Mayan Calendar Date Converter

What is a Mayan Calendar Date Converter?

A Mayan Calendar Date Converter is a tool that translates dates between the Gregorian calendar (the standard calendar used worldwide today) and the ancient Mayan Long Count calendar. This converter helps archaeologists, historians, and enthusiasts understand and interpret Mayan dates in the context of our modern calendar system.

Formula

The conversion between Gregorian and Mayan dates involves complex calculations. The core formula relates to the number of days since a reference date:

\[ \text{Days} = \text{Mayan Long Count} - \text{Correlation Constant} \]

Where:

• \(\text{Days}\) is the number of days since the Gregorian reference date (usually January 1, 1970)
• \(\text{Mayan Long Count}\) is the number of days in the Mayan calendar since its epoch
• \(\text{Correlation Constant}\) is the difference between the Mayan and Gregorian reference dates (varies based on correlation theory used)

Calculation Steps

1. Convert the Mayan Long Count to days since the Mayan epoch
2. Subtract the correlation constant to get days since the Gregorian reference date
3. Add these days to the Gregorian reference date
4. Convert the result to year, month, and day in the Gregorian calendar

Example

Let's convert the Mayan date 13.0.0.0.0 to its Gregorian equivalent:

\[ \begin{align} \text{Mayan Long Count} &= 13 \times 144000 + 0 \times 7200 + 0 \times 360 + 0 \times 20 + 0 \times 1 \\[10pt] &= 1872000 \text{ days} \\[10pt] \text{Correlation Constant} &= 584283 \text{ (using GMT correlation)} \\[10pt] \text{Days since Gregorian reference} &= 1872000 - 584283 = 1287717 \text{ days} \\[10pt] \text{Gregorian date} &= \text{December 21, 2012} \end{align} \]

Visual Representation

This visual representation illustrates the conversion of the Mayan Long Count date 13.0.0.0.0 to its Gregorian equivalent, December 21, 2012. The top box represents the Mayan date, while the bottom box shows the corresponding Gregorian date. The arrow indicates the conversion process.