Gezer Calendar

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June 29, 2026

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The Gezer calendar is an inscription from the late 10th century BCE, likely from the time of King Solomon. It is the earliest known example of a Hebrew calendar and details agricultural tasks over a 12-month period. The inscription uses the Hebrew word "yereaḥ," which means both "moon" and "month," indicating a lunar basis for the calendar.1

The calendar term "yereaḥ" suggests that Hebrew months were lunar. While the Bible mentions calendar matters incidentally, the Gezer calendar provides concrete evidence of early timekeeping in ancient Israel. The city of Gezer itself was an important royal Canaanite city mentioned in both the Old Testament and Egyptian records.12

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Hebrew alphabet
…of Early Hebrew writing, the Gezer Calendar, dates from the 10th century bce, and the writing used varies little from the earliest North Semitic alphabets. The Early Hebrew alphabet, like the modern Hebrew variety, had 22 letters, with only consonants represented, and was written from right to left; but the…
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…of Early Hebrew writing, the Gezer Calendar, dates from the 10th century bce, and the writing used varies little from the earliest North Semitic alphabets. The Early Hebrew alphabet, like the modern Hebrew variety, had 22 letters, with only consonants represented, and was written from right to left; but the…
Read More

calendar
The calendar in Jewish history
…the Hebrew calendar is the Gezer calendar, written probably in the age of Solomon, in the late 10th century bce. The inscription indicates the length of main agricultural tasks within the cycle of 12 lunations. The calendar term here is yereaḥ, which in Hebrew denotes both “moon” and “month.” The…
Read More
…the Hebrew calendar is the Gezer calendar, written probably in the age of Solomon, in the late 10th century bce. The inscription indicates the length of main agricultural tasks within the cycle of 12 lunations. The calendar term here is yereaḥ, which in Hebrew denotes both “moon” and “month.” The…
Read More

Middle Eastern religion
Nature: the framework of ideas and practices
…as is indicated in the Gezer Calendar, in which all 12 months are accounted for as times of profitable agricultural activity, with harvests in the rainless summer as well as in the green winter. Anxiety was caused by the uncertainty of rain in the rainy season and of dew in…
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…as is indicated in the Gezer Calendar, in which all 12 months are accounted for as times of profitable agricultural activity, with harvests in the rainless summer as well as in the green winter. Anxiety was caused by the uncertainty of rain in the rainy season and of dew in…
Read More