Fasli Calender of Hyderabad
Click here to download the article “The Fasli Era as used in Hyderabad“
For decades, the official administrative calendar used by the government of Hyderabad was based on the Persian Fasli era with certain modifications similar to the Mughals of Delhi.
This article gives details of the Hyderabadi Fasli calendar along with conversion tables to the Gregorian calendar.
Some other interesting details were given by Bakhtyar Kaoosji in 2011 when he posted the following message on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/230979545799/permalink/10153626429980800/. Please note that the article “The Fasli Era as used in Hyderabad” gives more precise dates for conversion.
Kaoosji writes as follows:
An article I had written in 2011 on the famous FASLI CALENDAR .
One of the Mughal legacies which continued unabated in the administration of Hyderabad State of the Asaf Jahs until 1948 was the official calendar known as the FASLI calendar, which is still in use in Hyderabad and the other states of India mainly by the different Waqf Boards and partly in collecting revenues from agricultural products by Karnataka, Kerala and Tamilnadu.
HEH The Nizam’s Trusts also use this calendar. It is printed annually and is available in select shops in Hyderabad City. This calendar displays both Hijri and Fasli eras and highlights Eids, religious functions, details of various Urs held in the state, birth and death anniversaries, prayer timings, Ramzan ul Mubarak timings for Sehri and Iftaar etc. Some sections of the population call it the Jantri (calendar).
Fasli is derived from the word Fasl or Harvest which is the Arabic term for Division. In India was applied to groupings of the seasons. It is an Arabized Urdu word and the Fasli year means a period of twelve (12 months ) from July to June. The first day of the Fasli year is around the 7th or 8th.
I will elucidate the reasons why the Hijri calendar had to be modified, the people entrusted to do the job and the end result culminating in issuance of the Royal Farman by Mughal Emperor Jalaluddin Mohammed Akbar also known as Shahanshah- e -Alam or Akbar the Great, who was born on 15.10.1542 CE, died 27.10.1606 CE and ruled from 1556-1606 CE.
Abul Fazal, renowned scholar and minister of Akbar, explains in the “AKBAR- NAMA ” that the Hijri calendar was used to collect revenue from the farmers. As per his explanation, the use of Hijri calendar became irksome for the peasantry because there was a difference of 11-12 days between the lunar and solar years with 31 lunar = 30 solar years. Revenue collected was as per the lunar year whereas the harvest was dependent on the solar year.
Abu Al-Fath Jalaluddin Mohammed Akbar commissioned Amir Fathullah Shirazi, (later known as Asad-ud-Daula), a noted Persian astronomer in the royal court, with the task.
Changes had to be incorporated not only in the Hijri calendar but also in the Samvat calendar. The year of changeover was incorporated to coincide with the year of Akbar’s accession to the throne as Emperor of India in 963AH (1555-1556 CE or 1612 SE). Accordingly, 1 Muharram 963 AH was made the starting point of the TARIQ-e-ELAHI as it was named. Since the month of Muharram coincided with the month of Baisakh, the month of Baisakh was made the first month of the new era instead of the month of Chaitra in the Samvat calendar. Akbar arbitrarily took 649 years from the Samvat year i.e. 1612-649=963 in order to coincide it with the year 963 AH.
The Fasli calendar came into being with a royal proclamation in the 29th regnal year of Akbar or on 10/11 March 1584 CE or 992 AH but it was dated from his accession to the throne on 5.11.1556 or 10 Rabi-ul-Awal 963 AH.
Emperor Shah Jahan the grandson of Akbar introduced the Fasli calendar in 1630 CE in the Deccan Subah (province) which continued as the official calendar of Asaf Jahi rulers until September 1948, a period of 318 years. This calendar is being used continuously for the last four and a half centuries.
As the person who developed this calendar was of Persian origin and the language of the Mughal Court was also Persian, the months attributed to the Fasli calendar were accordingly named with slight modification. Listed below are the names of Fasli months.
- Tir
- Amordad
- Shehrevar
- Meher
- Aban
- Azar
- Deh
- Behman
- Esfandar
- Farvardi
- Ardibehisht
- Khurdad
A simple way to transpose FASLI year to Gregorian year is by ADDING 591. As an example 10 Farvardi 1346 F will work out to be 11 February 1937 AD.
With Best Wishes,
Captain Bakhtyar S Kaoosji
KL- Malaysia
Wednesday 12 Oct 2011