Months of the year

Humans have set up their own method of tracking and telling the passing of time. This is based upon the reasearch of Elves from eras past as well as on the time telling traditions of Orcs.
Humans were the first to put names on the months in order to better document and categorise them, and have become universally used by humans, orcs and goblins. The names of the months come from the dictation of kings and queens past who chose to install them with virtues and qualities that they wanted their subjects to embody. They exist as such to inspire specific virtues or to act as a reminder. There are only two seasons Aer- the wet and warm season and Vant- the cold and dry season, with Vant taking place at the first. The year is effectivly split in half with the early months putting an emphasis on toil and reflection and the later months with an emphasis on celebration and community. The months have a lot of identity and cultural significance to humans. The month you were born in is said to be representative of a quality you will hold thoughout your life with certain people born luckier than others. There are also traditions which are only acceptable to be held certain months.
The months are as follows:

1. Pennance- the first season that ushers in the new year and the start of Vant. This is a month to atone for any misgiving that occurred in the year past, and to humble yourself for the year ahead.
2. Diligence- This is a reminder that the seasons will inevitably turn and now is the time to prepare. It is the time when the fields need to be ploughed and the stockpiles replenished its when bookkeepers begin their financial records.
3. Sollitude- This is the peak of Vant- where the weather is the coldest, little grows, animals hibernate and humans seldom leave their homes, this is invited as a period of reflection and personal introspection.
4. Wisdom- wisdom is knowing that time will continue on without you and that warmth and sun will come back. This is the holiest of months. With a number of religious-centric holidays.
5. Gratitude- as the weather begins to finally warm up, there is an influx trade and connection as life springs anew. This is also the time of year that incurs meteor showers and other cosmic events which lead humans to offer prayers to Tarn
6. Humility- this season serves a a warning to citizens that although the winter is past another will come new crops are planted, this is the busiest trade season.
7. Kindness- this is the season of good will, it holds a number of festivals and is the season where the king reviews the application of pardons to determine who will receive amnesty.
8. Virtue- This is a season of new beginnings, a reminder that things can begin anew even late into the year. It is a season for weddings and is also a month of educational significance and the college of Wintrow introduces new graduates.
9. Generosity- A month of charity and of sharing, its important as it leads up to the month of prosperity thereto inspire citizens to share what they have. It is also a month of leaving offerings for the dead and remembering their spirit.
10. Prosperity- this is a month of looking back on the chronicles of the year and reflecting on all that has been gained it is a month of wishing and planning for prosperity to come and holds a celebration of the year ending.

Cultural Significance-

• Children born during Pennance are considered to be unlucky. With some saying they are fated to commit great sin or experience great tragedy in their life.
• Children born in Prosperity are said to be the luckiest.
• Sollitude is often referred to as the 'makers month' as there are many who craft items and artisanal goods in preparation for the uptick in trading which takes place in Humility
• Kindness was once known as the month Courage but studies found a significant uptick in violence particularly in the form bar fights and so it was renamed to kindness in 677 EoM
• Virtue is the most popular month of weddings as it supports that a couple is both chaste and committed to each other, because of this the majority of babies are conceived in this month, making Kindness the most common month for birthdays. The second most common month for weddings is Prosperity
• Recently weddings in prosperity have begun to seem more like a faux pass as puts pressure on guests to buy the couple gifts and also to spend money lasting up to the end of year festivities
• Wisdom is an uncommon month for weddings to take place and is mostly only seen amongst nobility.
• Solitude is considered an unlucky month to be wed second only to Pennace in which any coupling is said to be doomed to fail.
• Diligence and Humility are both holy months for followers of Xegruni as they are both heavily concerned with the harvest.
• Zentawen and Denmaerd are locked in an unofficial competition to see which city can perform the most extravagant display of wealth in the form of a Prosperity Festival.
• Many guild leaders and politicians campaign based around the month they were born in using its attribute as evidence of their leadership qualities.
• Goblins hold festivals both Pennance and Gratitude as both have an uptick in storms which are seen as he work of their gods.