Legal Definition and Related Resources of Calends

Among the Romans, who followed the lunar calendar , the term signified the first day of each month or the very day of the new moon, which usually happened together.

Among the Romans, the first day of every month, being spoken of by itself, or the very day of the new moon, which usually happen together. And if pridie, the day before, be added to it, then it is the last day of the foregoing month, as pridie calend. Septemb. is the last day of August. If any number be placed with it, it signifies that day in the former month which comes so much before the month named, as the tenth calends of October is the 20th day of September; for if one reckons backwards, beginning at October, that 20th day of September makes the 10th day before October. In March, May, July, and October, the calends begin at the sixteenth day, but in other months at the fourteenth; which calends must ever bear the name of the month following, and be numbered backwards from the first day of the said following months. Jacob. See “Ides” for table of calends, nones, and ides.

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Calends in Historical Law

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What does Calends mean in American Law?

The definition of Calends in the law of the United States, as defined by the lexicographer Arthur Leff in his legal dictionary is:

In Roman law and (very roughly), the first day of the month.

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This definition of Calends Is based on the The Cyclopedic Law Dictionary . This definition needs to be proofread..

Vocabularies (Semantic Web Information)

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Meaning of Ides, Nones and Calends in the Past

This mode of computing time, formerly in use among the Romans, is yet used in several chanceries in, Europe, particularly in that of the pope. Many ancient instruments bear these dates; it is therefore, proper to notice them here. These three words name all the days of the month.

Developments

The calends were the first day of every month and were known by adding the names of the months; as calendis januarii, calendis februarii, for the first days of the months of January and February. They named the following days by those before the nones. The fifth day of each month, except those of March, May, July and October; in those four months the nones suggestd the seventh day; nonis martii, was therefore, the seventh day of March and so of the rest. In those months in which the nones suggestd the fifth day, the second was called quarto nonas or 4 nonas, that is to say, quarto die ante nonas, the fourth day before the nones. The words die and ante, being understood, were usually suppressed. The third day of each of those eight months was called tertio or 3 nonas. The fourth, was pridie or 2 nonas; and the fifth was nonas. In the months of March, May, July and October, the second day of the months was called sexto or 6 nonas; the third, quinto or 5 nonas; the fourth, quarto or 4 nonas; the fifth, tertio or 3 nonas; the sixth, pridie, usually abridged prid. or pr. or 2 nonas; and the seventh, nones. The word nonae is so applied, it is said, because it suggests the ninth day before the ides of each month.

Details

In the months of March, May, July and October, the fifteenth day of the months was the Ides. These are the four mouths, as above mentioned, in which the nones were on the seventh day. In the other eight months of the year the nones were the fifth of the month and the ides the thirteenth in each of them the ides suggestd the ninth day after the nones. The seven days between the nones and the ides, which we count 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14, in March, May, July and October, the Romans counted octave or 8 idus; septimo or 7 idus; sexto or 6 idus; quinto or 5 idus; quarto or 4 idus; tertio or 3 idus; pridie or 2, idus; the word ante being understood as mentioned above. As to the other eight mouths of the year, in which the nones suggestd the fifth day of the month, instead of our 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12, the Romans counted octavo idus, septimo, etc. The word is said to be derived from the Tuscan, iduare, in Latin dividere, to divide, because the day of ides divided the month into equal parts. The days from the ides to the end of the month were computed as follows; for example, the fourteenth day of January, which was the next day after the ides, was called decimo nono or 19 kalendas or ante kalendas febrarii; the fifteenth, decimo octavo or 18 kalindas februarii and so of the rest. Counting in a, retrograde way to pridie
or 2 kalendas februarii, which was the thirty-first day of January.

Other Aspects

As in some months the ides suggest the thirteenth and in some the fifteenth of the month and as the months have not an equal number of days, it follows that the decimo nono or 19 kalendas did not always happen to be the next day after the Ides, this was the case only in the months of January, August and December. Decimo sexto or the 16th in Fedruary; decimo septimo or 17, March, May, July and October; decimo octave or 18, in April, June, September and November. Merlin, Répertoire de Jurisprudence, mots Ides, Nones et Calendes.

More Information

A Table of the Calends of the Nones and the Ides.
Jan., Aug., Dec. March, May, April, June, February 28,
31 days. July, Oct., Sept., Nov., bissextile,
31 days. 30 days. 29 days.
1 Calendis. Calendis Calendis Calendis
2 4 Nonas. 6 Nonas 4 Nonas 4 Nonas
3 3 Nonas. 5 Nonas 3 Nonas 3 Nonas
4 Prid. Non. 4 Nonas Prid. Non. Prid. Non.
5 Nonis 3 Nonas Nonis Nonis
6 8 Idus Prid. Non. 8 Idus 8 Idus
7 7 Idus Nonis 7 ]dus 7 Idus
8 6 Idus 8 Idus 6 Idus 6 Idus
9 5 Idus 7 Idus 5 Idus 5 Idus
10 4 Idus 6 Idus 4 Idus 4 Idus
11 3 Idus 5 Idus 3 Idus 3 Idus
12 Prid. Idus 4 Idus Prid. Idus Prid. Idus
18 Idibus 3 Idus Idibiis Idibus
14 19 Cal. Prid. Idus 18 Cal. 16 Cal.
15 18 Cal. Idibus 17 Cal. 15 Cal.
16 17 Cal. 17 Cal. 16 Cal. 14 Cal.
17 16 Cal. 16 Cal. 15 Cal. 3 Cal.
18 15 Cal. 15 Cal. 14 Cal. 12 Cal.
19 14 Cal. 14 Cal. 13 Cal. 11 Cal.
20 18 Chl. 13 Cal. 12 Cal. 10 Cal.
21 12 Cal. 12 Cal. 11 Cal. 9 Cal.
22 11 Cal. 11 Cal. 10 Cal. 8 Cal.
23 10 Cal. 10 Cal. 9 Cal. 7 Cal.
24 9 Cal. 9 Cal. 8 Cal. 6 Cal.*
25 8 Cal. 9 Cal. 7 Cal. 5 Cal.
26 7 Cal. 7 Cal. 6 Cal. 4 Cal.
27 6 Cal. 6 Cal. 5 Cal. 3 Cal.
28 5 Cal. 5 Cal. 4 Cal. Prid. Cal. 29 4 Cal. 4 Cal. 3 Cal.
30 3 Cal. 3 Cal. Prid. Cal.
31 Prid. Cal. Prid. Cal.
* If February is bissextile, Sexto Calencas (6 Cal.) it is counted twice, viz: for the 24th and 25th of the month, Hence the word bis-sextile. [1]

Resources

Notes and References

1. Partialy, this information about ides, nones and calends is based on the Bouvier´s Law Dictionary, 1848 edition. There is a list of terms of the Bouvier´s Law Dictionary, including ides, nones and calends.

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