yearstart - script and chart function
This function returns a timestamp corresponding to the start of the first day of the year containing date. The default output format will be the DateFormat set in the script.
Syntax:
YearStart(date[, period_no[, first_month_of_year]])
In other words, the yearstart() function determines which year the date falls into. It then returns a timestamp, in date format, for the first millisecond of that year. The first month of the year is, by default, January; however, you can change which month is set as first by using the first_month_of_year argument in the yearstart() function.
When to use it
The yearstart() function is used as part of an expression when you want the calculation to use the fraction of the year that has elapsed thus far. For example, if you want to calculate the interest that has accumulated in a year to date.
Return data type: dual
Argument | Description |
---|---|
date | The date or timestamp to evaluate. |
period_no | period_no is an integer, where the value 0 indicates the year which contains date. Negative values in period_no indicate preceding years and positive values indicate succeeding years. |
first_month_of_year | If you want to work with (fiscal) years not starting in January, indicate a value between 2 and 12 in first_month_of_year. |
The following months can be used in the first_month_of_year argument:
Month | Value |
---|---|
February | 2 |
March | 3 |
April | 4 |
May | 5 |
June | 6 |
July | 7 |
August | 8 |
September | 9 |
October | 10 |
November | 11 |
December | 12 |
Regional settings
Unless otherwise specified, the examples in this topic use the following date format: MM/DD/YYYY. The date format is specified in the SET DateFormat statement in your data load script. The default date formatting may be different in your system, due to your regional settings and other factors. You can change the formats in the examples below to suit your requirements. Or you can change the formats in your load script to match these examples.
Default regional settings in apps are based on the regional system settings of the computer or server where Qlik Sense is installed. If the Qlik Sense server you are accessing is set to Sweden, the Data load editor will use Swedish regional settings for dates, time, and currency. These regional format settings are not related to the language displayed in the Qlik Sense user interface. Qlik Sense will be displayed in the same language as the browser you are using.
Example | Result |
---|---|
yearstart('10/19/2001') | Returns 01/01/2001 00:00:00. |
yearstart('10/19/2001',-1) | Returns 01/01/2000 00:00:00. |
yearstart('10/19/2001',0,4) | Returns 04/01/2001 00:00:00. |
Example 1 – Basic example
Overview
Open the Data load editor and add the load script below to a new tab.
The load script contains:
-
A dataset containing a set of transactions between 2020 and 2022 is loaded into a table called ‘Transactions’.
-
The date field has been provided in the DateFormat system variable (MM/DD/YYYY) format.
-
A preceding load statement which contains the following:
-
yearstart() function which is set as the year_start field.
-
Timestamp() function which is set as the year_start_timestamp field
-
Load script
SET DateFormat='MM/DD/YYYY';
Transactions:
Load
*,
yearstart(date) as year_start,
timestamp(yearstart(date)) as year_start_timestamp
;
Load
*
Inline
[
id,date,amount
8188,01/13/2020,37.23
8189,02/26/2020,17.17
8190,03/27/2020,88.27
8191,04/16/2020,57.42
8192,05/21/2020,53.80
8193,08/14/2020,82.06
8194,10/07/2020,40.39
8195,12/05/2020,87.21
8196,01/22/2021,95.93
8197,02/03/2021,45.89
8198,03/17/2021,36.23
8199,04/23/2021,25.66
8200,05/04/2021,82.77
8201,06/30/2021,69.98
8202,07/26/2021,76.11
8203,12/27/2021,25.12
8204,06/06/2022,46.23
8205,07/18/2022,84.21
8206,11/14/2022,96.24
8207,12/12/2022,67.67
];
Results
Load the data and open a sheet. Create a new table and add these fields as dimensions:
-
id
-
date
-
year_start
-
year_start_timestamp
id | date | year_start | year_start_timestamp |
---|---|---|---|
8188 | 01/13/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8189 | 02/26/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8190 | 03/27/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8191 | 04/16/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8192 | 05/21/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8193 | 08/14/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8194 | 10/07/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8195 | 12/05/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8196 | 01/22/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8197 | 02/03/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8198 | 03/17/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8199 | 04/23/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8200 | 05/04/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8201 | 06/30/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8202 | 07/26/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8203 | 12/27/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8204 | 06/06/2022 | 01/01/2022 | 1/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
8205 | 07/18/2022 | 01/01/2022 | 1/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
8206 | 11/14/2022 | 01/01/2022 | 1/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
8207 | 12/12/2022 | 01/01/2022 | 1/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
The ‘year_start’ field is created in the preceding load statement by using the yearstart() function and passing the date field as the function’s argument.
The yearstart() function initially identifies which year the date value falls into and returns a timestamp for the first millisecond of that year.
Transaction 8199 took place on April 23, 2021. The yearstart() function returns the first millisecond of that year, which is January 1 at 12:00:00 AM.
Example 2 – period_no
Overview
The same dataset and scenario as the first example are used.
However, in this example, the task is to create a field, ‘previous_year_start’, that returns the start date timestamp of the year prior to the year in which a transaction took place.
Load script
SET DateFormat='MM/DD/YYYY';
Transactions:
Load
*,
yearstart(date,-1) as previous_year_start,
timestamp(yearstart(date,-1)) as previous_year_start_timestamp
;
Load
*
Inline
[
id,date,amount
8188,01/13/2020,37.23
8189,02/26/2020,17.17
8190,03/27/2020,88.27
8191,04/16/2020,57.42
8192,05/21/2020,53.80
8193,08/14/2020,82.06
8194,10/07/2020,40.39
8195,12/05/2020,87.21
8196,01/22/2021,95.93
8197,02/03/2021,45.89
8198,03/17/2021,36.23
8199,04/23/2021,25.66
8200,05/04/2021,82.77
8201,06/30/2021,69.98
8202,07/26/2021,76.11
8203,12/27/2021,25.12
8204,06/06/2022,46.23
8205,07/18/2022,84.21
8206,11/14/2022,96.24
8207,12/12/2022,67.67
];
Results
Load the data and open a sheet. Create a new table and add these fields as dimensions:
-
id
-
date
-
previous_year_start
-
previous_ year_start_timestamp
id | date | previous_year_start | previous_year_start_timestamp |
---|---|---|---|
8188 | 01/13/2020 | 01/01/2019 | 1/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8189 | 02/26/2020 | 01/01/2019 | 1/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8190 | 03/27/2020 | 01/01/2019 | 1/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8191 | 04/16/2020 | 01/01/2019 | 1/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8192 | 05/21/2020 | 01/01/2019 | 1/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8193 | 08/14/2020 | 01/01/2019 | 1/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8194 | 10/07/2020 | 01/01/2019 | 1/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8195 | 12/05/2020 | 01/01/2019 | 1/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8196 | 01/22/2021 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8197 | 02/03/2021 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8198 | 03/17/2021 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8199 | 04/23/2021 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8200 | 05/04/2021 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8201 | 06/30/2021 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8202 | 07/26/2021 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8203 | 12/27/2021 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8204 | 06/06/2022 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8205 | 07/18/2022 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8206 | 11/14/2022 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8207 | 12/12/2022 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
In this instance, because a period_no of -1 is used as the offset argument in the yearstart() function, the function first identifies the year that the transactions take place in. It then looks one year prior and identifies the first millisecond of that year.
Transaction 8199 took place on April 23, 2021. The yearstart() function returns the first millisecond of the prior year, January 1, 2020 at 12:00:00 AM, for the ‘previous_year_start’ field.
Example 3 – first_month_of_year
Overview
The same dataset and scenario as the first example are used.
However, in this example, the company policy is for the year to begin from April 1.
Load script
SET DateFormat='MM/DD/YYYY';
Transactions:
Load
*,
yearstart(date,0,4) as year_start,
timestamp(yearstart(date,0,4)) as year_start_timestamp
;
Load
*
Inline
[
id,date,amount
8188,01/13/2020,37.23
8189,02/26/2020,17.17
8190,03/27/2020,88.27
8191,04/16/2020,57.42
8192,05/21/2020,53.80
8193,08/14/2020,82.06
8194,10/07/2020,40.39
8195,12/05/2020,87.21
8196,01/22/2021,95.93
8197,02/03/2021,45.89
8198,03/17/2021,36.23
8199,04/23/2021,25.66
8200,05/04/2021,82.77
8201,06/30/2021,69.98
8202,07/26/2021,76.11
8203,12/27/2021,25.12
8204,06/06/2022,46.23
8205,07/18/2022,84.21
8206,11/14/2022,96.24
8207,12/12/2022,67.67
];
Results
Load the data and open a sheet. Create a new table and add these fields as dimensions:
-
id
-
date
-
year_start
-
year_start_timestamp
id | date | year_start | year_start_timestamp |
---|---|---|---|
8188 | 01/13/2020 | 04/01/2019 | 4/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8189 | 02/26/2020 | 04/01/2019 | 4/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8190 | 03/27/2020 | 04/01/2019 | 4/1/2019 12:00:00 AM |
8191 | 04/16/2020 | 04/01/2020 | 4/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8192 | 05/21/2020 | 04/01/2020 | 4/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8193 | 08/14/2020 | 04/01/2020 | 4/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8194 | 10/07/2020 | 04/01/2020 | 4/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8195 | 12/05/2020 | 04/01/2020 | 4/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8196 | 01/22/2021 | 04/01/2020 | 4/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8197 | 02/03/2021 | 04/01/2020 | 4/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8198 | 03/17/2021 | 04/01/2020 | 4/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8199 | 04/23/2021 | 04/01/2021 | 4/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8200 | 05/04/2021 | 04/01/2021 | 4/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8201 | 06/30/2021 | 04/01/2021 | 4/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8202 | 07/26/2021 | 04/01/2021 | 4/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8203 | 12/27/2021 | 04/01/2021 | 4/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8204 | 06/06/2022 | 04/01/2022 | 4/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
8205 | 07/18/2022 | 04/01/2022 | 4/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
8206 | 11/14/2022 | 04/01/2022 | 4/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
8207 | 12/12/2022 | 04/01/2022 | 4/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
In this instance, because the first_month_of_year argument of 4 is used in the yearstart() function, it sets the first day of the year to April 1, and the last day of the year to March 31.
Transaction 8199 took place on April 23, 2021. Because the yearstart() function sets the start of the year to April 1 and returns it as the ‘year_start’ value for the transaction.
Example 4 – Chart object example
Overview
The same dataset and scenario as the first example are used.
However, in this example, the dataset is unchanged and loaded into the application. The calculation that returns the start date timestamp of the year in which a transaction took place is created as a measure in a chart object of the application.
Load script
Transactions:
Load
*
Inline
[
id,date,amount
8188,01/13/2020,37.23
8189,02/26/2020,17.17
8190,03/27/2020,88.27
8191,04/16/2020,57.42
8192,05/21/2020,53.80
8193,08/14/2020,82.06
8194,10/07/2020,40.39
8195,12/05/2020,87.21
8196,01/22/2021,95.93
8197,02/03/2021,45.89
8198,03/17/2021,36.23
8199,04/23/2021,25.66
8200,05/04/2021,82.77
8201,06/30/2021,69.98
8202,07/26/2021,76.11
8203,12/27/2021,25.12
8204,06/06/2022,46.23
8205,07/18/2022,84.21
8206,11/14/2022,96.24
8207,12/12/2022,67.67
];
Results
Load the data and open a sheet. Create a new table and add these fields as dimensions:
-
id
-
date
To calculate in which year a transaction took place, create the following measures:
-
=yearstart(date)
-
=timestamp(yearstart(date))
id | date | =yearstart(date) | =timestamp(yearstart(date)) |
---|---|---|---|
8188 | 06/06/2022 | 01/01/2022 | 1/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
8189 | 07/18/2022 | 01/01/2022 | 1/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
8190 | 11/14/2022 | 01/01/2022 | 1/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
8191 | 12/12/2022 | 01/01/2022 | 1/1/2022 12:00:00 AM |
8192 | 01/22/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8193 | 02/03/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8194 | 03/17/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8195 | 04/23/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8196 | 05/04/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8197 | 06/30/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8198 | 07/26/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8199 | 12/27/2021 | 01/01/2021 | 1/1/2021 12:00:00 AM |
8200 | 01/13/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8201 | 02/26/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8202 | 03/27/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8203 | 04/16/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8204 | 05/21/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8205 | 08/14/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8206 | 10/07/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
8207 | 12/05/2020 | 01/01/2020 | 1/1/2020 12:00:00 AM |
The ‘start_of_year’ measure is created in the chart object by using the yearstart() function and passing the date field as the function’s argument.
The yearstart() function initially identifies which year the date value falls into and returns a timestamp for the first millisecond of that year.
Transaction 8199 took place on April 23, 2021. The yearstart() function returns the first millisecond of that year, which is January 1 at 12:00:00 AM.
Example 5 – Scenario
Overview
Open the Data load editor and add the load script below to a new tab.
The load script contains:
-
A dataset is loaded into a table called ‘Loans’. The table contains the following fields:
-
Loan IDs.
-
The balance at the beginning of the year.
-
The simple interest rate charged on each loan per annum.
-
The end user would like a chart object that displays, by loan id, the current interest that has been accrued on each loan in the year to date.
Load script
Loans:
Load
*
Inline
[
loan_id,start_balance,rate
8188,$10000.00,0.024
8189,$15000.00,0.057
8190,$17500.00,0.024
8191,$21000.00,0.034
8192,$90000.00,0.084
];
Results
Load the data and open a sheet. Create a new table and add these fields as dimensions:
-
loan_id
-
start_balance
To calculate the accumulated interest, create the following measure:
=start_balance*(rate*(today(1)-yearstart(today(1)))/365)
Set the measure’s Number Formatting to Money.
loan_id | start_balance | =start_balance*(rate*(today(1)-yearstart(today(1)))/365) |
---|---|---|
8188 | $10000.00 | $39.73 |
8189 | $15000.00 | $339.66 |
8190 | $17500.00 | $166.85 |
8191 | $21000.00 | $283.64 |
8192 | $90000.00 | $3003.29 |
The yearstart() function, using today’s date as its only argument, returns the start date of the current year. By subtracting that result from the current date, the expression returns the number of days that have elapsed so far this year.
This value is then multiplied by the interest rate and divided by 365 to return the effective interest rate for the period. The effective interest rate for the period is then multiplied by the starting balance of the loan to return the interest that has been accrued so far this year.