The Impossibility of Counting Years Since Human Creation
Counting years since the creation of humans is an intriguing concept, yet it is fraught with difficulty due to the lack of a concrete starting point. The exact moment when the first human walked on Earth remains elusive, whether we consider the traditional Biblical perspective of Adam and Eve or the scientific viewpoint of the emergence of Homo sapiens.
The Importance of Starting Points in Creating Calendars
Throughout history, every culture that developed a calendar or recorded years had to define a starting point. This starting point could be the beginning of a ruler's reign, a significant man-made or natural event, or other notable occurrences. However, these starting points are inherently arbitrary in human terms, as we merely place a marker on the vast timeline of history and begin counting from there.
Examples of Arbitrary Starting Points
Christianity: The Christian calendar starts with the birth of Christ, despite the date being somewhat arbitrary. Other religious and cultural calendars also have their own unique starting points, such as the Jewish calendar, which is based on the traditionally accepted creation of the world as described in the Book of Genesis.
The Jewish Calendar: According to the Hebrew time reckoning, we are currently in the sixth millennium. The beginning of the year 2022 in the Gregorian calendar corresponds to the year 5782 in the Jewish calendar. This number is calculated by adding up the genealogies found in the Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible.
Other Cultures: Each non-Christian or non-Hebrew culture that concerns itself with counting years has its own method. This makes it nearly impossible to definitively determine the year of any event in human history, as many different starting points and values could be used.
Arbitrary Starting Values and Points
The starting point and value are entirely arbitrary, and this becomes evident when we consider alternative options. For instance:
Emperor Naruhito's Ascension: If we count from the ascension of Emperor Naruhito, this year would be Reiwa 4. Start of History: If we were to define the start of history as 10,000 years before the Common Era (CE), then the current year would be 12,022. Homo Sapiens Emergence: Defining the emergence of Homo sapiens as 520,000 years ago (which is a rough estimate based on current scientific research) would make this year 522,022 in terms of years since the emergence of our species.The Practicality of Large Numbers
However, using such large numbers, as in the case of the Homo sapiens emergence, becomes impractical. Taxonomists and anthropologists do not have precise dates for when Homo sapiens emerged, with estimates ranging from 250,000 to 500,000 years ago. Furthermore, nothing significant happened for the first 250,000 years, with the most notable event being possibly the genetic bottleneck in around year 230,000.
A New Starting Point - Birth of Krister Sundelin
Interestingly, we could define a starting point based on a specific event in modern history. For instance, if we declared this year to be the 52nd year after the birth of Krister Sundelin, it would provide a specific and relatable point of reference. Such an arbitrary starting point would make the calculation of historical years more straightforward and relatable for contemporary readers.
Ultimately, the nature of time and human history makes it impossible to definitively determine the year of any event. The starting point we choose is entirely arbitrary, and the value we assign to that point is a subjective decision. While alternative starting points can provide interesting perspectives, they must be seen as just that - alternative and relative.