| 1. | a calendar devised to be used for many years, as in determining the day of the week on which a given date falls. |
| 2. | a desk calendar with months, days, and dates that can be changed, as by adjusting various dials, so that it may be used over and over for many years. |
| perpetual calendar n. A chart or mechanical device that indicates the day of the week corresponding to any given date over a period of many years. |
perpetual calendar
type of dating system that makes it possible to find the correct day of the week for any date over a wide range of years. Aspects of the perpetual calendar can be found in the Jewish religious and the Julian calendars, and some form of it has appeared in proposed calendar reforms. The 19th-century French philosopher Auguste Comte, for example, proposed a calendar of 13 months of 28 days each, with an extra day (Year Day) inserted between December 28 and January 1 each year and with an additional leap-year day periodically. More recently, reformers promoted the World Calendar, consisting of 12 months divided into 30 and 31 days, with an annual "year-end" day and a periodic leap-year day.
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