calendaring

Calendaring is the practice of planning and recording dates, times, and events in a calendar system. It supports organization, scheduling, and time management by providing a structured view of days and weeks and by enabling the allocation of resources, deadlines, and reminders.

Calendar systems have evolved from ancient methods to modern civil calendars. Solar calendars align with the solar year; the Gregorian calendar is the most widely used civil solar calendar. Lunar calendars base months on lunar cycles, and lunisolar calendars combine lunar months with a solar year. Leap years adjust for the mismatch between the calendar and astronomical year.

In practice, calendaring involves creating events with a date, start time, duration, and metadata such as location, attendees, and notes. Recurrent events, time zones, and reminders help manage schedules across locations and devices. Calendars can be personal or shared within organizations to coordinate availability and planning.

Digital calendaring uses software and standards to store, synchronize, and exchange calendar data. Common features include multiple calendars, color-coding, invitations, reminders, and offline access. Data is often exchanged using the iCalendar format (ICS) or protocols such as CalDAV and iTIP, enabling interoperability across platforms.

Calendaring intersects with holidays, work planning, and event management, and it is a core component of productivity tools and enterprise scheduling systems.