http://www.ethiopic.com/calendar/ethiopic.htm "The Ethiopic Calendar
By Dr. Aberra Molla
Ethiopia has its own ancient calendar. According to the beliefs of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, God created the world 5500 years before the birth of Christ. According to the Ethiopian calendar, it is 1994 years since Jesus was born. Based on this timeline, we are in the year 7494 of the eighth millennium (or smnTow vh). These are referred to as ]MT ]Lm (Amete Alem in Amharic) or "the years of the world".
Ethiopic is not the only calendar in Ethiopia either. Ethiopians followed the Old Testament before the introduction of Christianity. The Oromo people have their own calendar. Bete Israel (bT asr]l) believe in the Jewish faith.
The earliest known date is 4236 B.C.E., the founding of the Egyptian calendar. The ancient Egyptian calendar was lunar. The solar Coptic (gbi) calendar, oldest in history, originated three millennia before the birth of Christ. The exact date of its Egyptian origin is unknown. It is believed that Imhotep, the supreme official of King Djoser C.2670 B.C. had a great impact on the construction of the calendar. Historically, ancient Egyptians initially used a civil calendar based on a solar year that consisted of 365 days only, without making any adjustment for the additional quarter of a day each year. The heliacal rising of Sirius coincides with the arrival of the highest point of river Nile flood at Memphis marking the first day of the year. The new year of the ancient Egyptians started on MsKRm 1 or Meskerem 1. This date is an Ethiopian new year signaling the end of Noah's flood . . ."
(I-tinued at link)
http://www.ethiopic.com/calendar/ethiopic.htm
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