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Did the year zero never exist ? (lemmy.ml)

submitted 5 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Please explain my confused me like I'm 5 (0r 4 or 6).

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 months ago (5 children)

This explanation is unclear to me. Why do we choose the later of the two endpoints of the year for (0, 1) but the earlier of the two for (-1, 0)?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago)

Absolute value. Both systems count time from the same epoch, or zero point.

One year before the epoch is 1 January 1BCE One year after the epoch is 31 December, 1CE.

Half a year before the epoch (-0.5 years) is June 30, 1BCE. Half a year after the epoch (0.5 years) is July 1st, 1CE. These dates occur within the first year before the epoch, and the first year after the epoch, respectively.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 months ago

Because until the Middle Ages, Europeans were afraid of the number 0.

[–] GlendatheGayWitch 1 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago)

Remember originally that -1 was 1 BC, meaning 1 year before the birth of christ. The negative numbers are measuring the distance away from 0.

Edit: in the positive direction, the 1 was 1 AD, meaning the first year of our lord. Just like when talking about the reign of kings/queens, the first year of their reign is 1 and the 14th year that they reigned is 14. I believe the timekeeping for Ages in LOTR may also be similar.

[–] Entropywins 1 points 5 months ago

Moving from too... not too from

[–] [email protected] -2 points 5 months ago

For the same reason why 1.5 is on the right from 1 but -1.5 is on the left from -1