Ethiopian calendar converter
The Ethiopian calendar has twelve months of 30 days and a short thirteenth month, Pagume. Enter a Gregorian date to see the Ethiopian date, or enter an Ethiopian year, month and day to find the Gregorian date.
Runs in your browser: nothing you enter is sent anywhere.
How to use it
- Choose the direction: Gregorian to Ethiopian, or Ethiopian to Gregorian.
- Enter the Gregorian date, or the Ethiopian year, month and day. Only the fields for the chosen direction are used.
- Read the converted date, the weekday and the Gregorian date of that Ethiopian new year.
How it works
Both dates are turned into a Julian day number, a plain count of days. Ethiopian year 1 began on 29 August 8 CE (Julian calendar), day number 1 724 221. From there each year adds 365 days, plus one extra Pagume day in every year whose number leaves remainder 3 when divided by 4. The Gregorian side uses the proleptic Gregorian calendar, even for dates before 1582.
Worked examples
- 12 September 2023 is 1 Meskerem 2016, because 2015 was a leap year.
- 11 September 2024 is 1 Meskerem 2017.
- 3 November 2026 is 24 Tikimt 2019.
Good to know
The Ethiopian day is counted here from midnight, as in civil use. Traditional hours of the day start at sunrise and are not part of this tool.
Frequently asked questions
When is the Ethiopian new year?
Enkutatash, 1 Meskerem, falls on 11 September in the Gregorian calendar. In the Gregorian year after an Ethiopian leap year it falls on 12 September, as in 2023, because Ethiopian year 2015 had a sixth day in Pagume.
Why is the Ethiopian year 7 or 8 years behind?
The Ethiopian calendar places the birth of Jesus in a different year than the Gregorian calendar does. It is 8 years behind from 1 January to 10 September and 7 years behind from 11 September to 31 December.
How many months does the Ethiopian calendar have?
Thirteen. Twelve months have 30 days each, and Pagume has 5 days, or 6 in a leap year. Leap years come every four years, with no century exceptions, in years that leave remainder 3 when divided by 4.
Is this the same as the Coptic calendar?
The two have the same structure, with 13 months and a leap day every four years, but different year numbers and month names. The year numbers differ by a fixed offset, so the two are not interchangeable.