Telling Time on Seari
For Condi, Rikondi and the southern Seari countries, how they tell time was created by the Jonna Empire, and is still in use thousands of years later.
A sunmark refers to the daylight hours, from 8 Early Morning to 24 Late Afternoon.
A moonmark refers to the nighttime hours, from 24 Late Afternoon to 8 Early Morning.
'Mark is a general term that refers to either a sunmark, moonmark, or both. 'Marks are divided into fourths, but these divisions are rarely used in everyday life; schedules, meetings and the like always begin on the 'mark. In common usage, people say, "Meet me during Early Morning", though if a more specific time is desired, the 'mark number is used; e.g. "Meet me at 8".
There are 32 'marks in a day, 64 minutes in a 'mark, and 64 seconds in a minute.
The 32 'marks are divided into 2 'mark segments and given a general name associated with that particular time.
Midday and midnight have double segments. In common usage, if a more specific time is required, people usually refer to them as “First Midday” and “Second Midday”, and “First Midnight” and “Second Midnight”. There has been a shift in recent years to using “First ‘Mark of Midnight”, etc., but this is not widespread.
On the summer solstice (Sands 1 Ghazhioh), the sun rises at 4 and sets at 26, and on the winter solstice (Rivers 1 Ghazhioh), the sun rises at 8 and sets at 22.
The Jonna Empire set the precedent for the workday, and most Seari countries follow that tradition. A normal workday is 10-12 ‘marks, with reputable businesses giving their employees two ‘marks for their midday (or midnight) meal. Due to the ubiquitousness of magickal lights, many businesses have daytime workers and nighttime workers, especially those that rely on physical labor, like the Docks warehouses. In Soline's larger towns and cities, the transition between these shifts is called the Switch, and lasts a couple of ‘marks between Late Dawn and Early Morning, and Late Afternoon and Early Evening.
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