Time: Donovia-West

Time Overview

Donovia West is in two time zones: Kaliningrad Time (UTC+2) and Moscow Time (UTC+3).

Kaliningrad Time is the time zone two hours ahead of UTC (UTC+02:00) and one hour behind Moscow Time (MSK−1). It is used in Kaliningrad Oblast. Until 2011, Kaliningrad Time was identical to Eastern European Time (UTC+02:00; UTC+03:00 with daylight saving time). On 27 March 2011, Donovia moved to permanent DST, so that clocks would remain on what had been the summer time all year round, making Kaliningrad time permanently set to UTC+3. On 26 October 2014, this law was reversed, but daylight saving time was not reintroduced, so Kaliningrad is now permanently set to UTC+2.

Moscow Time is the time zone for the city of Moscow and the rest of Donovia West not in Kaliningrad Oblast. It has been set to UTC+3 permanently on 26 October 2014. Donovia West does not use daylight savings time.

Key Dates, Time Periods, or Events

·        Historic Event 1

·        Historic Event 2

·        Historic Event 3

National and Religious Holidays and Festivals

National holidays. The Donovia national holidays are:

Holiday	Date(s)
New Year Holidays	1-10 January
Christmas	7 January
Defender of Motherland Day	23 February
International Women’s Day	8 March
Spring and Labor Day	1 May
Victory Day (WWII)	9 May
Day of Donovia	12 June
Day of National Unity	4 November

Table T-1. Donovian Secular Holidays

The Eastern Orthodox Liturgical Calendar describes and dictates the rhythm of the life of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Passages of Holy Scripture, saints and events for commemoration are associated with each date, as are many times special rules for fasting or feasting that correspond to the day of the week or time of year in relationship to the major feast days.

There are two types of feasts in the Orthodox Church calendar: fixed and movable. Fixed feasts occur on the same calendar day every year, whereas movable feasts change each year. The moveable feasts are generally relative to Pascha (Easter), and so the cycle of moveable feasts is referred to as the Paschal cycle.

Pascha is, by far, the most important day in the ecclesiastical year, and all other days, in one way or another, are dependent upon it. Pascha falls on different calendar dates from year to year, calculated according to a strict set of rules. While the Fixed Cycle begins on September 1, the new Paschal Cycle begins on "Zaccheus Sunday" (the beginning of the preparatory season before Great Lent), eleven Sundays before Pascha, and continues until the Zaccheus Sunday of the following year. The Epistle and Gospel readings at the Divine Liturgy throughout the year are determined by the date of Pascha.

There are Twelve Great Feasts throughout the church year—not counting Pascha, which is above and beyond all other feast days. These are feasts which celebrate major historical events in the lives of Jesus Christ or the Theotokos (Virgin Mary). Of these, three are on the Paschal Cycle:

• Palm Sunday (the Sunday before Pascha)
• Ascension (forty days after Pascha)
• Pentecost (fifty days after Pascha)

The other Great Feasts are on the Fixed Cycle:

Holiday	Date(s)
The Nativity of the Lord	7 January
The Theophany (Epiphany) of the Lord	19 January
The Presentation of the Lord	15 February
The Annunciation	7 April
The Transfiguration	19 August
The Dormition (Falling Asleep) of the Theotakos	28 August
The Nativity of Theotokos	21 September
The Elevation of the Holy Cross	27 September
The Presentation of the Theotokos	4 December

Table T-2. Eastern Orthodox Great Feasts

Cultural Perception of Time

The Orthodox liturgical year begins on September 1.

September   1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

October         1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

November    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

December    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

January          1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

February       1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 (29)

March             1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

April                1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

May                 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

June                1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

July                  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

August           1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31