This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this articlebyadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
Find sources: "Helek" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (January 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
The helek, also spelled chelek (Hebrew חלק, meaning "portion", plural halakim חלקים) is a unit of time used in the calculation of the Molad. Other spellings used are chelak and chelek, both with plural chalakim.
The hour is divided into 1080 halakim. A helek is 31/3 secondsor1/18 minute. The helek derives from a small Babylonian time period called a she, meaning '"barleycorn", itself equal to 1/72 of a Babylonian time degree (1° of celestial rotation).
The Hebrew calendar defines its mean month to be exactly equal to 29 days 12 hours and 793 halakim, which is 29 days 12 hours 44 minutes and 31/3 seconds. It defines its mean year as exactly 235/19 times this amount, or 365 days, 5 hours, 55 minutes, and 25 and 25/57 seconds (approximately 365.2468222 days).
 | This standards- or measurement-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This time-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |