[Introduction]
Hello there, Star Wars fans, and welcome back to Galactic Chronologist! Today, I’m excited to start a new series of articles focused on calendars in the galaxy far, far away. To start, we’ll dive into the ABY–BBY dating system.
[How does it work?]
First, the ABY-BBY dating system is based on standard time, or Coruscant time, which is almost identical to real-world Earth time.
It works simply: the calendar distinguishes events before and after the Battle of Yavin, as seen in Episode IV: A New Hope.
[…]
Until 2023, year zero of the calendar was divided into two halves, 0 BBY, and 0 ABY, distinguishing the parts of that same year before and after the Battle of Yavin. In this way, the finale of Star Wars Rebels took place in the first half of year zero, the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Episode IV: A New Hope took place approximately in the middle of the year, and finally, a large portion of the Star Wars (2015) comic book series took place in the second half of the year.
With the publication of Timelines on April 25, 2023, however, the beginning of year zero was shifted to coincide with the Battle of Yavin. Everything that happened in the twelve months preceding A New Hope is now referred to as 1 BBY, while the film’s events are reported as a generic “zero” and what happened in the following year belongs to 0 ABY.
0 BBY, therefore, no longer exists. The question remains as to how to treat the “zero week” of A New Hope: I find it more straightforward and more logical to consider the first five days of the film as part of 1 BBY (since they precede the Battle of Yavin) and the last two as part of 0 ABY (since they coincide with the Battle of Yavin and the following day).
[History]
From an in-universe point of view, the ABY-BBY dating system was invented after the Battle of Exegol by historian Beaumont Kin, who first presented it in the fictional book The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire.
As my research progressed it became increasingly clear that the history and activities of the Empire could be split into two different sections. Those before the emergence of the Death Star and its destruction at Yavin and those afterward.
[…]
Therefore, I have come to favor a dating system that highlights the years before the Battle of Yavin (BBY) and those that came after (ABY)1.
Later, Ithorian artist Gammit Chond used the same calendar for the collection of maps known as the Galactic Atlas.
Dates in this book are given using the “ABY-BBY” dating system, which is centered on the Battle of Yavin, when the first Death Star was destroyed2.
[Appearances]
So far, the ABY–BBY dating system has been represented four times in Star Wars canon media.
The first mention can be found in the 16th episode of the second season of The Clone Wars, titled Cat and Mouse and released on March 26, 2010. Here, albeit as a mere easter egg, the ABY–BBY dating system appears in the description of Admiral Trench’s dreadnaught cruisers, copied verbatim from the Wookieepedia article of the same name. In this case, using this calendar is completely anachronistic since the episode takes place in 22 BBY. The data screen reads, in Aurebesh:
In 1,002 BBY, three ships of this type formed part of Lord Kaan’s Sith fleet during the First Battle of Ruusan. These three ships were considered a deadly threat to two Hammer-[…]3
The second appearance coincides with the publication of the 25th issue of the ongoing comic series Star Wars (2020) on July 20, 2022. Here, the story A Eulogy for Snap shows a precise chronological reference to the Battle of Exegol.
The third mention also corresponds with the only live-action appearance of the ABY–BBY dating system. This is the first episode of the first season of Andor, titled Kassa, and released on Disney+ on September 21, 2022. Interestingly, the date is «BBY 5» and not «5 BBY».
Finally, the ABY-BBY dating system also appeared in the first issue of the comic book adaptation of the Obi-Wan Kenobi TV series, publicated on September 13, 2023.
[Ending]
That’s a wrap! I hope you enjoyed this article and ask you to let me know what you think about it. I invite you to follow my blog and Twitter account (Galactic_Chrono) and actively participate in comments, suggestions, and discussions. May the Force be with you, and fortune on your side!
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