What was the first country to officially institute Daylight Saving Time?

Answer 1

Daylight Saving Time, which is more commonly known as Summer Time in most of the world, is observed in the following places:

North America (including Greenland, Central America and the Caribbean Sea):

• most of Canada (mid-March to early November since 2007)
• Cuba (mid-March to early November since 2013)
• most of Greenland (mostly late March to late October since 1996)
• Haiti (mid-March to early November since 2012)
• most of Mexico (mostly early April to late October since 2002)
• Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (France) (mid-March to early November since 2007)
• the Turks and Caicos Islands (U.K.) (mid-March to early November since 2007)
• most of the United States (mid-March to early November since 2007)

South America:

• about half of Brazil (mid-October to mid-February since 2007)
• Chile (early September to late April since 2012)
• Paraguay (early October to late March since 2013)
• Uruguay (early October to mid-March since 2006)

Atlantic Ocean:

• the Azores (late March to late October since 1996)
• the Bahamas (mid-March to early November since 2007)
• Bermuda (mid-March to early November since 2007)
• the Canary Islands (late March to late October since 1996)
• the Madeira Islands (late March to late October since 1996)

Europe: everywhere EXCEPT Russia, Georgia, Belarus and Iceland

(late March to late October since 1997)

Africa:

• Libya (late March to late October since 2013)
• Morocco (late April to late September except Ramadan since 2012)
• Namibia (early September to early April since 1994)

Indian Ocean: none

Asia (including the Middle East):

• Azerbaijan (late March to late October since 1996)
• Cyprus (late March to late October since 1998)
• Iran (mid-March to mid-September since 1992)
• Israel (late March to late October since 2013)
• Jordan (late March to late October since 2013)
• Lebanon (late March to late October since 1999)
• the Palestinian Territories (late March to late September since 2012)
• Syria (late March to late October since 2012)
• Turkey (late March to late October since 1996)

Australia (early October to early April since 2008):

• South Australia
• New South Wales
• Victoria
• the Capital Territory
• Tasmania
• Lord Howe Island *

Pacific Ocean:

• New Zealand, including the Chatham Islands (late September to early April since 2007)
• Samoa (late September to early April since 2012)
• Fiji (mid-October to mid-January since 2012)
• Easter Island (early September to late April since 2012)
• Clarion Island (early April to late October since 2002)

Places where the government has opted to stay on their Summer Time offset year-'round (including Russia and the Falkland Islands) were not included here.

Some of the science stations in Antarctica adjust for Summer Time every year, not because there is any real benefit in the practice that close to one of the poles, but to stay in sync with their suppliers. Two such stations that I know of are New Zealand's McMurdo Station, which follows New Zealand's Summer Time schedule, and the United States' Palmer Station, which follows Chile's Summer Time schedule.

In almost all of the places where Summer Time is observed, clocks are advanced one hour in the spring or late winter and turned back one hour in the fall or late summer WITH TWO EXCEPTIONS:

* The clocks on Lord Howe Island are advanced a half hour for Summer Time. Although there have been other places with unique Summer Time offsets, including 20 minutes and 2 hours, Lord Howe Island is the only place that is using a Summer Time offset other than one hour currently.

The clocks in Morocco are being adjusted four times per year instead of twice. In addition to the spring and fall adjustments, Summer Time is suspended during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Answer 2

Germany was first making it official on April 30, 1916 during WWI shortly followed by the US on May 21, 1916.

Answer 3

The first country to standardize the time throughout the country was the Netherlands in 1835. Iceland followed two years later, then Great Britain a decade after Iceland.

Answer 4

George-Vernon Hudson

Answer 5

Germany

Answer 6

U.k.