2007-01-13 22:05:39 · 8 answers · asked by marian r 1 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
The Wikipedia articles cited below give a really good etymology of the words, but here's a quick nutshell.
The weekdays in English come from Nordic and Germanic gods and languages.
SUN-day
MOON-day
Tyr's Day
Woden's Day (Odin, Wotan)
Thor's Day
Saturn's Day actually stays with the Roman name.
The months come mostly from Greek and Roman gods and emperors.
January from Janus, the two-faced god who looks back and forward to the years behind and ahead.
February comes from the Latin, februum, Purification. The Romans would perform the Februa ritual to purify the forthcoming year.
March comes from Mars, god of war.
April... We honestly don't know. Possibly from Aphrodite, possibly from the Latin aperire, To Open, from the festival of flowers blooming.
May is probably from the Greek Maia, fertility goddess.
June is definitely dedicated to Juno, Queen of the Roman Pantheon.
July is named for Julius Caesar, Roman Emperor.
August is similarly named for Caesar Augustus, Roman Emperor.
September, October, November, December are all named from the Latin numbers. Septem, Octem, Novem, Decem, seven, eight, nine, ten.
You may notice that these months don't seem to match up with the numbers their names are given. That's because the Old Roman calendar started at March, but when Julius Caesar took reign of Emperor, he declared that the year would begin at January.
2007-01-13 23:17:52 · answer #1 · answered by infintysquared 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Wow. Why is everyone on here so cheap? Okay how much would you charge somebody per hour to mow your lawn, rake your leaves or shovel snow? Well take that figure and bump it up at least 50% and then add a little more because it's four kids. How much are your children worth to you? You wouldn't pay somebody only $10 to mow your lawn for an hour, why should you pay the person who watches over your kids any less than that?
2016-05-23 23:47:20 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Don't know much but...September (Sept==>7), October (Oct==>8), November (Nona==>9), December (Dec==>10). Thanks to the Julian (Julius Caesar) Calender). July (31 days, Julius)==>Augustus also wanted 31 days==>August! Thursday has a Norse origin...Thor's day.
2007-01-13 22:19:09 · answer #3 · answered by Sam I Am 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I know a lot were named after Gods Monday is named after the Moon, Wednesday is named after Woden, Thursday..Thor etc
2007-01-13 22:30:44 · answer #4 · answered by laughinggiraffe2003 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Monday - Old English, day of the moon, from Latin lunae dies.
Tuesday - Old English, named after the Germanic god Tiw (associated with the Roman god Mars); translation of Latin dies Marti ‘day of Mars’.
Wednesday - Old English, named after the Germanic god Odin; translation of Latin Mercurii dies ‘day of Mercury’
Thursday - Old English, day of thunder (named after the Germanic thunder god Thor), translation of Latin Jovis dies ‘day of Jupiter’
Friday - Old English, named after the Germanic goddess Frigga.
Saturday - Old English, translation of Latin Saturni dies ‘day of Saturn’
Sunday - Old English, day of the sun.
January - from Latin Januarius mensis ‘month of Janus’ (the Roman god who presided over doors and beginnings).
February - ORIGIN Latin februarius, from februa, the name of a purification feast held in this month
March - ORIGIN from Latin Martius mensis ‘month of Mars’
April - ORIGIN Latin Aprilis
May - ORIGIN Old English
June - ORIGIN from Latin Junius mensis ‘month of June’, from Junonius ‘sacred to the goddess Juno’
July - ORIGIN from Latin Julius mensis ‘month of July’, named after the Roman general Julius Caesar.
August - ORIGIN named after Augustus Caesar, the first Roman emperor
September - ORIGIN from Latin septem ‘seven’ (being originally the seventh month of the Roman year).
October - ORIGIN from Latin octo ‘eight’, October being originally the eighth month of the Roman year
November - ORIGIN Latin, from novem ‘nine’ (being originally the ninth month of the Roman year).
December - ORIGIN Latin, from decem ‘ten’ (being originally the tenth month of the Roman year).
2007-01-13 22:16:14 · answer #5 · answered by woman in the well 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Monday: The name Monday comes from the Old English Mōnandæg, meaning "day of the Moon"; it is a translation of the Latin name dies Lunae (cf. Romance language versions of the name, e.g., French lundi)
Tuesday: Tuesday comes from the Old English Tiwesdæg, meaning "Tyr's day." Tyr (in Old English, Tiw, Tew or Tiu) was the Nordic god of single combat and heroic glory in Norse mythology. The name is based on Latin dies Martis, "Day of Mars" (the Roman war god); compare French mardi.
Wednesday: This name comes from the Old English Wodnesdæg meaning the day of the Germanic god Woden, more commonly known as Odin, who was the highest god in Norse mythology, and a prominent god of the Anglo-Saxons (and other places) in England until about the seventh century. It is based on Latin dies Mercurii, "Day of Mercury"; compare French mercredi. The connection between Mercury and Odin is more strained than the other syncretic connections. The usual explanation is that both Odin and Mercury were considered psychopomps, or leaders of souls, in their respective mythologies. However, in Old Norse myth, Odin, like Mercury, is associated with poetic and musical inspiration.
Thursday: The name Thursday comes from the Old English Þunresdæg, meaning the day of Þunor, commonly known in Modern English as Thor, the Germanic and Norse god of thunder. It is based on the Latin dies Iovis, "Day of Jupiter"; compare French jeudi. In the Roman pantheon, Jupiter was the chief god, who seized and maintained his power on the basis of his thunderbolt (fulmen).
Friday: The name Friday comes from the Old English frigedæg, meaning the day of Frige, the Germanic goddess of beauty, who is a later incarnation of the Norse goddess Frigg, but also connected to the Goddess Freyja. It is based on the Latin dies Veneris, "Day of Venus"; compare French vendredi. Venus was the Roman god of beauty, love, and sex.
Saturday: Saturday is the only day of the week to retain its Roman origin in English, named after the Roman god Saturn associated with the Titan Cronos, father of Zeus and many Olympians. In Latin it was dies Saturni, "Day of Saturn"; compare French samedi, which comes from sambata dies (day of the Sabbath).
Sunday: The name Sunday comes from the Old English sunnandæg, meaning the day of the Sun; it is a translation of the Latin phrase dies solis. English, like most of the Germanic languages and several of the Celtic languages, preserves the original pagan/sun associations of the day; many other European languages, including all of the Romance languages, have changed the name of the day to the equivalent of "the Lord's day" (based on Ecclesiastical Latin dies Dominica).
January: Janus (Roman god of gates, doorways, beginnings and endings)
February: Februus (Etruscan god of death) Februarius (mensis) (Latin for "month of purification (rituals)" it is said to be a Sabine word, the last month of ancient pre-450 BC Roman calendar)
March: Mars (Roman god of war)
April: Aprilis (mensis) (Latin for "month of Venus," second month of ancient Roman calendar)
May: Maia Maiestas (Roman goddess)
June: Juno (Roman goddess, wife of Jupiter)
July: Julius Caesar (Roman dictator)
August: Augustus (first Roman emperor)
September: septem (Latin for seven, the seventh month in the calendar of Romulus)
October: octo (Latin for eight, the eighth month in the calendar of Romulus)
November: novem (Latin for nine, the ninth month in the calendar of Romulus)
December: decem (Latin for ten, the tenth month in the calendar of Romulus
2007-01-13 22:17:22 · answer #6 · answered by unique_uma 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Roman Calander that we use today. A.D.
2007-01-13 22:13:45 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
well they started on a monday in january hehehehelol
2007-01-13 22:08:52 · answer #8 · answered by whitecloud 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋