The traditional Burmese calendar is a lunisolar calendar

Lunisolar calendar

A lunisolar calendar is a calendar in many cultures whose date indicates both the moon phase and the time of the solar year. If the solar year is defined as a tropical year then a lunisolar calendar will give an indication of the season; if it is taken as a sidereal year then the calendar will...

 based on both the phases of the moon and the motion of the sun. Within each month of the Burmese calendar, a major festival, often Burmese Buddhist in nature, is held. Despite its religious and cultural importance, the traditional calendar has been largely abandoned, particularly in major urban areas, in favour of the Gregorian calendar

Gregorian calendar

The Gregorian calendar, also known as the Western calendar, or Christian calendar, is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom the calendar was named, by a decree signed on 24 February 1582, a papal bull known by its opening words Inter...

. Many newspapers continue to utilise traditional month names, but purely in ceremonial fashion.

The traditional Burmese lunar calendar uses the Burmese era , which began 638 years after the Christian era. Traditionally it is believed to have begun from the time Buddha attained nirvana

Nirvana

Nirvāṇa ; ) is a central concept in Indian religions. In sramanic thought, it is the state of being free from suffering. In Hindu philosophy, it is the union with the Supreme being through moksha...

 in 544 BC, but it is more likely to have been baesd on the founding of Bagan

Bagan

Bagan , formerly Pagan, is an ancient city in the Mandalay Region of Burma. Formally titled Arimaddanapura or Arimaddana and also known as Tambadipa or Tassadessa , it was the capital of several ancient kingdoms in Burma...

 by the Pyu

Pyu

Pyu city states were a group of city-states that existed from c. 2nd century BCE to late 9th century CE in present-day Upper Burma . The city-states were founded as part of the southward migration by the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu, the earliest inhabitants of Burma of whom records are extant...

 King Duttabaung The Burmese era is different from the Buddhist Era, which is called ([θàðənà n̥ɪʔ]). Each year in the Burmese era begins with the month of Tagu (approximately April).

There are twelve months in the Burmese calendar:

1. Tagu
2. Kason
3. Nayone
4. Waso
5. Wagaung
6. Tawthalin
7. Thadingyut
8. Tazaungmone
9. Nataw
10. Pyatho
11. Tabodwe
12. Tabaung

Burmese calendar

Regular year		Small Leap year		Big Leap year
Tagu	29 days		29 days		29 days
Kason	30 days		30 days		30 days
Nayon	29 days		29 days		30 days
Waso	30 days	First Waso	30 days	First Waso	30 days
		Second Waso	30 days	Second Waso	30 days
Wagaung	29 days		29 days		29 days
Tawthalin	30 days		30 days		30 days
Thadingyut	29 days		29 days		29 days
Tazaungmon	30 days		30 days		30 days
Natdaw	29 days		29 days		29 days
Pyatho	30 days		30 days		30 days
Tabodwe	29 days		29 days		29 days
Tabaung	30 days		30 days		30 days
12 months	354 days	13 months	384 days	13 months	385 days

Weeks

The traditional Burmese calendar recognizes eight days in a week

Week

A week is a time unit equal to seven days.The English word week continues an Old English wice, ultimately from a Common Germanic , from a root "turn, move, change"...

. Except for Sunday and Monday, the days of the week

Days of the week

The names of the days of the week from the Roman period have been both named after the seven planets of classical astronomy and numbered, beginning with Monday. In Slavic languages, a numbering system was adopted, but beginning with Monday. There was an even older tradition of names in Ancient...

 are named after the Sanskrit names of the six classical planets

Naked-eye planet

In antiquity the classical planets were the non-fixed objects visible in the sky, known to various ancient cultures. The classical planets were therefore the Sun and Moon and the five non-earth planets of our solar system closest to the sun ; all easily visible without a telescope. They are...

 in Hindu astrology.

Weekdays

English name	Burmese name	IPA	Cardinal direction	Sanskrit Sanskrit Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...  word	Planet	Planetary vehicle Zodiac sign
Sunday Sunday Sunday is the day of the week between Saturday and Monday. For most Christians, Sunday is observed as a day for worship of God and rest, due to the belief that it is Lord's Day, the day of Christ's resurrection....		tənɪ́ɴ ɡənwè	Northeast	Aditya Surya Surya Suraya or Phra Athit is the chief solar deity in Hinduism, one of the Adityas, son of Kasyapa and one of his wives, Aditi; of Indra; or of Dyaus Pitar . The term Surya also refers to the Sun, in general. Surya has hair and arms of gold...	Sun Sun The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...	Garuda Garuda The Garuda is a large mythical bird or bird-like creature that appears in both Hindu and Buddhist mythology.From an Indian perspective, Garuda is the Hindu name for the constellation Aquila and...
Monday Monday Monday is the day of the week between Sunday and Tuesday. According to international standard ISO 8601 it is the first day of the work week. According to the Islamic and Hebrew calendars, Sunday is the first day of the week...		tənɪ́ɴ là	East	Chandra Chandra In Hinduism, Chandra is a lunar deity and a Graha. Chandra is also identified with the Vedic Lunar deity Soma . The Soma name refers particularly to the juice of sap in the plants and thus makes the Moon the lord of plants and vegetation. He is described as young, beautiful, fair; two-armed and...	Moon Moon The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...	Tiger
Tuesday Tuesday Tuesday is a day of the week occurring after Monday and before Wednesday.According to international standard ISO 8601, it is the second day of the week, although in some traditions it is the third....		ɪ̀ɴ ɡà	Southeast	Angaraka Mangala In Jyotish astrology, Mangala is the name for Mars, the red planet. Mars is also called Angaraka In Jyotish astrology, Mangala (Devanagari: मंगल) is the name for Mars, the red planet. Mars is also called Angaraka In Jyotish astrology, Mangala (Devanagari: मंगल) is the name for Mars, the red...	Mars Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...	Lion Chinthe The Chinthe is a leogryph that is often seen at the entrances of pagodas and temples in Burma and other Southeast Asian countries. The chinthe is featured prominently on the kyat, the currency of Burma. The chinthe is almost always depicted in pairs, and serve to protect the pagoda...
Wednesday Wednesday Wednesday is a day of the week in the Gregorian calendar. According to international standard ISO 8601, it is the third day of the week. This day is between Tuesday and Thursday...  morning		bouʔ dəhú	South	Budha Budha In Hindu mythology, Budha is the name for the planet Mercury, a son of Chandra with Tara or Rohini. He is also the god of merchandise and protector of Merchants....	Mercury Mercury (planet) Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 87.969 Earth days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest eccentricity of all the Solar System planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt. It completes three rotations about its axis for every two orbits...	Tusked elephant
Wednesday Wednesday Wednesday is a day of the week in the Gregorian calendar. According to international standard ISO 8601, it is the third day of the week. This day is between Tuesday and Thursday...  afternoon		jà hṵ	Northwest	Rahu Rahu In Hindu mythology, Rahu is a cut-off head of an asura, that swallows the sun or the moon causing eclipses. He is depicted in art as a serpent with no body riding a chariot drawn by eight black horses. Rahu is one of the navagrahas in Vedic astrology...	Rahu Rahu In Hindu mythology, Rahu is a cut-off head of an asura, that swallows the sun or the moon causing eclipses. He is depicted in art as a serpent with no body riding a chariot drawn by eight black horses. Rahu is one of the navagrahas in Vedic astrology...	Tuskless elephant
Thursday Thursday Thursday is the fourth day of the week according to the ISO 8601 international standard adopted in most western countries. In countries that use the Sunday-first convention and in the Judeo-Christian calendar it is the fifth day of the week. It falls between Wednesday and Friday...		tɕà ðəbədé	West	Brihaspati	Jupiter Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...	Rat
Friday Friday Friday is the day between Thursday and Saturday. In countries adopting Monday-first conventions as recommended by the international standard ISO 8601, it is the fifth day of the week. It is the sixth day in countries that adopt a Sunday-first convention as in Abrahamic tradition...		θauʔ tɕà	North	Shukra Shukra Shukra , the Sanskrit for "clear, pure" or "brightness, clearness", is the name of the son of Bhrigu, and preceptor of the Daityas, and the guru of the Asuras, identified with the planet Venus, one of the Navagrahas...	Venus Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...	Guinea pig
Saturday Saturday Saturday is the day of the week following Friday and preceding Sunday.Saturday is the last day of the week on many calendars and in conventions that consider the week as beginning on Sunday, or the sixth day of the week according to international standard ISO 8601 which was first published in...		sənè	Southwest	Shani Shani Sanskrit Śhani शनि, Kannada Śhani ಶನಿ ದೇವರು,Shani/Sani , is one of the Navagraha or Jyotiṣa . Shani is embodied in the planet Saturn and is the Lord of Saturday....	Saturn Saturn Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System, after Jupiter. Saturn is named after the Roman god Saturn, equated to the Greek Cronus , the Babylonian Ninurta and the Hindu Shani. Saturn's astronomical symbol represents the Roman god's sickle.Saturn,...	Naga Naga Naga or NAGA may refer to:* Nāga, a group of serpent deities in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.-People:* Nayan / Nayar/Nair people of Kerala Society* Naga people, a diverse ethnic identity in Northeast India...