The first-time visitor to Thailand may register a bit of confusion as to why the timing of some important Buddhist and traditional holidays seems to 'float' across the calendar rather than occurring on fixed days each year as is customary in the West.The answer is such holidays are scheduled according to the ancient Thai lunar calendar, rather than the western Gregorian calendar which has been official in the Kingdom for many years.However, the traditional lunar calendar is very much in use for determining Thai holidays.Rural Thais still mostly count the date according to the phases of the moon, and Thai calendars distributed in rural areas commonly show both the western date together with the Thai lunar date.Astrologers also use lunar calendars to fix auspicious days for weddings, journeys, the dedication of a new house, and similar important occasions.
