Why do Nanakshahi and Bikrami share month names?

The Nanakshahi calendar was a 2003 reform of the day-counting system (from lunisolar to solar), but it deliberately kept Bikrami's traditional Punjabi month names (Chet, Vaisakh, and so on) for continuity.

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Bikrami Calendar Converter

Convert a Gregorian date to the lunar Bikrami calendar Punjab used before 2003.

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About the Bikrami Calendar Converter

Converts a Gregorian date to the Bikrami calendar — the lunisolar calendar Punjab used before the 2003 Nanakshahi reform, still needed for Gurpurabs reverted to lunar determination.

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How to use it

Enter a Gregorian date.
Read the Bikrami lunar date and year.

Formula

Structurally the same Vikram Samvat system this site's Hindu calendar converter uses — the same real astronomical lunar-month computation, with the traditional Punjabi month names (Chet, Vaisakh, Jeth, and so on) the Nanakshahi calendar itself kept when it reformed the underlying day-counting to a solar system in 2003.

Worked example

The Bikrami year and lunar month/tithi are shown for any Gregorian date, using the same verified astronomical calculation as this site's Hindu calendar converter.

Interpreting your result

This is the calendar the 2010 SGPC revision reverted several major Gurpurabs to — see this site's Gurpurab Calculator for the specific dates that dispute affects.

Recommendations

• For a specific Gurpurab date rather than a general calendar lookup, use this site's Gurpurab Calculator directly.

Frequently asked questions

Yes — it's the same calendar system, just the name commonly used in Punjab specifically. This tool reuses the same verified lunar-month calculation as this site's Hindu calendar converter.