almanachus

Almanachus is a rarely attested scholarly term referring to a bound compilation of annual calendars and astronomical tables produced for navigators, merchants, and scholars in the late medieval and early modern periods. In most discussions, the object is treated as a historical precursor or variant of the more familiar almanac.

Etymology and background are tied to the broader almanac tradition. The form almanachus appears to derive from Latin usage, with connections to the Old French almanache or almanac, reflecting a transmission of calendrical and astronomical literature across medieval Europe.

Contents and structure of an almanachus typically included yearly calendars, ephemerides of the sun and moon, planetary positions, and predictions of eclipses. Many editions also offered tide tables for coastal ports, along with practical data such as weather hints, agricultural notes, and lists of saints’ days. Manuscripts often organized material by month, sometimes accompanied by marginal commentary for navigators and merchants.

History and distribution show that almanachus-like compilations appeared in a handful of Latin and vernacular manuscripts from urban centers in Italy, Iberia, and northern Europe. The term itself is infrequent in surviving catalogues; scribes more often described the works as almanacs or calendrical compendia. With the rise of print culture in the 16th to 18th centuries, many specialized calendrical texts were distributed as standard almanacs, and the specific label almanachus largely fell from common usage.

Modern scholarship treats almanachus as a niche term of book history and calendrical studies, valuable for understanding the diversity of early calendrical literature and its production practices. See also: Almanac, Ephemeris, Calendarium, Book history.