Coptic Date Today
Today's date in the Coptic calendar of the Egyptian Orthodox Christian tradition — 13 months counted from the Era of Martyrs (284 CE), the year Diocletian became emperor.
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The Coptic calendar
The Coptic calendar is the traditional calendar of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, the Christian community of Egypt. It is a direct descendant of the ancient Egyptian civil calendar — probably the oldest solar calendar structure in continuous use on Earth.
Like the Ethiopian calendar (which shares the same structure), it has 12 months of 30 days plus a 5-day intercalary month (6 days in leap years), totaling 365 or 366 days.
The Era of Martyrs
Coptic years are counted from 29 August 284 CE, the start of the reign of the Roman emperor Diocletian. This era is known as Anno Martyrum (AM), "Year of the Martyrs," commemorating the massive persecution of Egyptian Christians during Diocletian's reign. Coptic year 1742 AM began in September 2025 Gregorian.
The 13 Coptic months
| № | Month | Meaning / origin |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tut | Thoth, god of wisdom |
| 2 | Babah | Hapi, Nile god |
| 3 | Hatur | Hathor, goddess of joy |
| 4 | Kiyahk | Ka Ha Ka, bull of Apis |
| 5 | Tubah | Amso Khem |
| 6 | Amshir | Mechir, storm god |
| 7 | Baramhat | Phamenoth |
| 8 | Barmundah | Pharmuti |
| 9 | Bashans | Pakhon |
| 10 | Baunah | Paoni |
| 11 | Abib | Epiphi |
| 12 | Misra | Mesori |
| 13 | Nasi | Small month (5 or 6 days) |
Coptic Christmas
Coptic Christmas is celebrated on 29 Kiyahk, which falls on 7 January in most Gregorian years — the same date as Ethiopian, Russian, and other Orthodox Christmas observances that follow the older Julian reckoning.
The oldest working calendar on Earth
The Coptic calendar descends directly from the ancient Egyptian civil calendar, which was in use by 2700 BCE and possibly earlier. The 12 × 30 + 5 structure predates every other surviving calendar system. When the Romans reformed the Egyptian calendar under Augustus in 25 BCE to add a leap day every four years, the result is essentially what the Coptic Church uses today.
The calendar's month names derive from the ancient Egyptian gods and agricultural seasons, surviving unchanged for over 2,000 years — a remarkable cultural continuity that outlasted the Pharaohs, Alexander's empire, Roman occupation, Islamic conquest, and Ottoman rule.
Coptic religious observances
The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria observes a liturgical year on the Coptic calendar, including:
- Feast of Nayrouz (New Year) — 1 Tut / 11 September
- Feast of the Cross — 17 Tut / 27 September
- Coptic Christmas — 29 Kiyahk / 7 January
- Epiphany — 11 Tubah / 19 January
- The Fast of Nineveh — 3 days beginning in late Amshir
- Great Lent — 55 days of fasting before Coptic Easter
- Coptic Easter — variable date, calculated from the spring equinox following Eastern rules
Why Coptic Christmas is on 7 January
The Coptic Church never adopted the Gregorian reform of 1582, continuing to follow the older Julian calendar for liturgical purposes. Because the Julian calendar has drifted 13 days behind the Gregorian, what the Julian calendar calls 25 December now falls on 7 January in the Gregorian civil calendar. This is also why Ethiopian, Russian Orthodox, Serbian Orthodox, and Georgian Orthodox churches observe Christmas on 7 January.
The five (or six) "little days"
Coptic year 1742 AM will have a 5-day Nasi month; every four years, Nasi gains a 6th day. The next Coptic leap year with a 6-day Nasi is 1743 AM (starting 11 September 2026 Gregorian). These "epagomenal" days have a 2,700-year provenance — they were already a part of the ancient Egyptian calendar in the Old Kingdom, used as days outside the regular months for ritual and accounting purposes.