Samoa · A calendar story
On 29 December 2011, Samoa was about to lose a date. The next day would be Saturday 31. But a calendar also holds wages, interest and deadlines.
Thursday 29 was followed by Saturday 31. Try the jump.
Calendar transition: U.S. Department of State · Bulletin 31, p. 1 ↗
This is one of the stories behind the book I’m writing.
Tell me when the book is publishedInternational Date Line Act 2011
These rules applied to the changeover. Open each question to see what the Act provided.
Yes, for an employee who would normally have worked the hours lost. The Act protected the wages and allowances for those hours. It did not grant an extra payment to everyone.
When loan interest was calculated daily, the omitted day was excluded. This provision concerned daily loan interest, not every possible financial product.
An act that had to be done on the omitted day could be done on the next day. If it had to be done on a working day, it could be done on the next working day. The provision also referred to periods specified by court decisions.
Official consolidated text, as at 31 December 2023. The endnotes record no amendments. Historical explanation of the 2011 changeover. Attorney General of Samoa ↗
A question as you read
The law moved affected deadlines to the next day or the next business day, as applicable.Section 6 distinguishes different cases: check which provision applies before using the rule.
Read section 6 →An important distinction
Section 4 set standard time at UTC+13 and preserved daylight-saving legislation. Samoa was observing daylight saving at the changeover: the effective shift was from UTC−10 to UTC+14.
The legal reference at 171° west and the route drawn in a world atlas should be documented separately.
Compare the supplied silhouettes →1892 · Samoa Times
On 18 June 1892, the local newspaper printed a royal proclamation: the day people were expecting to call Tuesday 5 July would instead be Monday 4 July. In 2011, Samoa moved in the other direction and removed a date.
A question as you read
The law required maps, charts and atlases prepared in Samoa or for its government to show the new position. Changing the date also meant updating the drawings.
Read the source: C15 →