There are twelve months that make up a year, each with its own unique number and place in the annual calendar. When we talk about the month of May, we are referring to the fifth month of the year.
To understand this better, let’s look at the months in order, along with their corresponding numbers:
| Month Number | Month | Abbreviation | Days in Month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | January | Jan | 31 |
| 2 | February | Feb | 28 (29 in leap years) |
| 3 | March | Mar | 31 |
| 4 | April | Apr | 30 |
| 5 | May | May | 31 |
| 6 | June | Jun | 30 |
| 7 | July | Jul | 31 |
| 8 | August | Aug | 31 |
| 9 | September | Sep | 30 |
| 10 | October | Oct | 31 |
| 11 | November | Nov | 30 |
| 12 | December | Dec | 31 |
As you can see from the table, May is the 5th month of the year, positioned right in the middle of the first half of the year. It follows April and precedes June. Knowing the number of each month helps in organizing dates, understanding calendars, and generally keeping track of time throughout the year.
May is known for being a month in the Spring season in the Northern Hemisphere, often associated with blooming flowers and pleasant weather. In the Southern Hemisphere, May falls in Autumn, marking a transition towards cooler temperatures.
Remembering the Days in Each Month
It can be tricky to remember how many days are in each month. Besides simply memorizing the table above, there are a couple of helpful rhymes and methods to assist you.
One popular rhyme is:
| Thirty days hath September, April, June, and November; All the rest have thirty-one, Excepting February alone, Which hath but twenty-eight days clear, And twenty-nine in each leap year. |
|---|
This rhyme neatly summarizes the number of days in most months, with the key exception of February and leap years.
Another visual and tactile method is the “knuckle method”:
To use this method, make a fist. Each knuckle and the spaces between your knuckles represent a month, starting with January on your first knuckle.
- Knuckle: January (31 days)
- Space between knuckles: February (28 or 29 days)
- Knuckle: March (31 days)
- Space between knuckles: April (30 days)
- Knuckle: May (31 days)
- Space between knuckles: June (30 days)
- Knuckle: July (31 days)
Then, when you reach the knuckle for July, start again on your first knuckle for August and continue:
- Knuckle: August (31 days)
- Space between knuckles: September (30 days)
- Knuckle: October (31 days)
- Space between knuckles: November (30 days)
- Knuckle: December (31 days)
Months landing on a knuckle have 31 days, and months in the spaces between knuckles have 30 days (or 28/29 for February). This method provides a handy way to quickly recall the number of days in any given month, including May, which lands on a knuckle and therefore has 31 days.
A Look at February: The Unique Month
While we’re exploring months and their numbers, February is worth a special mention as “the strangest month of all.” Unlike most months, February has only 28 days in a common year. However, every four years, during a leap year, February gains an extra day, bringing it to 29 days. This adjustment is made to keep our calendar year synchronized with the Earth’s orbit around the sun.
The Lunar Connection to Months
Historically, the concept of a “month” is linked to the moon’s movement. In fact, the words “moon” and “month” share etymological roots. Early calendars were often based on lunar cycles. However, a lunar cycle is slightly shorter than a calendar month, and lunar cycles don’t perfectly fit into a solar year. To create a functional yearly calendar, the number of days in some months was adjusted over time to align with the solar year and seasons. This is why the number of days varies across different months.
Fun Facts About Month Names and Origins
The names of the months themselves have fascinating histories, many tracing back to ancient Roman culture. Originally, the Roman calendar had only ten months!
- Martius: Named for Mars, the Roman god of war.
- Aprilis: Possibly from the Latin word “aperio,” meaning “to open,” referring to the blossoming of flowers in spring.
- Maius: Named for the goddess Maia.
- Iunius: Named for the goddess Juno.
- Quintilis: From Latin “quinque” meaning five (originally the 5th month).
- Sextilis: For six (originally the 6th month).
- September: For seven (originally the 7th month).
- October: For eight (originally the 8th month).
- November: For nine (originally the 9th month).
- December: For ten (originally the 10th month). Think of “decimal,” meaning based on 10!
Around 710 BC, January (named for the god Janus) and February (from Latin “februum” meaning purification) were added to the calendar by Numa Pompilius, the second King of Rome. This addition, while making the calendar more complete, disrupted the numerical naming system of the later months.
Later in Roman history, Quintilis was renamed Iulius (July) in 44 BC to honor Julius Caesar, and Sextilis was renamed Augustus (August) in 8 BC to honor Augustus Caesar. These changes further solidified the twelve-month calendar we use today.
Understanding the number and names of the months, like knowing that May is the 5th month, is fundamental to organizing our lives and understanding the passage of time within a year.
12 Month Calendar Seasons Days Weeks Years Introduction to Days, Weeks, Months and Years Measurement Index
