Chantry Calendar

The Chantry calendar marks time by ages, each lasting one century. According to the Chantry calendar, the world is in the ninth age, known as the Dragon Age. Anything prior to the first year of the first age (the Divine Age) is known as the Ancient Era. The years of the AE are assigned negative numbers, counting backward into the past.

Ages of the Chantry Calendar
This is the timeline of Thedas' history, according to the Chantry calendar:


 * Ancient Age (Circa -6000 AE to -1 AE)
 * Divine Age (1:1-1:99)
 * Glory Age (2:1-2:99)
 * Towers Age (3:1-3:99)
 * Black Age (4:1-4:99)
 * Exalted Age (5:1-5:99)
 * Steel Age (6:1-6:99)
 * Storm Age (7:1-7:99)
 * Blessed Age (8:1-8:99)
 * Dragon Age (9:1-present)

Months
Thedas has two moons, Moon and Satina, which each have cycles of 30 days. As such, each month in Thedas lasts exactly thirty days, and there are twelve months in a year. The majority of Thedas uses the Common Names of each month, but scholars must also know the Ancient Names of each month. Each month and its major holidays/feast days are as follows:

Wintermarch
''1st month of the year. In the Ancient Era, it was called Verimensis by the Tevinter Imperium.''


 * First Day: The day on which all people of Thedas celebrate the new year.

Guardian
''2nd month of the year. In the Ancient Era, it was called Pluitanis.''


 * Wintersend - Held on the 10th of Guardian. The celebration is a feast day celebration of the Maker, but it was once a holiday called Urthalis in honor of Urthemiel, the Old God of Beauty. It is now a large feast day all over Thedas. The Archon's Tourney at the Proving Grounds in Minrathous is held on this day.
 * The Departure (Orzammar) - This is the traditional day where the Legion of the Dead approaches prisoners, the deeply indebted, and otherwise "dishonorable" dwarves, and invites them into their ranks to offer them an opportunity to restore their families' honor. Those who choose to join the Legion are over the next several days given a symbolic "funeral" where they are recorded as dead in the Memories of the Shaperate, and given their glory and honor back. The Legionnaire makes an oath to work toward a courageous and honorable death in service of Orzammar and the protection of the dwarven people.

Drakonis
''3rd month of the year. In the Ancient Era, it was called Nubulis.''


 * Mythal'vunin (Dalish) - The Dalish feast celebration dedicated to the elven goddess Mythal, the All-Mother and goddess of love, motherhood, and justice. It is a month-long celebration that takes place every three years, starting on the 15th day of Drakonis and ending on the 14th of Cloudreach. Many Dalish clans from the surrounding region meet up in a single location so that the single people of the clans can undergo matchmaking. If an elf can find a love-match, that is considered ideal, but most marriages are arranged.

Cloudreach
''4th month of the year. In the Ancient Era, it was called Eluviesta.''


 * Festival of Lovers (Rivain) - This traditional festival in Rivain is held each year on the 14th of Cloudreach. People travel from small and remote villages to the nearest town or city to celebrate this festival, during which any weddings that took place during the past year are honored and blessed by the local Seers. Unwed people are encouraged to seek out a life partner during the course of the festival (it is, after all, a rare opportunity for those from small villages to meet new people). If you do indeed find your true love during the festival, the quality of your match is then confirmed by a Seer. This tradition is less popular in Dairsmuid, where the Chantry has a much firmer grasp on the culture.

Bloomingtide
''5th month of the year. In the Ancient Era, it was called Molioris.''


 * Ghilan'nain'vunin (Dalish) - The day to honor the elven goddess Ghilan'nain and the halla. It takes place on the 3rd of Bloomingtide, to express gratitude for the day on which the goddess Andruil saved Ghilan'nain's life by transforming her into a halla, and later a goddess in her own right. The halla of each clan are given a special feast of their own, and are decorated with garlands of flowers and leaves.
 * Summerday - Held on the 5th of Bloomingtide. A feast day to celebrate the summer. Coming of age rituals are held on this day in local Chantries. Particularly extravagant and holy in Orlais.

Justinian
6th month of the year, named for Divine Justinia I. In the Ancient Era, it was called Ferventis.


 * Andruil'vunin (Dalish) - Celebrated on the 24th of Justinian, the day of summer solstice, to honor Andruil, goddess of the hunt and the mother of hares. There is a great hunt held on this day, and a feast afterward in Andruil's honor.
 * Trials of Blood (Orzammar) - Each year on the 13th of Justinian, the best fighters in Orzammar meet for the Trials of Blood, a great tournament that crowns the kingdom's best and most popular fighter.

Solace
''7th month of the year. In the Ancient Era, it was called Solis.''


 * Solemnity of Stone (Orzammar) - On the 1st day of Solace, the dwarves of Orzammar feast, followed by a month wherein they are not allowed to eat the meat of nugs (their primary livestock). They honor the stone, and the Shaperate leads the community in old traditional practices to better hear the singing of the Stone.



Matrinalis
''8th month of the year, named for the. In the Ancient Era, it was also called Matrinalis.''


 * All Soul's Day/Funalis - A holiday held on the 13th of Matrinalis. Used to be a holiday dedicated to the Old God Dumat, but it is now All Soul's Day, where people of Thedas remember their dead, and contemplate the death of the prophetess Andraste. Great bonfires are built to remember her immolation. In Tevinter, Antiva, and Nevarra, it is tradition to dress as spirits and walk the streets in a parade after midnight.

Kingsway
''9th month of the year. In the Ancient Era, it was called Parvulis.''


 * Feast of Redemption (Tevinter) - A feast day celebrated only in Tevinter, marking the redemption of Archon Hessarian when he repented to the Maker for executing Andraste. Laetan mages put on an impressive light show in the sky in each major city. It coincides with the traditional Tevinter feast day to the Toth, the Old God of Fire.
 * The Grand Tourney - The most important celebration in the Free Marches. It is held once every three years, on the 9th of Kingsway, and the location rotates between the cities. People come from all over Thedas to participate in this grand competition of martial skill and valor. Although the Tourney only lasts three days, the celebrations around it begin the 1st of Kingsway and continue for a week after.

Harvestmere
''10th month of the year. In the Ancient Era, it was called Frumentum.''


 * Harvest Festivals - All over Thedas, harvest festivals are celebrated at different points throughout Harvestmere, each with their own local traditions. in Orlais and Nevarra, harvest festivals tend to include jousting tournaments. In Ferelden and the Free Marches, they tend to include baking and eating competitions. In Antiva and Rivain, they tend to be focused on music, theater, and dancing. In Tevinter, they tend to include small tournaments of magical skill.



Firstfall
''11th month of the year. In the Ancient Era, it was called Umbralis.''


 * Satinalia - Begins on the 1st of Firstfall and lasts for one week, and during this time a massive carnival overtakes each major city, with the wearing of masks and elaborate dress being the traditional garb of the holiday. On the 7th day of Satinalia, the second moon Satina eclipses the bigger Moon in an event called the Alignment. In Antiva, the Satinalia festival lasts another week after the alignment, followed by a week of fasting. This festival was once dedicated to Zazkikel, the Tevinter Old Goddess of Freedom, but has since been attributed to the Maker and the celebration of fate.

Haring
''12th month of the year. In the Ancient Era, it was called Cassus.''


 * Dark Day - Held on the 21st of Haring, this is a feast day held across Thedas in the midst of winter on the darkest day of the year. Traditions are most elaborate in the southern lands of Ferelden, Orlais, and Nevarra. For most people it usually takes the form of an intimate family gathering, but for nobility, grand balls take place on this day and run into the night. People celebrate the return of the sun and the light in the days to come. It coincides with the old feast day to the Old God Lucasan, the Dragon of Night.