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What is the Daylight Saving Time around the World? - Answers


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What is the Daylight Saving Time around the World?

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World map depicting daylight saving time by countries

Daylight Saving Time, which is popularly referred by its acronym DST, is a practice wherein clocks in some nations are changed during summer months to make better use of the daylight. The practice involves advancing clocks during summer months to extend an hour of daylight. In countries where daylight saving time is followed, clocks are set forward by an hour at the start of spring. In autumn, clocks are ‘turned back,’ or adjusted to the standard time. Every country that follows DST has its own dates for when to adjust their clock.

Who discovered Daylight Saving time?

Benjamin Franklin is erroneously considered as inventor of daylight-saving time, but actually it was George Hudson, a New Zealand based entomologist, who proposed the modern DST. He introduced a two-hour daylight-saving shift in a paper that he presented to the Wellington Philosophical Society in 1895.

There are also many publications that credit the daylight-saving time to William Willett, an English builder. He was out on a pre-breakfast ride in 1905 when he observed that many people in London slept through a major part of the summer day. Two years later, he published a proposal stressing on advancing the clock during summer months, but his idea never became a reality during his lifetime.

The Recognition of Daylight Saving Time

In 1916, at the height of World War I, Germany became the first nation to adopt daylight saving time. With war raging, it was essential to conserve energy and Germany found DST a viable solution. Sometime later, the United Kingdom also embraced DST. Russia adopted DST in 1917, while the United States followed in 1918. Some countries did away with DST in the years following the end of WW I, but returned to observe it again during WW II. It was only during the 1970s energy crisis, that DST became a common practice in North America and Europe.


Nations in the Southern Hemisphere

There are a couple of nations in the Southern Hemisphere that also use daylight saving time. These nations are; Fiji, Namibia, New Zealand, Paraguay, Samoa, and Tonga. DST is partially observed across the nations in Australia, Brazil, and Chile. In Australia, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, Australian Capital Territory, Jervis Bay Territory, South Australia and Lord Howe Island observe DST. Similarly, in Brazilian regions where DST is observed are Rio de Janeiro, Santa Catarina, Mato Grosso, Federal District Brasilia, São Paulo, Paraná, Goiás, the Rio Grande do Sul, Mato Grosso do Sul, Espírito Santo, and Minas Gerais. Chile uses DST, except for the Magallanes region, which last observed DST in December 2016.

Nations in Northern Hemisphere

Meanwhile, the list of nations and territories in the Northern Hemisphere using DST is quite long. A few nations and territories include; Austria, Belgium, Bermuda, Cuba, Denmark, Greenland, Iran, Morocco, Spain, the United Kingdom, and others. Most of the United States uses DST barring Hawaii and Arizona (except the Navajo Nation Community). In Canada, DST is not observed in some regions in Quebec, a major part of Saskatchewan, and areas in British Columbia and Nunavut (Southampton Island). In Greenland, Danmarkshavn and Pituffik don’t follow DST, while the rest does.

Nations that don’t observe DST

Afghanistan, Bahrain, Cambodia, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Maldives, North Korea, Qatar, Swaziland, the United Arab Emirates, and others, do not observe DST. However, there are quite a few countries and territories which at one point in time did observe daylight saving time. Some of these are; India, Japan, Hong Kong, Armenia, China, Colombia, Egypt, Malaysia, and a couple of others.

The table below provides information on the use of DST around the world.

 

Country/Territory DST
Australia Southern hemisphere summer
Brazil Southern hemisphere summer
Chile Southern hemisphere summer
Fiji Southern hemisphere summer
Namibia Southern hemisphere summer
New Zealand Southern hemisphere summer
Paraguay Southern hemisphere summer
Samoa Southern hemisphere summer
Tonga Southern hemisphere summer
Akrotiri and Dhekelia (UK) Northern hemisphere summer
Albania Northern hemisphere summer
Andorra Northern hemisphere summer
Austria Northern hemisphere summer
Bahamas Northern hemisphere summer
Belgium Northern hemisphere summer
Bermuda (UK) Northern hemisphere summer
Bosnia and Herzegovina Northern hemisphere summer
Bulgaria Northern hemisphere summer
Canada Northern hemisphere summer
Croatia Northern hemisphere summer
Cuba Northern hemisphere summer
Cyprus Northern hemisphere summer
Czech Republic Northern hemisphere summer
Denmark Northern hemisphere summer
Estonia Northern hemisphere summer
Faroe Islands (DK) Northern hemisphere summer
Finland Northern hemisphere summer
France Northern hemisphere summer
Germany Northern hemisphere summer
Greece Northern hemisphere summer
Greenland (DK) Northern hemisphere summer
Guernsey (UK) Northern hemisphere summer
Haiti Northern hemisphere summer
Holy See Northern hemisphere summer
Hungary Northern hemisphere summer
Iran Northern hemisphere summer
Ireland Northern hemisphere summer
Isle of Man (UK) Northern hemisphere summer
Israel Northern hemisphere summer
Italy Northern hemisphere summer
Jersey (UK) Northern hemisphere summer
Jordan Northern hemisphere summer
Kosovo Northern hemisphere summer
Latvia Northern hemisphere summer
Lebanon Northern hemisphere summer
Liechtenstein Northern hemisphere summer
Lithuania Northern hemisphere summer
Luxembourg Northern hemisphere summer
Macedonia Northern hemisphere summer
Malta Northern hemisphere summer
Mexico Northern hemisphere summer
Moldova Northern hemisphere summer
Monaco Northern hemisphere summer
Montenegro Northern hemisphere summer
Morocco Northern hemisphere summer
Netherlands Northern hemisphere summer
Norway Northern hemisphere summer
Poland Northern hemisphere summer
Portugal Northern hemisphere summer
Romania Northern hemisphere summer
Saint Pierre and Miquelon (FR) Northern hemisphere summer
San Marino Northern hemisphere summer
Serbia Northern hemisphere summer
Slovakia Northern hemisphere summer
Slovenia Northern hemisphere summer
Spain Northern hemisphere summer
Sweden Northern hemisphere summer
Switzerland Northern hemisphere summer
Syria Northern hemisphere summer
Ukraine Northern hemisphere summer
United Kingdom Northern hemisphere summer
United States Northern hemisphere summer
Western Sahara Northern hemisphere summer
Algeria Formerly Observed DST
Argentina Formerly Observed DST
Armenia Formerly Observed DST
Azerbaijan Formerly Observed DST
Bangladesh Formerly Observed DST
Barbados Formerly Observed DST
Belarus Formerly Observed DST
Belize Formerly Observed DST
Bolivia Formerly Observed DST
Botswana Formerly Observed DST
Cape Verde Formerly Observed DST
Chad Formerly Observed DST
China Formerly Observed DST
Colombia Formerly Observed DST
Cook Islands Formerly Observed DST
Costa Rica Formerly Observed DST
Dominican Republic Formerly Observed DST
Egypt Formerly Observed DST
El Salvador Formerly Observed DST
Falkland Islands (UK) Formerly Observed DST
Georgia Formerly Observed DST
Ghana Formerly Observed DST
Guatemala Formerly Observed DST
Honduras Formerly Observed DST
Hong Kong (CN) Formerly Observed DST
Iceland Formerly Observed DST
India Formerly Observed DST
Indonesia Formerly Observed DST
Iraq Formerly Observed DST
Jamaica Formerly Observed DST
Japan Formerly Observed DST
Kazakhstan Formerly Observed DST
Kyrgyzstan Formerly Observed DST
Lesotho Formerly Observed DST
Libya Formerly Observed DST
Macau (CN) Formerly Observed DST
Madagascar Formerly Observed DST
Malaysia Formerly Observed DST
Martinique (FR) Formerly Observed DST
Mauritius Formerly Observed DST
Midway (US) Formerly Observed DST
Mongolia Formerly Observed DST
New Caledonia (FR) Formerly Observed DST
Nicaragua Formerly Observed DST
Pakistan Formerly Observed DST
Peru Formerly Observed DST
Philippines Formerly Observed DST
Puerto Rico (US) Formerly Observed DST
Russia Formerly Observed DST
Sierra Leone Formerly Observed DST
Singapore Formerly Observed DST
South Africa Formerly Observed DST
South Korea Formerly Observed DST
South Sudan Formerly Observed DST
Sri Lanka Formerly Observed DST
Sudan Formerly Observed DST
Tajikistan Formerly Observed DST
Taiwan Formerly Observed DST
Tunisia Formerly Observed DST
Turkey Formerly Observed DST
Turkmenistan Formerly Observed DST
Turks and Caicos (UK) Formerly Observed DST
Uruguay Formerly Observed DST
Uzbekistan Formerly Observed DST
Vanuatu Formerly Observed DST
Afghanistan Does not use DST
American Samoa (US) Does not use DST
Angola Does not use DST
Anguilla (UK) Does not use DST
Antigua and Barbuda Does not use DST
Aruba (NL) Does not use DST
Bahrain Does not use DST
Benin Does not use DST
Bhutan Does not use DST
Bonaire (NL) Does not use DST
British Virgin Islands (UK) Does not use DST
Brunei Does not use DST
Burkina Faso Does not use DST
Burma Does not use DST
Burundi Does not use DST
Cambodia Does not use DST
Cameroon Does not use DST
Cayman Islands (UK) Does not use DST
Central African Republic Does not use DST
Christmas Island (AU) Does not use DST
Cocos Island (AU) Does not use DST
Comoros Does not use DST
Congo Does not use DST
Curacao (NL) Does not use DST
Democratic Republic of Congo Does not use DST
Djibouti Does not use DST
Dominica Does not use DST
East Timor Does not use DST
Ecuador Does not use DST
Equatorial Guinea Does not use DST
Eritrea Does not use DST
Ethiopia Does not use DST
French Guyana (FR) Does not use DST
French Polynesia (FR) Does not use DST
French Southern and Antarctic Lands (FR) Does not use DST
Gabon Does not use DST
Gambia Does not use DST
Grenada Does not use DST
Guadeloupe (FR) Does not use DST
Guam (US) Does not use DST
Guinea Does not use DST
Guinea-Bissau Does not use DST
Guyana Does not use DST
Heard and McDonald Islands (AU) Does not use DST
Ivory Coast Does not use DST
Kenya Does not use DST
Kiribati Does not use DST
Kuwait Does not use DST
Laos Does not use DST
Liberia Does not use DST
Malawi Does not use DST
Maldives Does not use DST
Mali Does not use DST
Marshall Islands Does not use DST
Mauritania Does not use DST
Micronesia Does not use DST
Montserrat (UK) Does not use DST
Mozambique Does not use DST
Nauru Does not use DST
Nepal Does not use DST
Niger Does not use DST
Nigeria Does not use DST
Niue Does not use DST
North Korea Does not use DST
Northern Mariana Islands (US) Does not use DST
Oman Does not use DST
Palau Does not use DST
Panama Does not use DST
Papua New Guinea Does not use DST
Pitcairn Islands (UK) Does not use DST
Qatar Does not use DST
Rwanda Does not use DST
Saba (NL) Does not use DST
Saint Barthélemy (FR) Does not use DST
Saint Kitts and Nevis Does not use DST
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha (UK) Does not use DST
Saint Lucia Does not use DST
Saint Martin (FR) Does not use DST
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Does not use DST
Sao Tome and Príncipe Does not use DST
Saudi Arabia Does not use DST
Senegal Does not use DST
Seychelles Does not use DST
Sint Eustatius (NL) Does not use DST
Sint Maarten (NL) Does not use DST
Solomon Islands Does not use DST
Somalia Does not use DST
South Georgia Islands (UK) Does not use DST
South Sandwich Islands (UK) Does not use DST
Suriname Does not use DST
Swaziland Does not use DST
Tanzania Does not use DST
Thailand Does not use DST
Tokelau (NZ) Does not use DST
Togo Does not use DST
Trinidad and Tobago Does not use DST
Tuvalu Does not use DST
Uganda Does not use DST
United Arab Emirates Does not use DST
United States Virgin Islands (US) Does not use DST
Venezuela Does not use DST
Vietnam Does not use DST
Wallis and Futuna (FR) Does not use DST
Yemen Does not use DST
Zambia Does not use DST
Zimbabwe Does not use DST

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