l. i. c. 12. §. 13. As to the Solar Month, there is very great The quan- inequality in it; because the Sun in Cancer feems to tity of aso us to move flower; for which reafon the Month of the lar Month. Summer Solstice contains hear 31 Days, 11 Hours, and 36 Minutes; but in Capricorn the Motion of the Sun, appears more fwift, whence Aftronomers account the Month of the Winter Solftice to confift only of 29 Days, 8 Hours, and 54 Minutes. The mean quantity therefore therefore of every Solar Month will be 30 Days, 10 Hours and 15 Minutes, that is as long as the Sun is in the Equinoctial Signs. S. 14. The Civil or Political Months are threefold, of Civil viz, either altogether uncertain, having no regard to Months. the Lunar or Solar Motions, as thofe of the Egyptians in their Equal Year,of the Romans in the Year of RomuLus, &c. or comming pretty near to the Solar Aftronocal Months,as the Fulian; or elfe the Lunar Aftronomical, as the Jewish, Turkish, and others. CHAP. VI. Of Years. RULES. • 1. A Year is a certain space of time, the parts of which are commonly called Months. 2. And it is either Aftronomical or Civil. 3. The Aftronomical Year, focalled Kar' oxir, is that 4. And because it has a peculiar respect to the Lumina- 6. The Tropical Tear, is the pace of time, in which the 7. The Solar Sydereal Year, is the space of time in which the Sun returns to the fame Star from whence he departed, and its quantity as Aftronomers tell us, is 3650. 6h. 9'. 8. That we call a Lunar Year, in the ordering of which refpect is to be had to the Lunar Motions; and tis either Common or Embolismal Tear. 9. The Common Lunar year contains 12 Synodical Lu 12. The Julian years are either equal and mean, or true 13. The mean and equal are those that confift of 365. and 6h. but are not in common use. 14. The true Julian years are either Common or Biffextile. 15. The Common confifts of 365 days, and the Biffextile of 366. Of the left fort are all the years of Chrift that are capable of being divided by 4 into aliquot Parts. 16. Now the Biffextum is a Day arifing from the 4 times 6 hours, which are omitted in four Julian years. He ancient The Etymo- S. 1.The word that fignifies Tear in the logy of the Languages, is derived from a thing that Word that goes round, or a Circle; for fo much the Hebrew denotes a word does fignifie; and for the fame reafon in the Greek it is called autos. As for the Latin word Annus fome derive it from the Greeck åv circum and ve fluo but it is a little abfurd to derive the Latin from the Greek, and they are more in the right, who fay that An did formerly fignifie a Circle,as the diminutive Annulus is ufed for a little Circle or Ring to this Day: However, 'tis cèrtain that An did fignifie as much as Circum, as it appears from the compounded words, ambire, &c. To confirm this Etymology; 'tis obfer. vable that in ancient times the Agyptians reprefented Time and the Year by a Serpent or Snake biting her Tail. §. 2. The 5.2.The Aftronomical Years do not depend wholly on Aftronomithe motion of the two Luminaries, for why may not they cal years, take their denomination from the other Stars? "Tis are not well known the Saturnine year is computed to 10955 ingroffed days and 12 hours, or almost 30 Julian years; and and Moon. by the sun the Aftronomers make the Jovian year to have 4331 days and 18 hours, or almost 12 Julian years; the year of Mars 687 days, or almoft 2 years. The years of Venus indeed and of Mercury, as to their extent, differ not much from the Solar Period. The fixed Stars have alfo their Periods, though they move but very flowly, infomuch that a year of thefe according to Hipparchus and Ptolomy is equal to 36000 Fulian years; to Alphonfus 49000, to Tycho Brahe and Kepler 25806, and to Longo-mont anus 26046, pursuant to Ricciolus's remarks upon thefe and other opinions Tom. I. Almag. from whom Macrobius in Somn. Scip. 1. 2. c. xi. obferves that a year is not only what we commonly call fo, for that the Stars as well as the two Luminaries have their years, that is, a motion from a certain place of the Heavens, to the fame again. S. 3. The Tropical Aftronomical year of the Sun is The Aftronot fo termed from the Solftices, as fome of the Anci- nomical ents were of opinion; but generally from the points of year called Changings, and the Suns double Motion; for many Tropical. Authors fhew that the Equinoctials, as well as Solftitials are called Tropicks, as it appears from Manilius 1.3. towards the clofe, and from Sextus Empiricus adv. Math. 1.5. c. i. or as it is in Henry Stephen's Edition, adv. Aftrol. c. 21. p. 95. S. 4. The Solar Sydereal year is greater than the Tro pical, because the fixed Stars ufe their own Motion, and Sydereal whilft that the Sun performs its courfe through the Zo years. diack, they move so" fafter towards the East, therefore the Sun wants at leaft 21' to be even with them, and by fo much is a Sydereal year greater than a Tropical. §. 5. Some will have it that the Achaians made. Solar Syde ufe of this Sydereal Solar Tear, which they began real years, with the rife of the Pleiades or 7 Stars, and that the y mom ancient writings of the Egyptians fpeak their nice ob- ud. fervation of the rifing of the Sun with the Dog-Star: But after all, 'twas rather humour and fancy, than any Aftrono nical exactnefs, that put 'em upon a critical D obler Lunar year, bow 'tis us'd. obfervation of the Conjunction of the Sun with the Stars, especially in thofe Ages wherein the flowest Motion of the fixed Stars was not fufficiently known, §. 6. The Turks and Arabians make ufe of the Lunar year fomewhat adapted to civil ufe, and the fame and where cuftom is alfo obferved in Tartary, Siam, Japan, Peru, and other places. Some attribute this Custom to the Gauls and Germans, but in oppofition to that Conjecture, Beda plainly declares that the ancestors of the Germans were acquainted with the method of Intercalation, and made ufe of the mixt or relative Lunar Year. His words are to this purpose. When an Embolifm or a year of twelve Lunar-months came round, they added the fuperfluous month to the Summer, fo that the three months were call'd Lida, and accordingly that year was chriftened Trilidi. Farther, the ancient names of the German Months oppofe this opinion, which as they are marks of the appointed Seafons, fo they have a reference to Solar years. Such are Guili, Trimilchi, Lida, &c. unlefs one would offer that thefe names are of a later date, and were not ufed by the ancient Germans, tiil after the time of the. Romans. The Incon har year. §. 7. The Lunar Year has this inconvenience, that veniences the fame Months in feveral Lunar years, have not the of the Lu- fame Seafon; the occafion of which is, that the Lunar years being less than the Solar by almoft 11 days, in three years time every month will have the Seafon of that which went before it, and fo further in Succeffion of time, viz. in 16 years thofe months which were in Summer, will be in Winter, and vice versa; a thing that the Turks who use this fort of years, are very fenfible of. How the §. 8. However the Jews who follow the Moons MoJews keep tion in their Accounts, by intercalating an entire the Lunar Month, retain ftill the fame Seafons every Month Months in for as often as there is the difference of 30 days betheir pro- tween the Common Lunar, and the Solar Tear, they per Seafons fubftitute an Embolifmal Month called Veadar, and hence it is that they have Lunar Months in the fame Seafon; and confequently a Solar Year. Upon this acCount the Jewish Calendar is not improperly called the mixt Lunar or Lunafolar Calendar. S. 9. But |