diff --git a/src/MrGameEng.Core/Calendar.cs b/src/MrGameEng.Core/Calendar.cs
index f79a987..55f564b 100644
--- a/src/MrGameEng.Core/Calendar.cs
+++ b/src/MrGameEng.Core/Calendar.cs
@@ -10,16 +10,21 @@ namespace MrGameEng.Core;
 public sealed class Calendar
 {
     private readonly GameClock _clock;
+    private readonly double _startDay;
     private float _secondsPerDay;
 
     /// <summary>
     /// Creates a calendar reading <paramref name="clock"/>; one day spans
     /// <paramref name="secondsPerDay"/> seconds of scaled time (must be positive).
+    /// <paramref name="startDay"/> offsets the calendar by (fractional) days at clock 0 — e.g.
+    /// <c>7.0 / 24</c> starts the world at 07:00 instead of midnight. It shifts the time of day and
+    /// the day/night phase that reads <see cref="DayProgress"/>, without touching the clock itself.
     /// </summary>
-    public Calendar(GameClock clock, float secondsPerDay)
+    public Calendar(GameClock clock, float secondsPerDay, double startDay = 0.0)
     {
         _clock = clock ?? throw new ArgumentNullException(nameof(clock));
         SecondsPerDay = secondsPerDay;
+        _startDay = startDay;
     }
 
     /// <summary>Scaled seconds per in-game day. Must be positive; raising it slows the calendar.</summary>
@@ -36,8 +41,8 @@ public sealed class Calendar
                     );
     }
 
-    /// <summary>Total elapsed days as a continuous value (e.g. 3.5 = midday of day 4).</summary>
-    public double TotalDays => _clock.TotalTime / _secondsPerDay;
+    /// <summary>Total elapsed days as a continuous value (e.g. 3.5 = midday of day 4), incl. the start offset.</summary>
+    public double TotalDays => _clock.TotalTime / _secondsPerDay + _startDay;
 
     /// <summary>The current day number, counting from 1.</summary>
     public int Day => (int)TotalDays + 1;
@@ -68,11 +73,16 @@ public static class CalendarEngineExtensions
     /// <summary>
     /// Creates a <see cref="Calendar"/> bound to the context's clock and registers it as a
     /// service. Call once per world. <paramref name="secondsPerDay"/> is the scaled-time length
-    /// of one in-game day (must be positive).
+    /// of one in-game day (must be positive); <paramref name="startDay"/> offsets the starting
+    /// time of day in fractional days (e.g. <c>7.0 / 24</c> begins the world at 07:00).
     /// </summary>
-    public static Calendar UseCalendar(this EngineContext context, float secondsPerDay)
+    public static Calendar UseCalendar(
+        this EngineContext context,
+        float secondsPerDay,
+        double startDay = 0.0
+    )
     {
-        var calendar = new Calendar(context.Clock, secondsPerDay);
+        var calendar = new Calendar(context.Clock, secondsPerDay, startDay);
         context.Services.Add(calendar);
         return calendar;
     }
diff --git a/src/MrGameEng.Core/Climate.cs b/src/MrGameEng.Core/Climate.cs
index 781599d..a746542 100644
--- a/src/MrGameEng.Core/Climate.cs
+++ b/src/MrGameEng.Core/Climate.cs
@@ -37,6 +37,13 @@ public readonly record struct ClimateSettings
     /// <summary>Day of the year (0-based) with the highest temperature; defaults to mid-summer.</summary>
     public int WarmestDay { get; init; }
 
+    /// <summary>
+    /// Day of the year (0-based) that the calendar's day 0 maps to. Shifts the whole seasonal phase
+    /// (season and temperature together) so a world can begin in a chosen part of the year — e.g. a
+    /// warm late spring instead of the cold turn of the year. Defaults to 0 (year begins at day 0).
+    /// </summary>
+    public int StartDayOfYear { get; init; }
+
     /// <summary>Temperate defaults: a 60-day year, mean 12°, ±14° seasonal, ±5° daily, warmest mid-summer.</summary>
     public static ClimateSettings Default =>
         new()
@@ -78,18 +85,21 @@ public sealed class Climate
     /// <summary>In-game days per year.</summary>
     public int DaysPerYear => _settings.DaysPerYear;
 
+    /// <summary>Elapsed days shifted by <see cref="ClimateSettings.StartDayOfYear"/> — the seasonal clock.</summary>
+    private double YearDays => _calendar.TotalDays + _settings.StartDayOfYear;
+
     /// <summary>Continuous position within the current year in <c>[0, 1)</c>.</summary>
     public double YearProgress
     {
         get
         {
-            var years = _calendar.TotalDays / _settings.DaysPerYear;
+            var years = YearDays / _settings.DaysPerYear;
             return years - Math.Floor(years);
         }
     }
 
     /// <summary>The current year, counting from 1.</summary>
-    public int Year => (int)(_calendar.TotalDays / _settings.DaysPerYear) + 1;
+    public int Year => (int)(YearDays / _settings.DaysPerYear) + 1;
 
     /// <summary>Day within the current year, 0-based.</summary>
     public int DayOfYear => (int)(YearProgress * _settings.DaysPerYear);
diff --git a/tests/MrGameEng.Core.Tests/CalendarTests.cs b/tests/MrGameEng.Core.Tests/CalendarTests.cs
index 63b0fbd..bc6d8f8 100644
--- a/tests/MrGameEng.Core.Tests/CalendarTests.cs
+++ b/tests/MrGameEng.Core.Tests/CalendarTests.cs
@@ -54,6 +54,20 @@ public class CalendarTests
         Assert.Equal(14 * 60 + 30, calendar.MinuteOfDay);
     }
 
+    [Fact]
+    public void StartDay_OffsetsTheTimeOfDay()
+    {
+        var clock = new GameClock();
+        var calendar = new Calendar(clock, secondsPerDay: 10f, startDay: 7.0 / 24); // begin at 07:00
+
+        Assert.Equal(1, calendar.Day);
+        Assert.Equal(7, calendar.Hour);
+        Assert.Equal(0, calendar.Minute);
+
+        clock.Advance(5f); // half a day later → 19:00
+        Assert.Equal(19, calendar.Hour);
+    }
+
     [Fact]
     public void Pause_DoesNotAdvanceTheCalendar()
     {
diff --git a/tests/MrGameEng.Core.Tests/ClimateTests.cs b/tests/MrGameEng.Core.Tests/ClimateTests.cs
index 42fce5c..bd20821 100644
--- a/tests/MrGameEng.Core.Tests/ClimateTests.cs
+++ b/tests/MrGameEng.Core.Tests/ClimateTests.cs
@@ -81,4 +81,15 @@ public class ClimateTests
         Assert.Equal(2, climate.Year);
         Assert.Equal(0, climate.DayOfYear);
     }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public void StartDayOfYear_ShiftsTheSeasonalPhase()
+    {
+        // Begin the world already at the warmest day (15): the curve peaks at clock 0.
+        var (_, climate) = Make(Seasonal with { StartDayOfYear = 15 });
+
+        Assert.Equal(30f, climate.Temperature, 2); // mean 10 + amplitude 20, at the peak
+        Assert.Equal(15, climate.DayOfYear); // day-of-year reflects the offset
+        Assert.Equal(Season.Summer, climate.Season); // day 15 of a 60-day year = start of summer
+    }
 }