{"product_id":"the-oxford-companion-to-the-year-an-exploration-of-calendar-customs-and-timereckoning","title":"The Oxford Companion to the Year: An Exploration of Calendar Customs and Time-Reckoning","description":"\u003cp\u003eWhat are the halcyon days? On what date do the dog days begin? What is Hansel Monday? How do Chinese  Muslim  Mesoamerican  Jewish  and Babylonian calendars differ from Christian calendars? The answers to these and hundreds of other intriguing questions about the way humans have marked and measured time over the millennia can be found in The Oxford Companion to the Year. The desire to set aside certain periods of time to mark their significance is a transhistorical  transcultural phenomena. Virtually all cultures have marked special days or periods: the feast day of a saint  the celebration of a historical event  the turning of a season  a period of fasting  the birthday of an important historical figure. Around these days a rich body of traditions  beliefs  and superstitions have grown up  many of them only half-remembered today. Now  for the first time  Bonnie Blackburn and Leofranc Holford-Strevens combine this body of knowledge with a wide-ranging survey of calendars across cultures in an authoritative and engaging one-volume reference work. The first section of The Oxford Companion to the Year is a day-by-day survey of the calendar year  revealing the history  literature  legend  and lore associated with each season  month  and day. The second part provides a broader study of time-reckoning: historical and modern calendars  religious and civil  are explained  with handy tables for the conversion of dates between various systems and a helpful index to facilitate speedy reference. The Oxford Companion to the Year is a unique and uniquely delightful reference source  an indispensable aid for all historians and antiquarians  and a rich mine of information and inspiration for browsers.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44946714656821,"sku":"ByrdShop_0192142313","price":31.03,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780192142313_dd059aee-9330-49e7-8bf0-7570ab8485a9.jpg?v=1770961097","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-oxford-companion-to-the-year-an-exploration-of-calendar-customs-and-timereckoning","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}