Time
Denominations for the passage of Time: On Days, Seasons, Cycles and Festive Days
Time and the division of the Day
On Lume, in its current Rotation (thenceforth C.R.), time is not measured by terrestrial semestral denominations, i.e. hours, minutes. Likewise references to dozens are scarcely mentioned in the oldest Slender archives, and completely unknown to commonfolk. Structuring time by the seasons is a more practical system for the predominantly horticultural population, along with movements of the observable celestial bodies.
The day is divided into the follow: night, pre-dawn, sunrise, early morning, first meal, noon, second meal, midday, afternoon, late afternoon, sunset, third meal, evening, and night. Night is likewise divided by the movements of the moon; thus, moonrise, twilight, moonlit, moonwane, and moonset.
Life moves slowly on Lume, and while commonfolk could hardly be categorised as lazy, they do not expect events or gatherings to occur within a strict time; nor do they hold to strict deadlines unnecessarily. The Slender and Manidae cultures are more regimented than most, with the former using water clocks, decimals, and fractions of ten, and the latter relying on rudimentary sundials - divided by movements of the sun and moon - to enforce their militant class structure. The movements of celestial bodies are highly regarded by the Slenders, the study of which is used to ascertain and record long periods of time, amongst other things. A Cycle equates to four seasons, or 365 days, a Turn is roughly a generation, and a Rotation denotes 10,000 Cycles, and represents an epoch. This system may yet see dramatic changes.
As the Continent lacks an enforced universal system, each race, culture, all the way down to a singular village, can have their own names for sequences of time, and their own festive days. For the sake of trade, the Slenders have encouraged some regularity in the more populated regions. The beginning and end of each season (see below) is celebrated, much as was done in medieval terrestrial days, though without religious connotations. The demise of the the Liche Lord is commemorated by some, the significance of which is remembered by less. Particular regions also celebrate specific dates for their own reasons; the founding of their village, a past victory or defeat, the installation of a life-changing marvel - such as a well or mill - the visit of a celebrated figure, and a plethora of other reasons. The complexity of the celebration, and its root cause, largely depends on the size of the local populace.
Seasons and the cycle of Days
Common names for the four Seasons are:
- Rising/The Rise (Spring)
- Growing/The Growth (Summer)
- Falling/The Fall (Autumn)
- Waiting/The Wait (winter)
The length of each season depends on many factors, including but not limited to observing natural phenomena.
Days repeat in a cycle of ten, the names of which are derived from notable figures in the Schism.
Names of the days are listed alongside their respective origin.
- Di'Taal - Frost Giant Revolutionary Leader
- Di'Li - Frost Giant
- Di'Klei - Deumana
- Di'Knaar - Deumana
- Di'Kin - Deumana
- Di'Tir - Deumana
- Di'Soph - Slender Champion
- Di'Tris - Gardener Champion (rumored to still roam the Continent)
- Di'Gan - Manidae Champion
- Di'Phen - Folk Champion
It is worth mentioning that these namedays are common amongst the Slenders and most allied Races, but disputed and disused by many Sunfolk, Manidae Aristrocrats, the Necromae, and some known Mythos. These loyal Deumanists supplant the days commemorating non-Deumana with those of other dead gods, whose titles and histories are unknown to the uninitiated.
Each season's end observes a nundinae, with another additional day appended for the end of the Cycle, amounting to 365 days in total.
