Year: Heb. shanah, meaning "repetition" or "revolution" (Gen. 1:14;
5:3). Among the ancient Egyptians the year consisted of twelve
months of thirty days each, with five days added to make it a
complete revolution of the earth round the sun. The Jews
reckoned the year in two ways, (1) according to a sacred
calendar, in which the year began about the time of the vernal
equinox, with the month Abib; and (2) according to a civil
calendar, in which the year began about the time of the autumnal
equinox, with the month Nisan. The month Tisri is now the
beginning of the Jewish year.