Bible Dictionary
Adar
Adar was the twelfth month of the Jewish religious year and the sixth month of the civil year, falling roughly from March to April. In some years a second Adar was added to keep the calendar aligned with the agricultural and festival seasons.
Definition
Adar was the twelfth month of the Jewish ecclesiastical year and the sixth month of the civil year. It extended approximately from the new moon of March to the new moon of April.
Biblical Usage
Adar is named in Esther in connection with the decree against the Jews and the events surrounding their deliverance.
Historical Background
The name came into use after the Captivity. When the season was late and the lambs or barley were not ready for Passover, a second Adar, called Veadar, was added. Adar was also the name of a place on Judah’s southern boundary.
Scripture References
Related Figures
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Easton's Bible Dictionary
Large, the sixth month of the civil and the twelfth of the ecclesiastical year of the Jews (Esther 3:7, 13; 8:12; 9:1, 15, 17, 19, 21). It included the days extending from the new moon of our March to the new moon of April. The name was first used after the Captivity. When the season was backward, and the lambs not yet of a paschal size, or the barley not forward enough for abib, then a month called Veadar, i.e., a second Adar, was intercalated.
Smith's Bible Dictionary
[Month] (high), a place on the south boundary of Judah. (Joshua 15:3)