01-10-2025, 03:21 PM
This calendar era takes as its epoch the traditionally reckoned year of the conception or birth of Jesus. Years AD are counted forward since that epoch and years BC are counted backward from the epoch. There is no year zero in this scheme; thus the year AD 1 immediately follows the year 1 BC. This dating system was devised in 525 by Dionysius Exiguus but was not widely used until the 9th century.
It might help if you realize that the term anno Domini is Medieval Latin and means "in the year of the Lord".
So 1AD is basically the first "year of the Lord". 1BC is 1 "year before Christ".
(Which oddly enough is not accurate now, as modern scholars think that Christ was born back in 5 BC...)
It might help if you realize that the term anno Domini is Medieval Latin and means "in the year of the Lord".
So 1AD is basically the first "year of the Lord". 1BC is 1 "year before Christ".
(Which oddly enough is not accurate now, as modern scholars think that Christ was born back in 5 BC...)