Here's a breakdown:
* Lunar month: This refers to the time it takes for the moon to complete one cycle of phases, from new moon to full moon and back to new moon again. This is approximately 29.5 days.
* Reckoned: This means "to calculate" or "to count".
* Time was reckoned in lunar months: This indicates that the society used the lunar month as the primary unit for measuring time. They might have had a calendar based on lunar months, and their year would likely have been 12 lunar months long (though it might not have exactly aligned with the solar year).
Examples of cultures that used lunar months:
* Ancient Babylonians: Their calendar was based on a cycle of 12 lunar months.
* Ancient Egyptians: Their calendar was initially lunar, though they eventually adopted a solar calendar.
* Many indigenous cultures: Many cultures around the world still use lunar calendars or incorporate lunar cycles into their timekeeping.
Why lunar months?
Lunar cycles are very obvious and easy to observe. The moon's phases are a visible and predictable pattern in the night sky. This made them a natural way to track time before more precise methods were developed.
