Chula Sakarat
Encyclopedia
The Minor Era is a year numbering system used primarily in Thailand
. Its first year corresponds with the year 639
CE. The name Minor Era is a loan translation
from the Thai, which itself is derived from Pali cula "small" and Sanskrit śaka + rāja "royal era". In Thailand, this era is used in contrast with the Shalivahana era
, commonly known in Thai as the Major Era .
In the Minor Era system, the year begins in mid-April. Thus, to calculate the Minor Era year from the Common Era year, deduct 639, or 638 if the date falls between January 1 and the first part of April.
The origin of the system is disputed, but one theory holds that in this year, the Buddhist patriarch Buppasoranhan, after seizing the throne in Burma
, declared the first year of the new system.
The Minor Era was widely used in the Lanna
period, the late Sukhothai
period, and the Ayutthaya
period. In modern times it has been occasionally used, such as on coins minted during the reign of King Rama V of Thailand.
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. Its first year corresponds with the year 639
639
Year 639 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 639 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Europe :* Clovis II succeeds Dagobert I as king of the...
CE. The name Minor Era is a loan translation
Calque
In linguistics, a calque or loan translation is a word or phrase borrowed from another language by literal, word-for-word or root-for-root translation.-Calque:...
from the Thai, which itself is derived from Pali cula "small" and Sanskrit śaka + rāja "royal era". In Thailand, this era is used in contrast with the Shalivahana era
Shalivahana era
The Shalivahana era, also known as the Saka era, is used with Hindu calendars, the Indian national calendar, and the Cambodian Buddhist calendar. Its year zero begins near the vernal equinox of the year 78....
, commonly known in Thai as the Major Era .
In the Minor Era system, the year begins in mid-April. Thus, to calculate the Minor Era year from the Common Era year, deduct 639, or 638 if the date falls between January 1 and the first part of April.
The origin of the system is disputed, but one theory holds that in this year, the Buddhist patriarch Buppasoranhan, after seizing the throne in Burma
Myanmar
Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
, declared the first year of the new system.
The Minor Era was widely used in the Lanna
Lanna
The Kingdom of Lanna was a kingdom centered in present-day northern Thailand from the 13th to 18th centuries. The cultural development of the people of Lanna, the Tai Yuan people, had begun long before as successive Tai Yuan kingdoms preceded Lanna...
period, the late Sukhothai
Sukhothai kingdom
The Sukhothai Kingdom ) was an early kingdom in the area around the city Sukhothai, in north central Thailand. The Kingdom existed from 1238 till 1438...
period, and the Ayutthaya
Ayutthaya kingdom
Ayutthaya was a Siamese kingdom that existed from 1350 to 1767. Ayutthaya was friendly towards foreign traders, including the Chinese, Vietnamese , Indians, Japanese and Persians, and later the Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and French, permitting them to set up villages outside the walls of the...
period. In modern times it has been occasionally used, such as on coins minted during the reign of King Rama V of Thailand.