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Convert a date to the Ethiopian calendar
Choose a Gregorian date to see its Ethiopian calendar date. The conversion uses your browser’s calendar data and Addis Ababa time.
Use this as a planning aid and confirm festival dates with current local information.
Ethiopia uses its own calendar alongside the Gregorian calendar that appears on international flight tickets and most online bookings. The year has 13 months, the year number is seven or eight years behind, and a date on a local notice may differ from the date on your reservation. This guide explains how the Ethiopian calendar works, why it is different and how to avoid mistakes when you plan a trip. For the 12-hour clock, see Ethiopian time.
How the Ethiopian calendar works
- The first 12 months have 30 days each.
- The short 13th month, Pagume, has five days, or six in a leap year.
- The Ethiopian New Year, Meskerem 1, usually falls on 11 September in the Gregorian calendar, or 12 September after an Ethiopian leap year.
- A leap year comes every four years, with no exceptions for century years, and it falls the year before a Gregorian leap year.
- The Ethiopian year number is seven or eight years behind the Gregorian year: eight years behind from 1 January to 10 September, and seven years behind from 11 September to the end of the year.
Use a converter for a particular day instead of subtracting a fixed number. Our Ethiopian calendar converter turns any date into its Ethiopian equivalent.
Why the calendar is different
The Ethiopian calendar descends from the ancient Egyptian and Coptic calendars, with a year of twelve months of 30 days and a short extra month. Ethiopia never adopted the Gregorian reform of 1582. The gap of seven to eight years comes from an older calculation of the year of the Annunciation, used by the Church of Alexandria and kept in Ethiopia, while the Western churches adopted a different count. The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church keeps the calendar for its fasts and feasts. Ethiopia celebrated its millennium on 11 September 2007, when the Ethiopian year reached 2000, and tourism campaigns still use the slogan “thirteen months of sunshine”.
The months
| Ethiopian month | Starts around (Gregorian) |
|---|---|
| Meskerem | 11 September |
| Tikimt | 11 October |
| Hidar | 10 November |
| Tahsas | 10 December |
| Tir | 9 January |
| Yekatit | 8 February |
| Megabit | 10 March |
| Miazia | 9 April |
| Ginbot | 9 May |
| Sene | 8 June |
| Hamle | 8 July |
| Nehase | 7 August |
| Pagume | 6 September |
The starting days can move by one day in some years because of leap years, so use the converter when the date matters.
The days of the week
The week has seven days, and they correspond to the international weekdays: Ehud (Sunday), Segno (Monday), Maksegno (Tuesday), Rob (Wednesday), Hamus (Thursday), Arb (Friday) and Kidame (Saturday). Friday and Wednesday are the main fasting days for Orthodox Christians. See Ethiopian fasting food.
Holidays and the calendar
Many holidays follow the Ethiopian calendar, so their Gregorian dates are fixed or almost fixed:
- Enkutatash, the New Year, is on 1 Meskerem (11 September).
- Meskel is on 17 Meskerem (27 September).
- Genna is on 29 Tahsas (7 January).
- Timkat is on 11 Tir (19 January).
Easter (Fasika) moves from year to year, as it follows the church’s own calculation. Muslim holidays follow the Islamic lunar calendar, so they move about 11 days earlier each year. See Eid in Ethiopia. Check each date for the year of your trip in the festival guides and with the organiser.
Reading dates on documents and signs
Ethiopian government papers, local newspapers, shop signs and many notices use the Ethiopian date, usually written in the order day, month, year. A date such as 15/05/2019 on a local notice is not 15 May 2019 in the Gregorian calendar, so confirm which calendar is meant. International bookings, airline tickets, visas and passports use the Gregorian calendar. If a document has a date you must act on, such as a visa or permit expiry, ask the issuer to confirm it in Gregorian terms.
Tips for planning
- Book in Gregorian dates. Airlines, hotels and tour companies work in Gregorian dates for bookings. Check that your reservation dates match your plan.
- Check festival dates early. Hotels in places such as Lalibela and Gondar fill up around Genna and Timkat, so book ahead.
- Use the converter for events. When an event date matters to your trip, confirm the Gregorian date with the organiser.
- Remember the age difference. Do not be surprised when a birth year looks seven or eight years younger.
Last checked: 25 October 2026. Calendar structure: Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Details for travel bookings should always be confirmed with the provider.
