Cheshvan

Cheshvan
The Great Flood, which according to the Bible wiped out the world, started in Marcheshvan.
Native nameמַרְחֶשְׁוָן (Hebrew)
CalendarHebrew calendar
Month number8
Number of days29 or 30
SeasonAutumn (Northern Hemisphere)
Gregorian equivalentOctober–November
← Tishrei
Kislev →

Marcheshvan (Hebrew: מַרְחֶשְׁוָן‎, Standard Marḥešvan, Tiberian Marḥešwān; from Akkadian waraḫsamnu, literally, 'eighth month'), sometimes shortened to Cheshvan (חֶשְׁוָן‎, Standard Ḥešvan Tiberian Ḥešwān), is the second month of the civil year (which starts on 1 Tishrei), and the eighth month of the ecclesiastical year (which starts on 1 Nisan) on the Hebrew calendar.

In a regular (kesidran) year, Marcheshvan has 29 days, but because of the Rosh Hashanah postponement rules, in some years, an additional day is added to Marcheshvan to make the year a "full" (maleh) year. Marcheshvan occurs in October–November in the Gregorian calendar.

The Hebrew Bible, before the Babylonian Exile, refers to the month as Bul (1 Kings 6:38). In Sidon, the reference to Bul is also made on the Sarcophagus of Eshmunazar II dated to the early 5th century BC.