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The seven-day week
- Most of us organize our lives based on time. Days, weeks, months, years, etc. are the basis of our time management. But have you ever questioned why weeks have seven days?
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1 / 28 Fotos
Origins of the seven-day week
- The history of the seven-day week can be traced back to calendars of the ancient Sumerians and then the Babylonians.
© Shutterstock
2 / 28 Fotos
The Moon's influence on the seven-day week
- These calendars were based on the lunar phases. Essentially, it takes about seven days for a cycle to occur. In other words, during this period, the Moon transitions from one phase to another.
© Shutterstock
3 / 28 Fotos
The Romans
- In 321 CE, Emperor Constantine converted the eight-day Roman calendar to the seven-day week.
© Shutterstock
4 / 28 Fotos
Previous labels
- Their previous days had letter labels (A to H), but when this was changed for a seven-day week the names also changed.
© Getty Images
5 / 28 Fotos
Not the first
- While the Romans were the ones to name the days of the week, the seven-day week had already been adapted by others who followed the example of the Babylonians, namely Jews, Persians, and Greeks.
© Shutterstock
6 / 28 Fotos
How the Romans named the days
- When it came to naming the days of the week, the Romans went for the names of seven celestial bodies, most of which had been named after Roman gods.
© Shutterstock
7 / 28 Fotos
How the Romans named the days
- The Romans organized the week from Sunday to Saturday and they named the days in that specific order.
© Shutterstock
8 / 28 Fotos
The Roman names
- The names were: Dies Solis ("Sun's Day"), Dies Lunae ("Moon's Day"), Dies Martis ("Mars' Day"), Dies Mercurii ("Mercury's Day"), Dies Jovis ("Jupiter's Day"), Dies Veneris ("Venus' Day"), and Dies Saturni ("Saturn's Day").
© Getty Images
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Romantic languages
- Many romantic languages still use a variation of these names to this day. If you speak Spanish, for instance, you will be familiar with many of these.
© Shutterstock
10 / 28 Fotos
English
- English, on the other hand, doesn't have its roots in Latin, so these Roman names don’t all ring a bell.
© Shutterstock
11 / 28 Fotos
English
- English is a Germanic language. As such, it has days of the week named after the mythology of the Germanic peoples of northern Europe, aka Norse mythology.
© Shutterstock
12 / 28 Fotos
Old English
- However, three of the week days in the language that would become modern English were borrowed from the Romans.
© Shutterstock
13 / 28 Fotos
Roman heritage
- You’re probably familiar with them: Dies Solis ("Sun's Day"), Dies Lunae ("Moon's Day"), and Dies Saturni ("Saturn's Day").
© Shutterstock
14 / 28 Fotos
Sunday
- Dies Solis was translated into Old English as "Sunnandæg," which means "Sun's Day."
© Getty Images
15 / 28 Fotos
Sunday
- In Germanic mythology, a goddess named Sunna was the personification of the Sun, so the word in modern English became "Sunday."
© Getty Images
16 / 28 Fotos
Saturday
- Dies Saturni ("Saturn's Day") was translated to "Sæturnesdæg" in Old English, which then became "Saturday" in modern English. The connection to Saturn (both the Roman deity and the planet) was therefore maintained.
© Getty Images
17 / 28 Fotos
Monday
- Dies Lunae ("Moon's Day") was translated into "Monandæg" in Old English. The Moon was personified in Germanic mythology by the deity Mani. So the day of the week became "Monday" in modern English.
© Getty Images
18 / 28 Fotos
More than planets
- Okay, so Sunday, Monday, and Saturday were named after the Sun, the Moon, and Saturn. Now, let’s learn more about how the remaining days of the week were named.
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19 / 28 Fotos
Tuesday
- Dies Martis ("Mars' Day") became “Tiwesdæg" in Old English. It was named after the deity Tiw, also known as Tyr.
© Public Domain
20 / 28 Fotos
Tuesday
- Mars was the Roman god of war, and Tyr was his equivalent in Germanic mythology. Tiwesdæg eventually became "Tuesday" in modern English.
© Getty Images
21 / 28 Fotos
Wednesday
- The same goes for Wednesday. Dies Mercurii ("Mercury's Day") became "Wodnesdæg," which was named after the Germanic deity Woden, better known as the chief Norse mythology god, Odin.
© Getty Images
22 / 28 Fotos
Wednesday
- Woden (or Odin) is the equivalent of Mercury in Roman mythology. “Wodnesdæg'' then became "Wednesday" in modern English.
© Getty Images
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Thursday
- Dies Jovis ("Jupiter's Day") was adopted in Old English as "Thunresdæg." This day of the week was named after the god Thunor, better known as Thor.
© Getty Images
24 / 28 Fotos
Thursday
- The god of thunder, Thor was the equivalent of Jupiter in Roman mythology. "Thunresdæg" became known as "Thursday" in modern English.
© Public Domain
25 / 28 Fotos
Friday
- Dies Veneris ("Venus' Day") became "Frigedæg" in Old English. As you can imagine, the name came from an equivalent Germanic mythology deity.
© Getty Images
26 / 28 Fotos
Friday
- Though it is unknown whether it was the goddess/goddesses Frigg or Freya (both names are usually used to describe the wife of Odin, but there is some confusion on whether or not they are indeed the same goddess). "Frigedæg" became “Friday” in modern English. Sources: (Grunge) See also: What's so special about Leap Day?
© Getty Images
27 / 28 Fotos
© Shutterstock
0 / 28 Fotos
The seven-day week
- Most of us organize our lives based on time. Days, weeks, months, years, etc. are the basis of our time management. But have you ever questioned why weeks have seven days?
© Shutterstock
1 / 28 Fotos
Origins of the seven-day week
- The history of the seven-day week can be traced back to calendars of the ancient Sumerians and then the Babylonians.
© Shutterstock
2 / 28 Fotos
The Moon's influence on the seven-day week
- These calendars were based on the lunar phases. Essentially, it takes about seven days for a cycle to occur. In other words, during this period, the Moon transitions from one phase to another.
© Shutterstock
3 / 28 Fotos
The Romans
- In 321 CE, Emperor Constantine converted the eight-day Roman calendar to the seven-day week.
© Shutterstock
4 / 28 Fotos
Previous labels
- Their previous days had letter labels (A to H), but when this was changed for a seven-day week the names also changed.
© Getty Images
5 / 28 Fotos
Not the first
- While the Romans were the ones to name the days of the week, the seven-day week had already been adapted by others who followed the example of the Babylonians, namely Jews, Persians, and Greeks.
© Shutterstock
6 / 28 Fotos
How the Romans named the days
- When it came to naming the days of the week, the Romans went for the names of seven celestial bodies, most of which had been named after Roman gods.
© Shutterstock
7 / 28 Fotos
How the Romans named the days
- The Romans organized the week from Sunday to Saturday and they named the days in that specific order.
© Shutterstock
8 / 28 Fotos
The Roman names
- The names were: Dies Solis ("Sun's Day"), Dies Lunae ("Moon's Day"), Dies Martis ("Mars' Day"), Dies Mercurii ("Mercury's Day"), Dies Jovis ("Jupiter's Day"), Dies Veneris ("Venus' Day"), and Dies Saturni ("Saturn's Day").
© Getty Images
9 / 28 Fotos
Romantic languages
- Many romantic languages still use a variation of these names to this day. If you speak Spanish, for instance, you will be familiar with many of these.
© Shutterstock
10 / 28 Fotos
English
- English, on the other hand, doesn't have its roots in Latin, so these Roman names don’t all ring a bell.
© Shutterstock
11 / 28 Fotos
English
- English is a Germanic language. As such, it has days of the week named after the mythology of the Germanic peoples of northern Europe, aka Norse mythology.
© Shutterstock
12 / 28 Fotos
Old English
- However, three of the week days in the language that would become modern English were borrowed from the Romans.
© Shutterstock
13 / 28 Fotos
Roman heritage
- You’re probably familiar with them: Dies Solis ("Sun's Day"), Dies Lunae ("Moon's Day"), and Dies Saturni ("Saturn's Day").
© Shutterstock
14 / 28 Fotos
Sunday
- Dies Solis was translated into Old English as "Sunnandæg," which means "Sun's Day."
© Getty Images
15 / 28 Fotos
Sunday
- In Germanic mythology, a goddess named Sunna was the personification of the Sun, so the word in modern English became "Sunday."
© Getty Images
16 / 28 Fotos
Saturday
- Dies Saturni ("Saturn's Day") was translated to "Sæturnesdæg" in Old English, which then became "Saturday" in modern English. The connection to Saturn (both the Roman deity and the planet) was therefore maintained.
© Getty Images
17 / 28 Fotos
Monday
- Dies Lunae ("Moon's Day") was translated into "Monandæg" in Old English. The Moon was personified in Germanic mythology by the deity Mani. So the day of the week became "Monday" in modern English.
© Getty Images
18 / 28 Fotos
More than planets
- Okay, so Sunday, Monday, and Saturday were named after the Sun, the Moon, and Saturn. Now, let’s learn more about how the remaining days of the week were named.
© Shutterstock
19 / 28 Fotos
Tuesday
- Dies Martis ("Mars' Day") became “Tiwesdæg" in Old English. It was named after the deity Tiw, also known as Tyr.
© Public Domain
20 / 28 Fotos
Tuesday
- Mars was the Roman god of war, and Tyr was his equivalent in Germanic mythology. Tiwesdæg eventually became "Tuesday" in modern English.
© Getty Images
21 / 28 Fotos
Wednesday
- The same goes for Wednesday. Dies Mercurii ("Mercury's Day") became "Wodnesdæg," which was named after the Germanic deity Woden, better known as the chief Norse mythology god, Odin.
© Getty Images
22 / 28 Fotos
Wednesday
- Woden (or Odin) is the equivalent of Mercury in Roman mythology. “Wodnesdæg'' then became "Wednesday" in modern English.
© Getty Images
23 / 28 Fotos
Thursday
- Dies Jovis ("Jupiter's Day") was adopted in Old English as "Thunresdæg." This day of the week was named after the god Thunor, better known as Thor.
© Getty Images
24 / 28 Fotos
Thursday
- The god of thunder, Thor was the equivalent of Jupiter in Roman mythology. "Thunresdæg" became known as "Thursday" in modern English.
© Public Domain
25 / 28 Fotos
Friday
- Dies Veneris ("Venus' Day") became "Frigedæg" in Old English. As you can imagine, the name came from an equivalent Germanic mythology deity.
© Getty Images
26 / 28 Fotos
Friday
- Though it is unknown whether it was the goddess/goddesses Frigg or Freya (both names are usually used to describe the wife of Odin, but there is some confusion on whether or not they are indeed the same goddess). "Frigedæg" became “Friday” in modern English. Sources: (Grunge) See also: What's so special about Leap Day?
© Getty Images
27 / 28 Fotos
How the days of the week got their names
You won't look at Monday the same way ever again!
© Shutterstock
A week is a period of seven days by which most of us arrange our schedules. From working to socializing, we have our days organized from Monday until Sunday. But have you ever wondered how the days of the week got named in English? While there might be clues about the roots of the words in Romance languages, things are not quite so straightforward when you head further up North in Europe.
Curious? Click through to find out how the days of the week got their names.
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