Bahre Hasab
Bahre Hasab, also known as Abushakir, is a calendrical calculation system used by the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church to determine the chronological of religious festivals and feast days. It is widely regarded among Ethiopian scholars as a system of numerical studies addressing cycles of the sun, moon, stars, winds, and their duration.
Bahre Hasab is used to calculate ages and to determine past and the future events according to the Ethiopian calendar. Its calculations include several key chronological concepts, such as Amete Alem, the Evangelist Year, Abekte, Metke and Fasika itself.
Description
Bahre Hasab, or Sea of Ideas, is a system for measuring the timing of religious festivals and feast days in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. While it shared similarities with the Coptic Egyptian calendar, it differs notably in its treatment and observance of saint's days.The Metonic cycle a 19-year lunar cycle, was used by Pope Demetrios of Alexandria, and Claudis Ptolemy employed similar calculations in establishing methods for determining the date of Easter.
Calculations
Amete Alem
According to Ethiopian Orthodox tradition, the creation of the universe occurred in 5500 BC. The current year in Amete Alem is calculated by adding the current Ethiopian calendar year. For example, the Ethiopian year 2018 corresponds to 7518 Amete Alem.Evangelist year
In the Ethiopian calendar, years are associated with one of the four Evangelists of the New Testament: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, in a repeating four-year cycle. This system is known as the Evangelist of the Year. The Evangelist Year is determined by dividing the Amete Alem by 4 and identifying the Evangelist based on the remainder.For example,. Therefore, 2 corresponds to Mark.
''Abekte'', ''Metke'' and ''Fasika''
Abekte represents the lunar age offset and is used to account for the difference between the solar and lunar calendars.Mekte is calculated using the following relationship:
.
As a result, the sum of Abekte and Mekte is always equal to 30.
Determining Fasika (Easter)
The date of Fasika is determined based on the value of Metke:- if Metke is in Timkat
- if Metke is in Hidar
Determining Nenewe (Nineveh)
The fast of Nenewe begins on a Monday. Its date is calculated by counting forward using the value of Metke and applying weekday rules derived from Bahre Hasab tables. Counting forward from the Monday of Nenewe establishes the sequence of subsequent fasting days and related observances.| Event | Days after Nenewe |
| Abiy Tsom | +14 |
| Debre Zeit | +41 |
| Hosanna | +62 |
| Siklet | +67 |
| Fasika | +69 |