How the Khmer lunar calendar works
By Khmer Calendar editorial · Last updated 2026-09-26
Original explainer from Khmer Calendar editorial: how lunar months of 29–30 days, the leap month, Sak eras, and Buddhist Era dates map to the Gregorian calendar — with examples from this site's engine.
Public holidays in Cambodia
Cambodia's yearly day-off list mixes state memorial dates with key Buddhist observances. The heritage Khmer system, called Chântôkôtĕ (ចន្ទគតិ), follows the moon while staying tied to the solar year so the seasons do not shift.
Because of that lunar link, several holidays land on a different Gregorian date every year. In practice, always confirm movable dates against the government's annual circular.
Khmer calendar
Different from the Hindu calendar, the Khmer calendar consists of both a lunar calendar and a solar calendar. The solar is used more commonly than the lunar calendar.
The Khmer lunar calendar most often contains 12 months; however, the eighth month is repeated (as a "leap month") every two or three years, making 13 months instead of 12. Each lunar month has 29 or 30 days.
The year normally has then 354 or 384 days (when an intercalary month is added), but the calendar follows the rules of the Gregorian calendar to determine leap years and add a leap day to one month, so the Khmer lunar year may have a total of 354, 355, 384 or 385 days.
How we use it on this site: every day page shows the lunar day (1 Koeut–15 Koeut, 1 Roach–14/15 Roach), the lunar month name, the animal year, the Sak era, and the Buddhist Era — calculated by our engine and cross-checked against published almanacs. If an official circular differs, the circular wins.