Have you ever thought about Why is 1 minute 60 Seconds , not 100 seconds? Why does it have to be 60? Well, thank you to the Babylonians for making our clocks 60 seconds! Why do we have to thank them?
Because “60 seconds = 1 minute” was deliberately made to make it easier to calculate our time. Why is it easier? Because the number “60” is a number that can be divided by more than 100!
Can you guess why is 1 minute 60 seconds?
Because 60 can be divided by 2, 3, 4, 5 to 6. So because it can be divided equally by many numbers, it will be very easy for us to ask people what time it is. No need to bother! Because we can divide half an hour, a third of an hour, a quarter of an hour, a fifth of an hour to 10 minutes!
Well, if one hour is equal to 100 minutes, time will be more difficult to divide. Because it can only be roundly divided by 2, 4, 5, and 10 itself. Imagine how difficult it is to ask, “I’m sorry, what time is it now?”, And then he replied, “Oh, ma’am, it’s 10,66666 now”. Oh, it’s so tricky!
Even deeper
After our previous question about why 1 minute is 60 seconds, now we have to ask a much deeper question: why is it that one day is also 24 hours, not 60 hours? It’s really strange, isn’t it, a day really must be 24 hours. Why does it have to be 24? Isn’t it very abstract?
Now! Guess what? These 24 hours also came from… *get ready*… Babylonians (again)! Thank you Babylonians!
The name “Babylon” is indeed a local name that developed in the region of Babylon, and actually, Babylon itself came from the Greeks.
So, these Babylonians use the base “12” in their counting system! For the analogy, their “12” is “10” for us now. All of their calculation logic is based on 12, not 10. But, then the next question arises: why 12? Why can’t Babylon like us just use base “10”??
Can you imagine their money? Maybe the fraction is not 100, but the fraction is 240! Whoa!
Well, the reason why it is 12 is that “12” is a number that is very easy to divide! (Do you realize it?) Same as 60! And 60 is also actually the base of 12! (If calculated, 12 x 5 = 60).
So, that convenience is a very reasonable reason for them to define time-based on the number 12, rather than base 10. Voilà! So, it explains another reason why 1 minute is 60 seconds.
Simple logic
Therefore, the Babylonians later defined the period between sunrise and sunset into 12 parts. That is 12 parts of day and night, which in total equals 24 hours!
Still, in the old days, the Babylonians were already really hipsters: they could create time like our AM and PM today.
Change our time!
The funny thing is, in 1794 in France, there was once a proposal to divide the time of day into 10 hours, 100 minutes, and 100 seconds based on the decimal number system. Because it makes more sense right!??
Was this change effort successful? In short: the proposal failed miserably… For obvious reasons… Time with a base 10 number like this, is hard to divide, and people at that time were also used to the existing base “12” counting system.
We already talk about time, so I don’t think it’s complete if we don’t talk about calendars /dating systems as well.
Every turn of the year, we get a new calendar. Then, we also used to create a sequence of the names of the months in one year along with the number of days. Yeah, one year has 12 months. But, why does our calendar system have to have 12 months in a year? Why not, like, 20 months? What is the calculation basis?
Why Calendar?
Perhaps we know various calendars, such as the Roman, Gregorian, Julian, Islamic, Chinese and Indian calendars. And, every calendar has different calculations. This calendar is created to manage time in a specific period. Well, these different calendar calculations are based on astronomical calculations, the choice is you follow the sun’s calculations or the moon’s calculations. People of the past were certainly smart that used to make a complicated system like this so that the time calculation is more certain, right? So, how did this calendar come to be?
The calendar function that we think is commonplace, originated from simple things like changing seasons… It’s not complicated to decide when it is winter and when it is summer.
Our Smart Ancestors
Our ancestors used to make calendars based on various kinds of calculations. From astronomical calculations, changing seasons, and political events to apocalyptic predictions. Generally, these calendars are made for seasonal calculations. Well, the system follows the sun, like the ancient Babylonian and ancient Egyptian calendars. FYI, this calendar is arguably the most ancient of all calendars. And, this system is the same as the Greek calendar and the other western calendars. Then why follow the sun’s calculations?
The calendar that is mainly used is based on the solar calculation system. But how can a collection of days be referred to as a month? And, why are there 12 months in one year?
Because as we know, people in ancient times have an economic system such as agriculture. For example, knowing when it’s winter and summer. Over time, the calendar is made according to religious events, yes for the big day. Well, these two things have long made the calendar the ‘social contract’ in the world, because it is constantly used. Then, how was the beginning of the calendar made?
Not only was it born because of the change of seasons, but the calendar was also born from political events including the calendar that we use today.
Previous Calendar and Current Calendar
It’s long to be clear about this calendar. In short, the calendar we use now adopts the Roman calendar system. Initially, the system in this Roman calendar had only 10 months or 304 days a year. However, this number of 10 months is then considered less appropriate, because it cannot be synchronized with the changing seasons that occur.
Before 12 months, we used a calendar that was only 10 months. But it doesn’t go well because it doesn’t suit the changing seasons, finally, it has to add 2 new months at the beginning of the year.
Finally, the Roman Emperor at that time, Numa Pompilius, added 2 new months, January and February. And then after that, it was refined by the Julian calendar system, which was named after Julius Caesar, the Roman emperor of the time. And, this calendar system was also adapted from ancient Egyptian calendar calculations. Since it has been approved for 12 months, we can schedule the change of year starting on January 1. The thing is, we used to celebrate a new year every March.
Now, plus two months, the calendar with the 12-month system is more suitable for drawing the rotation of the earth against the sun. And, two months were renamed, July and August. This is for the honor of Julius Caesar.
The Birth of the Gregorian Calendar
Then, when the peoples of Europe began to develop science and understand astronomy, this Julian calendar system was replaced by the Gregorian calendar system, which we continue to use today. The reason for the replacement of the Julian calendar is because the Julian calendar states that one year is 365.25 days, or it turns out to be 11 minutes excess from the actual rotation of the earth against the sun. Although it sounds small, it’s only 11 minutes, the excess of 11 minutes can accumulate every year and cause the Julian calendar to be adjusted every 128 years.
But to calculate a calendar that’s not that simple, the Julian Calendar has to be adjusted every 128 years. I guess it was quite a hassle until finally replaced by the Gregorian calendar system, which we know now.
Therefore, the Gregorian calendar was introduced, stating that one year is 365.2425 days, which more accurately describes the rotation of the earth against the sun. And there’s also a leap year every February.
The calendar is an accurate time calculation system because time likes to change. This calendar system has been used until now because it has been ‘standardized‘.
What about Nowadays?
Phew… Finally, we have a calendar…can be easy to mark a payroll date, date of birth, and the date for vacation…
Now, everyone in the world uses the Gregorian calendar, even though it’s the western calendar. Other calendars are also still used as they are today, such as the Chinese or Islamic Calendars. Well, why did it end up being the Roman calendar, not despite the colonial period, which brought the colonies into the same system? Because invaders, like the British, used this Roman calendar system. Therefore, this type of calendar is considered appropriate to describe the change of seasons and other adjustments such as religious celebrations.
Now, we finally know that our calendar holds a lot of history and long calculations. So from now on, don’t be shy about displaying calendars because it’s as cool as displaying paintings and posters on the walls of your home.
Everything ends happily
So, this is the time system we are using now. It may seem trivial, but there is a lot of complex thinking behind our “1 minute = 60 seconds”!
And once again we need to thank the Babylonians and other ancient civilizations because, with their system, it is easier for us to ask people for the time without having to calculate using a calculator.
Phew!
Now, I hope you fully understand why 1 minute is 60 seconds.
So what time is it? I’ve got to go, thank you.
