Nature & places

The monsoon and Bangladesh's six seasons

Bangladesh's six-season calendar gives names to subtle changes in light, crops and weather, while the monsoon reshapes rivers and everyday routines.

Bengali tradition divides the year into six seasons: summer, monsoon, autumn, late autumn, winter and spring. Each occupies two months of the Bengali calendar. The names offer a cultural way to notice changes in flowers, crops and light, though actual weather does not turn neatly on a calendar date. The southwest monsoon brings much of Bangladesh's annual rain. Rivers swell, low ground floods and boat routes can replace paths that were walkable earlier in the year. Rain supports farming and replenishes wetlands, yet prolonged flooding and waterlogging can damage homes, crops and roads. The same shower may be welcome in one place and troubling in another. The smaller transitions matter too: a cool winter morning, late-autumn rice coming home, or the heavy air before a summer thunderstorm. Cities and villages experience them differently, and climate change adds uncertainty to familiar expectations. The six-season language remains useful not as a precise forecast, but as a way of paying attention to the year.