Leap Year Rules: How to Calculate Leap Years

In the Gregorian calendar, three criteria must be taken into account to identify
leap years:

The year must be evenly divisible by 4;

If the year can also be evenly divided by 100, it is not a leap year;
unless...
The year is also evenly divisible by 400. Then it is a leap year.
According to these rules, the years 2000 and 2400 are leap years,
while 1800, 1900, 2100, 2200, 2300, and 2500 are not leap years.

Special Leap Year 2000

The year 2000 was somewhat unique as it was the first instance when the third
criterion was used in most parts of the world since the start of the transition
from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar in 1582.

Read More About Calendars

Illustration image
Roman general Julius Caesar first introduced leap years.

©bigstockphoto.com

Who Invented Leap Years?

Leap years in the western calendar were first introduced over 2000 years ago by
Roman general Julius Caesar. The Julian calendar, which was named after him, had
only one rule: any year evenly divisible by four would be a leap year.

This formula produced too many leap years, causing the Julian calendar to drift
apart from the tropical year at a rate of 1 day per 128 years. This was not
corrected until the introduction of the Gregorian calendar more than 1500 years
later, when a number of days were skipped to realign our calendar with the seasons.

Leap Months
The ancient Roman Calendar added an extra month every few years to stay in sync
with the seasons, similar to the Chinese leap month.

What is a leap second?

Topics: Calendar, Leap Year, February

Leap Days 2020 – 2032

2020 Saturday, Feb 29
2024 Thursday, Feb 29
2028 Tuesday, Feb 29
2032 Sunday, Feb 29
Leap Years
What Is a Leap Year?
Leap Day is February 29
Customs & Traditions
Common Year vs. Leap Year
Born on February 29
February 30 Was a Real Date
Alternative Leap Years
Bahá'í Calendar Leap Year
Chinese Calendar Leap Year
Ethiopian Calendar Leap Year
Hindu Calendar Leap Year
Persian Calendar Leap Year
Islamic Calendar Leap Year
Jewish Calendar Leap Year
Buddhist Calendar Leap Year
Leap Years in Other Calendars

Holidays and Observances

Holiday or country…

Advertising