Leap years are special years that contain an extra day, February 29th, making the year 366 days long instead of the usual 365 days. Leap years occur to keep our calendar in alignment with the Earth’s revolutions around the Sun. The Earth takes approximately 365.24 days to complete one orbit around the Sun. To account for this extra fraction of a day, the concept of leap year was introduced. Since then, a list of leap years is maintained to help people to know which year is a leap year.
Leap year’s provides a full extra day every four years but it is slightly too much, so there are a few rules to determine when a leap year occurs. The years 1900 and 2100 are not leap years as the rule is that if the year is divisible by 100 but not divisible by 400, leap year is skipped. Year 2000 is a leap year as despite being divisible by 100 it is also divisible by 400. You can check the list of leap years from 1900 to 2000 and then from 2000 to 2100 (i.e 1900 to 2100). Also know the rules for determination of a leap year.
List of Leap Years from 1900 to 2100
- 1904
- 1908
- 1912
- 1916
- 1920
- 1924
- 1928
- 1932
- 1936
- 1940
- 1944
- 1948
- 1952
- 1956
- 1960
- 1964
- 1968
- 1972
- 1976
- 1980
- 1984
- 1988
- 1992
- 1996
- 2000
- 2004
- 2008
- 2012
- 2016
- 2020
- 2024
- 2028
- 2032
- 2036
- 2040
- 2044
- 2048
- 2052
- 2056
- 2060
- 2064
- 2068
- 2072
- 2076
- 2080
- 2084
- 2088
- 2092
- 2096
Rules to Determine Leap Year
- A year that is divisible by 4 is a leap year, except for:
- Years that are divisible by 100 are not leap years, except for:
- Years that are divisible by 400 are leap years.
Leap Year Examples
Let’s break down the rule for determining a leap year with examples:-
- The years 2004 and 2008 were leap years because they are divisible by 4.
- Year 1900 was not a leap year because it was divisible by 100 but not by 400.
- The year 2000 was leap year as despite being divisible by 100, it was also divisible by 400.
- The year 2100 will not be a leap year because it is divisible by 100 but not by 400.
By following these rules, the average length of the calendar year remains close to 365.24 days, which helps to maintain synchronization with the Earth’s orbit around the Sun.
