Happy 20 13 to all.

[Eagle]

May I wish everyone a Happy New Year.
Hopefully people will now pronounce 20 13 , not 2,013.

[SepticSkeptic]

Yes, 20 13 CE

[Eagle]

I can blame the Scot's duo for many things but not that.

Where does CE come from. I call in AD, as I assumed was correct, I assume you have made a mistake.

[chrisj1948]

Where does CE come from. I call in AD, as I assumed was correct, I assume you have made a mistake.

Common Era. To avoid offending the sensibilities of non-Christian folk.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Era

Regards
Chris

[Eagle]

Thanks for explanation
Now I have heard everything. PC gone mad.
It will not surprise good folk out there that I will continue with the correct term AD.

I expect the BBC and Guardian are behind this.

[14BradfordRoad]

Must admit to being one of the 2,013 people although only familiar with AD!
Isn't 20-13 an American-ism, a bit like 9-11, etc?

With so many things changing I can't always keep up, especially some of the terminology!

[Rachael]

Must admit to being one of the 2,013 people although only familiar with AD!
Isn't 20-13 an American-ism, a bit like 9-11, etc?

With so many things changing I can't always keep up, especially some of the terminology!

It's not an Americanism. I don't remember us all saying 'Nineteen thousand and ninth nine'. We said 19 99. In the year 2000, saying 'two thousand' made more sense than saying 20 Zero. Then saying 'two thousand and...' became a habit. There isn't a correct or incorrect way of saying the year, just preference.

[ Post made via Mobile Device ]

[14BradfordRoad]

It's not an Americanism. I don't remember us all saying 'Nineteen thousand and ninth nine'. We said 19 99. In the year 2000, saying 'two thousand' made more sense than saying 20 Zero. Then saying 'two thousand and...' became a habit. There isn't a correct or incorrect way of saying the year, just preference.

[ Post made via Mobile Device ]

Very true Rachael, probably a habit and 20-13 is quicker to say too. There's nearly a whole second to be saved here, just try it!
Time is money and all that!

[Robin Orton]

Everyone says ten sixty-six, nineteen-o-one, etc. So why did we break the mould and start saying two thousand and one etc instead of twenty-o-one etc? One theory I read is that everyone felt obliged to follow the precedent set by the Stanley Kubrick film, which was always (but why? sounds more portentous, perhaps) pronounced 'Two Thousand and One: A Space Odyssey.'

I prefer the old ways. On the other hand, I must say I'm quite happy with CE and BCE instead of AD and BC; I suspect they are used more often than not by academic hIstorians nowadays. After all, Jesus isn't everyone's Dominus.

Anyway, happy twenty thirteen everybody - even to those inconsiderate souls somewhere in upper Sydenham who treated us to half an hour of very loud fireworks in the middle of the night and kept us all awake.

[Eagle]

Robin
Perhaps CE stands for Christian era and BCE before christian era,that would make more sense than common era ( what is common about it )

[Robin Orton]

I suppose they'll be re-naming Wednesday next - after all Woden isn't anyone's god anymore. This constant politization of language really is one of the dumbest pseudo-intellectual crimes of our 'tolerent' society.

Not a new idea, though. Under Christian influence, some European languages (e.g. Portuguese and Greek I believe) abandoned the planetary/heathen god names for the days of the week centuries ago, and gave them numbers instead, counting from Sunday as one. I gather something similar was incorporated in the decimal calendar introduced during the French Revolution.

In any case, difficult to insulate the way we use language from politics or ideology, I'd have thought.

what is common about it?

Nearly everybody uses it, not just Christians.

[CaptainCarCrash]

Stuff religion, embrace spiritualism.

Happy MMX111.

[14BradfordRoad]

Stuff religion, embrace spiritualism.

Happy MMX111.

But that's my point. Society seems to be embracing politics, at least as far as language is concerned.

Apart from moi' as I'm very often Politically Incorrect, although quite proud of it!
Stuff the politics, embrace your instincts untill proved otherwise!

[14BradfordRoad]

Hoorah!!

It's now Year Zero of the Reformed Mayan Calendar.

[Eagle]

We should be OK for another 500 years
or so then..