If you are wondering what exactly we mean by the term daylight saving times, how can we use it, its history and purpose then let’s find it out in this blog.
What is DST Time Zone?
DST stands for Daylight Saving Times, and it has a nickname as summer time, this technique is normally to extend day time hours. Countries that are in northern hemispheres, they set their clocks ahead for a least of one hour during the months of March and April, and then in the months of September and October they set their clocks one hour late.
Purpose Behind Starting Daylight Saving Times
Benjamin Franklin came up with this idea of changing clocks in the months of summers so that they we can accomplish to preserve energy. So by moving their clocks forward, people would be able to take advantage of the hour that will still be left on the daytime instead of it being wasted. The time when Benjamin Franklin proposed this idea he was the ambassador to Paris. And at the same time he wrote a humorous letter to the main Journal of Paris (1784).
Although daylight saving times didn’t officially initiated until more than a century further. Then later, Germany did started to adopt the idea of DST which was in May (1916), then gradually the whole Europe started to come on-board. And then in 1918 the United States Of America also adopted the daylight savings time idea.
Daylight Savings Chart
| Continent | Country | Days In which they begin and ends |
| Africa | Egypt | Start: Last Friday in the month of April End: Last Thursday in the month of September |
| Namibia | Start: First Sunday in the month of September End: First Sunday in the month of April | |
| Tunisia | Government of Tunisia cancelled the use of DST in 2009. | |
| Asia | Most states of the initial USSR. | Start: Last Sunday in the month of March End: Last Sunday in the month of October |
| Bangladesh | Also Cancelled DST in 2010 | |
| Iraq | Start: First Friday in the month of April End: Last Friday in the month of October | |
| Israel | Start: Last Friday before the 2nd of April | |
| Jordan | Start: Last Thursday in the month of March End: Last Friday in the month of September | |
| Lebanon, Kyrgyzstan | Start: last Sunday (March) End: Last Sunday in (October) | |
| Mongolia | Start: Fourth Friday in the month of (March) End: Last Friday in the month of (September) | |
| Palestinian regions | Start: First Friday (after mid April) End: First Friday (after mid September) | |
| Syria | Start: March 30 End: September 21 | |
| Australia | Australia (South)VictoriaAustralian CapitalNew South WalesAnd also Lord Howe Island | Start: First Sunday in October End: First week in April. |
| Fiji | Stopped (2000) | |
| New Zealand (Chatham) | Start: Last Sunday in the month of September End: First Sunday in the month of April | |
| Tonga | Start: First Sunday in the month of November End: Last Sunday in the month of January | |
| Europe | European Union and United Kingdom | Start: Last Sunday in the month of March (at 1 am UTC) End: Last Sunday in the month of October (at 1 am UTC) |
| Russia | Permanently uses DST since 2011. | |
| United StatesCanada Bermuda St. JohnsBahamas Turks and also Caicos | Start: Second Sunday in the month of March End: First Sunday in the month of November | |
| Cuba | Start: 3rd Sunday in the month of March End: Last Sunday in the month October | |
| Greenland | Same as EU | |
| Guatemala, (no longer observes DST) | n/a | |
| Honduras | Ends in: August | |
| Mexico (except for the city Sonora) | Start: 1st Sunday in April End: Last Sunday in the month of October | |
| Nicaragua | n/a | |
| South America | Argentina | Never observed till now |
| Brazil Equatorial Brazil do not observes DST. | Start: 3rd Sunday (in October) End: 3rd Sunday (in February) | |
| Falklands | Start: 1St Sunday present (or after 8 September) End: 1St Sunday present (or after 6 April) | |
| Paraguay | Start: Third Sunday in (October) End: Second Sunday (march) |
Does Mexico Use Daylight Saving?
Since 1996, Mexico has been using daylight saving, except for Sonora. Sonora is the only part of Mexico that does not utilizes daylight saving. Mexico tried to stick to the united nations schedule. While on the other hand US decided to change the course of daylight savings in 2007, but Mexico was adhered to the same old time period.
To Summarize
The usage of daylight saving time is more common in most of Europe, United States of America, Mexico and some part of Canada. And the list does not end there as the countries in South America, Australia and New Zealand have also been noticed to observe DST. No doubt there are plenty of benefits to DST but no good things come without drawbacks. And the major one here is “clock confusion” and “disturbance in the sleeping cycles” as people would prefer to be simply wake up for work.
As said before that DST is beneficial and is serves more benefits in the countries where there are a lot of temperate climates, the more extreme north or extreme south there it will work perfectly.
Just like
- Finland
- Finland
- Norway
- Greenland
- Some part of Russia or of Chile that has extreme temperatures
- Argentina
- And Antarctica as a whole
So in short, the more at the distance from the equator, the more sunrise and sunset will fluctuate and due to this reason Daylight savings time is not so much of a use up and down there. Same thing goes for tropical countries, and also the other places that are near to the equator, as since sunrise and sunset fluctuates there at very minimal range.
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