Sothic year

American  

noun

1. the fixed year of the ancient Egyptians, determined by the heliacal rising of Sirius, and equivalent to 365 days.

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Sothic year British  

noun

1. the fixed year of the ancient Egyptians, 365 days 6 hours long, beginning with the appearance of the star Sirius on the eastern horizon at dawn, which heralded the yearly flooding of the Nile. A Sothic cycle contained 1460 such years

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Etymology

Origin of Sothic year

First recorded in 1820–30; Soth(is) + -ic

Example Sentences

Sothic, sō′thik, adj. of or pertaining to the dog-star Sothis or Sirius.—Sothic cycle, or period, a period of 1460 years; Sothic year, the ancient Egyptian fixed year, according to the heliacal rising of Sirius.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various