Names of the days of the week

From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
(Redirected from Weekday names)
Jump to: navigation, search

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

Italian cameo bracelet representing the days of the week, corresponding to the planets as Roman gods: Diana as the Moon for Monday, Mars for Tuesday, Mercury for Wednesday, Jupiter for Thursday, Venus for Friday, Saturn for Saturday, and Apollo as the Sun for Sunday. Middle 19th century, Walters Art Museum

The names of the days of the seven-day week in many languages are derived from the names of the classical planets in Hellenistic astrology, which were in turn named after contemporary deities, a system introduced in the Roman Empire during Late Antiquity. In some other languages, the days are named for corresponding deities of the regional culture, either beginning with Sunday or with Monday. In the international standard ISO 8601, Monday is treated as the first day of the week.

Days named after planets

Greco-Roman tradition

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

Between the 1st and 3rd centuries the Roman Empire gradually replaced the eight-day Roman nundinal cycle with the seven-day week. Our earliest evidence for this new system is a Pompeiian graffito referring to the 6th February (viii idus Februarius) of the year AD 60 as dies solis ("Sunday").[1] Another early witness is a reference to a lost treatise by Plutarch, written in about AD 100, which addressed the question of Why are the days named after the planets reckoned in a different order from the actual order?.[2]

The days were named after the planets of Hellenistic astrology, in the order Sun, Moon, Mars (Ares), Mercury (Hermes), Jupiter (Zeus), Venus (Aphrodite) and Saturn (Cronos).

The seven-day week spread throughout the Roman Empire in Late Antiquity. By the 4th century, it was in wide use throughout the Empire, and it had also reached India and China.

The Greek and Latin names are as follows:

Day:
(see Irregularities)
Sunday
Sōl/Helios (Sun)
Monday
Luna/Selene (Moon)
Tuesday
Mars/Ares (Mars)
Wednesday
Mercurius/Hermes (Mercury)
Thursday
Iuppiter/Zeus (Jupiter)
Friday
Venus/Aphrodite (Venus)
Saturday
Saturnus/Kronos (Saturn)
Greek ἡμέρα Ἡλίου
hêméra Hêlíou
ἡμέρα Σελήνης
hêméra Selếnês
ἡμέρα Ἄρεως
hêméra Áreôs
ἡμέρα Ἑρμοῦ
hêméra Hermoú
ἡμέρα Διός
hêméra Diós
ἡμέρα Ἀφροδίτης
hêméra Aphrodítês
ἡμέρα Κρόνου
hêméra Krónou
Latin dies Sōlis dies Lūnae dies Martis dies Mercuriī dies Iovis dies Veneris dies Saturnī

Romance languages

Except for modern Portuguese, the Romance languages preserved the Latin names, except for the names of Sunday, which was replaced by [dies] dominicus, i.e. "Day of the Lord" and of Saturday, which was named for the Sabbath.

Day:
(see Irregularities)
Sunday
Sōl (Sun)
Monday
Luna (Moon)
Tuesday
Mars (Mars)
Wednesday
Mercurius (Mercury)
Thursday
Iuppiter (Jupiter)
Friday
Venus (Venus)
Saturday
Saturnus (Saturn)
Italian domenica [☉1] lunedì martedì mercoledì giovedì venerdì sabato [♄1]
Old Portuguese domingo [☉1] lues martes mércores joves vernes sábado [♄1]
Galician domingo [☉1] luns martes mércores xoves venres sábado [♄1]
Spanish domingo [☉1] lunes martes miércoles jueves viernes sábado [♄1]
Romanian duminică [☉1] luni marţi miercuri joi vineri sâmbătă [♄1]
French dimanche [☉1] lundi mardi mercredi jeudi vendredi samedi [♄1]
Occitan dimenge [☉1] diluns dimarts dimècres dijòus divendres dissabte [♄1]
Catalan diumenge [☉1] dilluns dimarts dimecres dijous divendres dissabte [♄1]
Asturian domingu [☉1] llunes martes miércoles xueves vienres sábadu [♄1]
Venetian domenega luni marti mèrcore zioba vénare sabo
Friulian domenie [☉1] lunis martars miercus joibe vinars sabide [♄1]
Neapolitan dummeneca [☉1] lunnerì marterì miercurì gioverì viernarì sàbbatu [♄1]
Sardinian dominiga [☉1] lunis martis mercuris giobia chenabura sappadu [♄1]
Sicilian dumínica [☉1] luni marti mércuri juvi vénniri sábbatu [♄1]

Celtic languages

Old Irish adopted the names from Latin, but introduced separate terms of uncertain origin for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Day:
(see Irregularities)
Sunday
Sōl (Sun)
Monday
Luna (Moon)
Tuesday
Mars (Mars)
Wednesday
Mercurius (Mercury)
Thursday
Iuppiter (Jupiter)
Friday
Venus (Venus)
Saturday
Saturnus (Saturn)
Old Irish[3] diu[4] srol
dies scrol[5]
Diu luna [6] Diu mart[7] Diu iath[8] Diu eathamon[9] Diu triach[10] Diu satur[n]
Irish An Domhnach [☉1]
Dé Domhnaigh
An Luan
Dé Luain
An Mháirt
Dé Máirt
An Chéadaoin [☿2]
Dé Céadaoin
An Déardaoin [♃1]
Déardaoin
An Aoine [♀1]
Dé hAoine
An Satharn
Dé Sathairn
Scottish Gaelic Di-Dòmhnaich/Didòmhnaich [☉1]
Di-Luain/Diluain
Di-Màirt/Dimàirt
Di-Ciadain/Diciadain [☿2]
Di-Ardaoin/Diardaoin [♃1]
Di-Haoine/Dihaoine [♀1]
Di-Sàthairne/Disathairne
Welsh dydd Sul dydd Llun dydd Mawrth dydd Mercher dydd Iau dydd Gwener dydd Sadwrn
Cornish Dy' Sul Dy' Lun Dy' Meurth Dy' Mergher Dy' Yow Dy' Gwener Dy' Sadorn
Breton Disul Dilun Dimeurzh Dimerc’her Diriaou Digwener Disadorn
Manx Jedoonee [☉1] Jelune Jemayrt Jecrean Jerdein Jeheiney Jesarn

Adoptions from Romance

Albanian adopted the Latin terms[citation needed]. Other languages adopted the week together with the Latin (Romance) names for the days of the week in the colonial period. Some constructed languages also adopted the Latin terminology.

Day:
(see Irregularities)
Sunday
Sōl (Sun)
Monday
Luna (Moon)
Tuesday
Mars (Mars)
Wednesday
Mercurius (Mercury)
Thursday
Iuppiter (Jupiter)
Friday
Venus (Venus)
Saturday
Saturnus (Saturn)
Albanian E diel E hënë E martë E mërkurë E enjte E premte E shtunë
Filipino Linggò [☉1]
Dominggo in most other Philippine languages
Lunes Martes Miyerkules Huwebes Biyernes Sábado [♄1]
Interlingua Dominica [☉1] Lunedi Martedi Mercuridi Jovedi Venerdi Sabbato [♄1]
Ido Sundio Lundio Mardio Merkurdio Jovdio Venerdio Saturdio
Esperanto dimanĉo [☉1] lundo mardo merkredo ĵaŭdo vendredo sabato [♄1]

Germanic tradition

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

The Germanic peoples adapted the system introduced by the Romans by substituting the Norse/Germanic dieties for the Roman ones (with the exception of Saturday) in a process known as interpretatio germanica. The date of the introduction of this system is not known exactly, but it must have happened later than AD 200 but before the introduction of Christianity during the 6th to 7th centuries, i.e., during the final phase or soon after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire.[11] This period is later than the Common Germanic stage, but still during the phase of undifferentiated West Germanic. The names of the days of the week in North Germanic languages were not calqued from Latin directly, but taken from the West Germanic names.

  • Sunday: Old English Sunnandæg (pronounced [ˈsunnɑndæj]), meaning "sun's day." This is a translation of the Latin phrase dies Solis. English, like most of the Germanic languages, preserves the original pagan/sun associations of the day. Many other European languages, including all of the Romance languages, have changed its name to the equivalent of "the Lord's day" (based on Ecclesiastical Latin dies Dominica). In both West Germanic and North Germanic mythology the Sun is personified as a goddess, Sunna/Sól.
  • Monday: Old English Mōnandæg (pronounced [ˈmoːnɑndæj]), meaning "Moon's day." This is based on a translation of the Latin name dies lunae. In North Germanic mythology, the Moon is personified as a god, Máni.
  • Tuesday: Old English Tīwesdæg (pronounced [ˈtiːwezdæj]), meaning "Tiw's day." Tiw (Norse Týr) was a one-handed god associated with single combat and pledges in Norse mythology and also attested prominently in wider Germanic paganism. The name of the day is based on Latin dies Martis, "Day of Mars".
  • Wednesday: Old English Wōdnesdæg (pronounced [ˈwoːdnezdæj]) meaning the day of the Germanic god Wodan (known as Óðinn among the North Germanic peoples), and a prominent god of the Anglo-Saxons (and other Germanic peoples) in England until about the seventh century. It is based on Latin dies Mercurii, "Day of Mercury." The connection between Mercury and Odin is more strained than the other syncretic connections.[citation needed] The usual explanation[who?] is that both Wodan and Mercury were considered psychopomps, or guides of souls after death, in their respective mythologies; both are also associated with poetic and musical inspiration.[citation needed] The Icelandic Miðviku, German Mittwoch, Low German Middeweek and Finnish keskiviikko all mean mid-week.
  • Thursday: Old English Þūnresdæg (pronounced [ˈθuːnrezdæj]), meaning 'Þunor's day'. Þunor means thunder or its personification, the Norse god known in Modern English as Thor. Similarly Dutch donderdag, German Donnerstag ('thunder's day'), Finnish torstai, and Scandinavian Torsdag ('Thor's day'). Thor's day corresponds to Latin dies Iovis, "day of Jupiter".
  • Friday: Old English Frīgedæg (pronounced [ˈfriːjedæj]), meaning the day of the Anglo-Saxon goddess Fríge. The Norse name for the planet Venus was Friggjarstjarna, 'Frigg's star'. It is based on the Latin dies Veneris, "Day of Venus."
  • Saturday: the only day of the week to retain its Roman origin in English, named after the Roman god Saturn associated with the Titan Cronus, father of Zeus and many Olympians. Its original Anglo-Saxon rendering was Sæturnesdæg (pronounced [ˈsæturnezdæj]). In Latin it was dies Saturni, "Day of Saturn." The Scandinavian Lørdag/Lördag deviates significantly as it has no reference to either the Norse or the Roman pantheon; it derives from old Norse laugardagr, literally "washing-day." The German Sonnabend (mainly used in northern and eastern Germany) and the Low German words Sünnavend mean "Sunday Eve", the German word Samstag (mainly used in southern and western Germany) derives from the name for Shabbat.
Day:
(see Irregularities)
Sunday
Sunna/Sól
Monday
Mona/Máni
Tuesday
Tiw/Tyr
Wednesday
Woden/Odin
Thursday
Thunor/Thor
Friday
Frige or Freya
Saturday
Saturn
Proto-Germanic *Sunnōniz dagaz *Mēniniz dagaz *Tīwas dagaz, *Þingsas dagaz *Wōdanas dagaz *Þunras dagaz *Frijjōz dagaz *Saturnas dagaz, *Laugōz dagaz
Old English Sunnandæg Mōnandæg Tīwesdæg Wōdnesdæg Þunresdæg Frīgedæg Sæternesdæg
Old Saxon Sunnundag *Mānundag *Tiuwesdag, *Thingesdag Wōdanesdag *Thunaresdag Frīadag *Sunnunāƀand, *Satarnesdag
Old High German Sunnûntag Mânetag Zîestag Wuotanestag Donarestag Frîjatag Sunnûnâband, Sambaztag [♄1]
Middle Low German Sunnedag Manedag Dingesdag Wodenesdag Donersdag Vrīdag Sunnenavend, Satersdag
German Sonntag Montag Dienstag [♂1], Ziestag (Swiss German) Mittwoch [☿1] (older Wutenstag) Donnerstag Freitag Sonnabend [♄3], Samstag [♄1]
Yiddish Zuntik - זונטיק Montik - מאנטיק Dinstik - דינסטיק [♂1] Mitvokh - מיטוואך [☿1] Donershtik - דאנערשטיק Fraytik - פרײַטיק Shabbes - שבת [♄1]
Scots Saubath[♄1], Sunday Monanday Tysday Wadensday Fuirsday Friday Seturday
Dutch zondag maandag dinsdag [♂1] woensdag donderdag vrijdag zaterdag
Afrikaans Sondag Maandag Dinsdag [♂1] Woensdag Donderdag Vrydag Saterdag
Luxembourgish Sonndeg Méindeg Dënschdeg Mëttwoch Donneschdeg Freideg Samschdeg
West Frisian Snein Moandei Tiisdei Woansdei Tongersdei Freed Sneon[♄3], Saterdei
Low Saxon Sünndag Maandag Dingsdag Middeweek, Goonsdag (rarely Woonsdag) Dünnerdag Freedag Sünnavend, Saterdag
Old Norse sunnudagr mánadagr tysdagr óðinsdagr þórsdagr frjádagr laugardagr [♄2], sunnunótt
Faroese sunnudagur mánadagur týsdagur mikudagur [☿1], ónsdagur (Suðuroy) hósdagur/
tórsdagur (Suðuroy)
fríggjadagur leygardagur
Icelandic sunnudagur mánudagur þriðjudagur miðvikudagur [☿1] fimmtudagur föstudagur laugardagur
Norwegian Nynorsk sundag/søndag måndag tysdag onsdag torsdag fredag laurdag [♄2]
Norwegian Bokmål søndag mandag tirsdag onsdag torsdag fredag lørdag [♄2]
Danish søndag mandag tirsdag onsdag torsdag fredag lørdag [♄2]
Swedish söndag måndag tisdag onsdag torsdag fredag lördag [♄2]
Finnish sunnuntai maanantai tiistai keskiviikko [☿1] torstai perjantai lauantai [♄2]
Estonian pühapäev [☉2] esmaspäev teisipäev kolmapäev neljapäev reede laupäev [♄2]
Maori (transliteration; translation) wiki[☉8]; Rātapu mane; Rāhina tūrei; Rātū wenerei; Rāapa tāite; Rāpare paraire; Rāmere hāterei; Rāhoroi

Indian tradition

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

Indian astrology adopted the concept of days under the regency of a planet under the term vāra, the days of the week being called āditya-, soma-, maṅgala-, budha-, guru-, śukra-, and śani-vāra. śukrá is a name of Venus (regarded as a son of Bhṛgu); guru is here a title of Bṛhaspati, and hence of Jupiter; budha "Mercury" is regarded as a son of Soma, i.e. the Moon.[12] Knowledge of Greek astrology existed since about the 2nd century BC, but references to the vāra occur somewhat later, during the Gupta period (Yājñavalkya Smṛti, c. 3rd to 5th century), i.e. at roughly the same period the system was introduced in the Roman Empire.

Sunday
the Sun (Aditya, Ravi)
Monday
the Moon (Soma, Indu)
Tuesday
Mars (Mangala)
Wednesday
Mercury (Budha)
Thursday
Jupiter (Guru)
Friday
Venus (Shukra)
Saturday
Saturn (Shani)
Hindi रविवार
Ravivār
सोमवार
Somavār
मंगलवार
Mangalavār
बुधवार
Budhavār
गुरूवार
Guruvār
शुक्रवार
Shukravār
शनिवार
Shanivār
Nepali आइतवार
Aaitabar
सोमवार
Sombar
मंगलवार
Mangalbar
बुधवार
Budhbar
बिहिवार
Bihibar
शुक्रवार
Sukrabar
शनिवार
Sanibar
Marathi रविवार
Ravivār
सोमवार
Somavār
मंगळवार
Mangaḷavār
बुधवार
Budhavār
गुरूवार
Guruvār
शुक्रवार
Shukravār
शनिवार
Shanivār
Bengali রবিবার
Robibar
সোমবার
Shombar
মঙ্গলবার
Monggolbar
বুধবার
Budhbar
বৃহস্পতিবার
Brihôshpotibar
শুক্রবার
Shukrobar
শনিবার
Shonibar
Urdu Itwār اتوار Pīr پیر[☽4] or Somwar سوموار Mangal منگل Budh Charshumba بدھ Jumā-rāt جمعراتRaat = Eve Jum'ah جمعہ[♀4] Sanīchar سنیچرor ہفتہ Haftah [♄6]
Kashmiri اَتھ وار
Aath'var
ژندر وار
Tsander'var
پم وار
Bom'var
برھ وار
Budh'var
برس وار
Bres'var
جُمھ
Jummah
بٹ وار
Bat'var
Gujarati રવિવાર
Ravivār
સોમવાર
Somvār
મંગળવાર
Mangaḷvār
બુધવાર
Budhvār
ગુરૂવાર
Guruvār
શુક્રવાર
Shukravār
શનિવાર
Shanivār
Punjabi ਐਤਵਾਰ
etvār
ਸੋਮਵਾਰ
sōmvār
ਮੰਗਲਵਾਰ
mangalvār
ਬੁੱਧਵਾਰ
búdvār
ਵੀਰਵਾਰ
vīrvār
ਸ਼ੁੱਕਰਵਾਰ
shukkarvār
ਸ਼ਨਿੱਚਰਵਾਰ
shaniccharvār
Maldivian އާދީއްތަ
Aadheettha
ހޯމަ
Homa
އަންގާރަ
Angaara
ބުދަ
Budha
ބުރާސްފަތި
Buraasfathi
ހުކުރު
Hukuru
ހޮނިހިރު
Honihiru
Kannada ಭಾನುವಾರ
Bhanu Vaara
ಸೋಮವಾರ
Soma Vaara
ಮಂಗಳವಾರ
Mangala Vaara
ಬುಧವಾರ
Budha Vaara
ಗುರುವಾರ
Guru Vaara
ಶುಕ್ರವಾರ
Shukra Vaara
ಶನಿವಾರ
Shani Vaara
Oriya ଋବିବାର
Ravivār
ସୋମବାର
Somavār
ମଙ୍ଗଳବାର
Mangalavār
ବୁଧବାର
Budhavār
ଗୁରୁବାର
Guruvār
ଶୁକ୍ରବାର
Shukravār
ଶନିବାର
Shanivār
Telugu ఆదివారం
Aadi Vāram
సోమవారం
Soma Vāram
మంగళవారం
Mangala Vāram
బుధవారం
Budha Vāram
గురువారం
Bestha/Guru/Lakshmi Vāram
శుక్రవారం
Shukra Vāram
శనివారం
Shani Vāram
Tamil ஞாயிற்று கிழமை
Gnyāyitrruk kizhamai
திங்கட் கிழமை
Thingat kizhamai
செவ்வாய்க் கிழமை
Chevvāik kizhamai
புதன் கிழமை
Budhan kizhamai
வியாழக் கிழமை
Viyāzhak kizhamai
வெள்ளிக் கிழமை
Vellik kizhamai
சனிக் கிழமை
Sanik kizhamai
Malayalam ഞായര്‍
Nhāyar
തിങ്കള്‍
Tingal
ചൊവ്വ
Chovva
ബുധന്‍
Budhan
വ്യാഴം
Vyāzham
വെള്ളി
Velli
ശനി
Shani
Burmese တနင်္ဂနွေ[☉9]
IPA: [tənɪ́ɴ ɡənwè]
(ta.nangga.nwe)
တနင်္လာ[☽5]
IPA: [tənɪ́ɴ là]
(ta.nangla)
အင်္ဂါ
IPA: [ɪ̀ɴ ɡà]
(Angga)
ဗုဒ္ဓဟူး
IPA: [boʊʔ dəhú]
(Buddhahu)
(afternoon=new day)
ရာဟု
Rahu
ကြာသာပတေး
IPA: [tɕà ðà bədé]
(Krasapate)
သောကြာ
IPA: [θaʊʔ tɕà]
(Saukra)
စနေ
IPA: [sənè]
(Cane)
Mon တ္ၚဲ အဒိုတ်
[ŋoa ətɜ̀t]
from Sans. āditya
တ္ၚဲ စန်
[ŋoa cɔn]
from Sans. candra
တ္ၚဲ အၚါ
[ŋoa əŋɛ̀a]
from Sans. aṅgāra
တ္ၚဲ ဗုဒ္ဓဝါ
[ŋoa pùt-həwɛ̀a]
from Sans. budhavāra
တ္ၚဲ ဗြဴဗ္တိ
[ŋoa pɹɛ̀apətɔeʔ]
from Sans. bṛhaspati
တ္ၚဲ သိုက်.
[ŋoa sak]
from Sans. śukra
တ္ၚဲ သ္ၚိ သဝ်
[ŋoa hɔeʔ sɔ]
from Sans. śani
Khmer ថ្ងៃអាទិត្យ
[tŋaj ʔaːtɨt]
ថ្ងៃចន្ទ
[tŋaj can]
ថ្ងៃអង្គារ
[tŋaj ʔɑŋkiə]
ថ្ងៃពុធ
[tŋaj put]
ថ្ងៃព្រហស្បត្ណិ
[tŋaj prɔhoə̯h]
ថ្ងៃសុក្រ
[tŋaj sok]
ថ្ងៃសៅរ៍
[tŋaj saʋ]
Lao ວັນອາທິດ
[wán ʔàːtʰīt]
ວັນຈັນ
[wán càn]
ວັນອັງຄານ
[wán ʔàŋkʰáːn]
ວັນພຸດ
[wán pʰūt]
ວັນພະຫັດ
[wán pʰāhát]
ວັນສຸກ
[wán súk]
ວັນເສົາ
[wán sǎu]
Shan ဝၼ်းဢႃတိတ်ႉ
IPA: [wan˦ ʔaː˩ tit˥]
ဝၼ်းၸၼ်
IPA: [wan˦ tsan˩]
ဝၼ်းဢင်းၵၼ်း
IPA: [wan˦ ʔaŋ˦ kan˦]
ဝၼ်းၽုတ်ႉ
IPA: [wan˦ pʰut˥]
ဝၼ်းၽတ်း
IPA: [wan˦ pʰat˦]
ဝၼ်းသုၵ်း
IPA: [wan˦ sʰuk˦]
ဝၼ်းသဝ်
IPA: [wan˦ sʰaw˩]
Thai วันอาทิตย์
Wan Āthit
วันจันทร์
Wan Chan
วันอังคาร
Wan Angkhān
วันพุธ
Wan Phut
วันพฤหัสบดี
Wan Phruehatsabodi
วันศุกร์
Wan Suk
วันเสาร์
Wan Sao
Mongolian адъяа
ad'yaa
сумъяа
sum'yaa
ангараг
angarag
буд
bud
бархабадь
barhabad'
сугар
sugar
санчир
sanchir
Javanese Raditya Soma Anggara Buda Respati Sukra Tumpek
Balinese Redite Coma Anggara Buda Wraspati Sukra Saniscara
Sinhala ඉරිදා
Iridaa
සඳුදා
Sandudaa
අඟහරුවාදා
Angaharuwaadaa
බදාදා
Badaadaa
බ්‍රහස්පතින්දා
Brahaspathindaa
සිකුරාදා
Sikuraadaa
සෙනසුරාදා
Senasuraadaa
Sanskrit भानुवासरम्
Bhaanuvaasaram
इन्दुवासरम्
Induvaasaram
भौमवासरम्
Bhaumavaasaram
सौम्यवासरम्
Saumyavaasaram
गुरुवासरम्
Guruvaasaram
भृगुवासरम्
Bhruguvaasaram
स्थिरवासरम्
Sthiravaasaram

East Asian tradition

The East Asian naming system of days of the week closely parallels that of the Latin system and is ordered after the "Seven Luminaries" (七曜 qī yào), which consists of the Sun, Moon and the five planets visible to the naked eye.

The Chinese seem to have adopted the seven-day week from the Hellenistic system by the 4th century, although by which route is not entirely clear. It was again transmitted to China in the 8th century by Manichaeans, via the country of Kang (a Central Asian polity near Samarkand).[13] The 4th-century date, according to the Cihai encyclopedia,[year needed] is due to a reference to Fan Ning (範寧 / 范宁), an astrologer of the Jin Dynasty. The renewed adoption from Manichaeans in the 8th century (Tang Dynasty) is documented with the writings of the Chinese Buddhist monk Yi Jing and the Ceylonese Buddhist monk Bu Kong.

The Chinese transliteration of the planetary system was soon brought to Japan by the Japanese monk Kobo Daishi; surviving diaries of the Japanese statesman Fujiwara Michinaga show the seven day system in use in Heian Period Japan as early as 1007. In Japan, the seven day system was kept in use (for astrological purposes) until its promotion to a full-fledged (Western-style) calendrical basis during the Meiji era. In China, with the founding of the Republic of China in 1911, Monday through Saturday in China are now named after the luminaries implicitly with the numbers.

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
Celestial Object Sun (日) Moon (月)
First Star
Mars (火)
Second Star
Mercury (水)
Third Star
Jupiter (木)
Fourth Star
Venus (金)
Fifth Star
Saturn (土)
Sixth Star
Chinese 星期日 Xīngqī Rì 星期一 Xīngqī Yī 星期二 Xīngqī Èr 星期三 Xīngqī Sān 星期四 Xīngqī Sì 星期五 Xīngqī Wǔ 星期六 Xīngqī Liù
Japanese 日曜日 Nichiyōbi 月曜日 Getsuyōbi 火曜日 Kayōbi 水曜日 Suiyōbi 木曜日 Mokuyōbi 金曜日 Kin'yōbi 土曜日 Doyōbi
Korean (Hangul) 일요일 Ilyoil 월요일 Wolyoil 화요일 Hwayoil 수요일 Suyoil 목요일 Mogyoil 금요일 Geumyoil 토요일 Toyoil
Tibetan (བོད་ཡིག་) གཟའ་ཉི་མ། གཟའ་ཟླ་བ། གཟའ་མིག་དམར། གཟའ་ལྷག་པ། གཟའ་ཕུར་བུ། གཟའ་པ་སངས། གཟའ་སྤེན་པ།
Mongolian наран өдөр naraŋ ödör саран өдөр saraŋ ödör гал өдөр gal ödör усан өдөр usaŋ ödör модон өдөр modoŋ ödör төмөр өдөр, алтан өдөр tömör ödör, altaŋ ödör шороон өдөр shorooŋ ödör
Pronunciations for Old Chinese names are given in Modern Standard Chinese.

Numbered days of the week

Days numbered from Sunday

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

Sunday comes first in order in calendars shown in the table below. In the Judeo-Christian or Abrahamic tradition, the first day of the week is Sunday. Biblical Sabbath (corresponding to Saturday), when God rested from six-day Creation, made the day following Sabbath the first day of the week (corresponding to Sunday). Seventh-day Sabbaths were sanctified for celebration and rest. After the week was adopted in early Christianity, Sunday remained the first day of the week, but also gradually displaced Saturday as the day of celebration and rest, being considered the Lord's Day.

Saint Martin of Dumio (c. 520–580), archbishop of Braga, decided not to call days by pagan gods and to use ecclesiastic terminology to designate them. While the custom of numbering the days of the week was mostly prevalent in the Eastern Church, Portuguese and Galician, due to Martin's influence, are the only Romance languages in which the names of the days come from numbers rather than planetary names.[14]

Icelandic is a special case within the Germanic languages, maintaining only the Sun and Moon (sunnudagur and mánudagur respectively), while dispensing with the names of the explicitly heathen gods in favour of a combination of numbered days and days whose names are linked to pious or domestic routine (föstudagur, "Fasting Day" and laugardagur, "Washing Day"). The "washing day" is also used in other North Germanic languages, although the planetary names generally are retained.

In Chinese, the week is referred to as the cycle of the stars(Chinese: 星期; pinyin: Xīngqī). And Sunday means the "sun's day"(星期日, Xīngqī Rì) or the "week's day"(周日, Zhōurì). Monday is the "first star's day"(星期一, Xīngqī Yī) or the "first weekday"(周一, Zhōuyī), Tuesday is the "second star's day"(星期二, Xīngqī Èr) or the "second weekday"(周二, Zhōu'èr), and so on.

In China's Southeast coast area, the Catholicism and Christianity is introduced earlier, and Sunday is called as the Lord's Day or the Worship Day(禮拜天, Lǐbài Tiān). In these areas, the week means the Worship Cycle(禮拜, Lǐbài), and Monday to Saturday is called as the Worship One to Six without taking extra considering. As the effect, Xīngqī Rì(星期日, Sunday) is called as Xīngqī Tiān(星期天, the week's day) as the common expression.
Day
Number From One
Sunday
Day One
Monday
Day Two
Tuesday
Day Three
Wednesday
Day Four
Thursday
Day Five
Friday
Day Six
Saturday
Day Seven/Zero
Icelandic sunnudagur (Sun) mánudagur (Moon) þriðjudagur miðvikudagur [☿1] fimmtudagur föstudagur [♀1] laugardagur [♄2]
Hebrew יום ראשון
yom rishon
יום שני
yom sheyni
יום שלישי
yom shlishi
יום רביעי
yom revi'i
יום חמישי
yom khamishi
יום שישי
yom shishi
יום שבת
yom Shabbat[♄1]
Ecclesiastical Latin Dominica [☉1] feria secunda feria tertia feria quarta feria quinta feria sexta sabbatum [♄1]
Portuguese domingo [☉1] segunda-feira terça-feira quarta-feira quinta-feira sexta-feira sábado [♄1]
Galician domingo [☉1] segunda feira terza feira
terceira feira
corta feira
quarta feira
quinta feira sexta feira sábado [♄1]
Greek Κυριακή
Kyriakí [☉1]
Δευτέρα
Deftéra
Τρίτη
Tríti
Τετάρτη
Tetárti
Πέμπτη
Pémpti
Παρασκευή
Paraskeví [♀2]
Σάββατο
Sávato [♄1]
Georgian კვირა k'vira ორშაბათი oršabati სამშაბათი samšabati ოთხშაბათი otxšabati ხუთშაბათი xutšabati პარასკევი p'arask'evi შაბათი šabati
Armenian Կիրակի
Kiraki [☉1]
Երկուշաբթի
Yerkushabti
Երեքշաբթի
Yerekshabti
Չորեքշաբթի
Chorekshabti
Հինգշաբթի
Hingshabti
Ուրբաթ
Urbat
Շաբաթ
Shabat [♄1]
Vietnamese chủ nhật or chúa nhật [☉1] (ngày) thứ hai (ngày) thứ ba (ngày) thứ tư (ngày) thứ năm (ngày) thứ sáu (ngày) thứ bảy
Somali Axad Isniin Talaado Arbaco Khamiis Jimco Sabti
Amharic እሑድ
əhud
ሰኞ
säñño (Next)
ማክሰኞ
maksäñño
ረቡዕ, ሮብ
räbu, rob
ሐሙስ
hamus
ዓርብ
arb (Sunset)
ቅዳሜ
ḳədame (First)
Arabic يوم) الأحد)
(yawm) al-aḥad
يوم) الإثنين)
(yawm) al-ithnayn
يوم) الثُّلَاثاء)
(yawm) ath-thalathā’
يوم) الأَرْبعاء)
(yawm) al-’arbi‘ā’
يوم) الخَمِيس)
(yawm) al-khamīs
يوم) الجُمْعَة)
(yawm) al-jum‘ah [♀4]
يوم) السَّبْت)
(yawm) as-sabt [♄5]
Sindhi aacheru
آچر
soomaru
سومر
angaro
انڱارو
arbau
اربع
kameesa
خميس
jum'o
جمعو
chhanchher
ڇنڇر
Maltese il-Ħadd it-Tnejn it-Tlieta l-Erbgħa il-Ħamis il-Ġimgħa [♀4] is-Sibt [♄5]
Malay Ahad Isnin Selasa Rabu Khamis Jumaat [♀4] Sabtu [♄5]
Indonesian Minggu [☉1] (Portuguese) Senin Selasa Rabu Kamis Jumat [♀4] Sabtu [♄5]
Sundanese Minggu / Minggon Senén Salasa Rebo Kemis Jumaah [♀4] Saptu [♄5]
Persian یکشنبه
yekšanbe
Mehr ruz
مهرروز
دوشنبه
došanbe
Māh ruz
ماه روز
سه شنبه
sešanbe
Bahrām ruz
بهرام روز
چهارشنبه
čāhāršanbe
Tir ruz
تیر روز
پنجشنبه
panjšanbe
Hormazd ruz
هرمزد روز
آدینه or جمعه
ādine [♀3] or djome [♀4]
Nāhid ruz
ناهید روز
شنبه
šanbe
Keyvān ruz
کیوان روز
Khowar یک شمبے
yak shambey
دو شمبے[☽4]
du shambey
سہ شمبے
sey shambey
چار شمبے
char shambey
پچھمبے
pachhambey
آدینہ[♀3]
adina
شمبے
shambey
Kurdish Yekşem Duşem Sêşem Çarşem Pêncşem În Şemî
Old Turkic birinç kün ikinç kün üçünç kün törtinç kün beşinç kün altınç kün yetinç kün
Navajo Damóo/Damíigo [☉1] (Spanish) Damóo Biiskání
Sunday has ended
Damóo dóó Naakiską́o
Sunday +2 × sunrise
Damóo dóó Tááʼ Yiką́o
Sunday +3 × sunrise
Damóo dóó Dį́į́ʼ Yiką́o
Sunday +4 × sunrise
Ndaʼiiníísh
It ends/done for the week
Yiką́o Damóo
[upon] sunrise [it is] Sunday
Uzbek Dushanba Seshanba Chorshanba Payshanba Juma Shanba Yakshanba
Number From One Day Zero Day One Day Two Day Three Day Four Day Five Day Six
Chinese characters
(and Pinyin)
星期日
Xīngqī Rì
星期一
Xīngqī Yī
星期二
Xīngqī Èr
星期三
Xīngqī Sān
星期四
Xīngqī Sì
星期五
Xīngqī Wǔ
星期六
Xīngqī Liù

Days numbered from Monday

The ISO prescribes Monday as the first day of the week with ISO-8601 for software date formats.

The Slavic, Baltic and Uralic languages (except Finnish and partially Estonian) adopted numbering but took Monday rather than Sunday as the "first day".[15]

Day
Number From One
Monday
Day One
Tuesday
Day Two
Wednesday
Day Three
Thursday
Day Four
Friday
Day Five
Saturday
Day Six
Sunday
Day Seven/Zero
ISO 8601 # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Russian понедельник
ponedel'nik [☽1]
вторник
vtornik
среда
sreda [☿1]
четверг
chetverg
пятница
pyatnitsa
суббота
subbota [♄1]
воскресенье
voskresen'ye [☉3]
Belarusian Панядзелак
panyadzelak [☽1]
Аўторак
awtorak
Серада
serada [☿1]
Чацьвер
chats'ver
Пятніца
pyatnitsa
Субота
subota [♄1]
Нядзеля
nyadzelya [☉6]
Ukrainian понедiлок
ponedilok [☽1]
вiвторок
vivtorok
середа
sereda [☿1]
четвер
chetver
п'ятниця
p'yatnitsya
субота
subota [♄1]
недiля
nedilya [☉6]
Bulgarian понеделник
ponedelnik [☽1]
вторник
vtornik
сряда
sryada [☿1]
четвъртък
chetvărtăk
петък
petăk
събота
săbota [♄1]
неделя
nedelya [☉6]
Polish poniedziałek [☽1] wtorek środa [☿1] czwartek piątek sobota [♄1] niedziela [☉6]
Kashubian pòniedzôłk wtórk strzoda czwiôrtk piątk sobòta niedzela
Slovak pondelok [☽1] utorok streda [☿1] štvrtok piatok sobota [♄1] nedeľa [☉6]
Czech pondělí or pondělek [☽1] úterý or úterek středa [☿1] čtvrtek pátek sobota [♄1] neděle [☉6]
Slovene Ponedeljek [☽1] Torek Sreda [☿1] Četrtek Petek Sobota [♄1] Nedelja [☉6]
Bosnian Ponedjeljak Utorak Srijeda Četvrtak Petak Subota Nedjelja
Croatian Ponedjeljak [☽1] Utorak Srijeda [☿1] Četvrtak Petak Subota [♄1] Nedjelja [☉6]
Serbian Понедељак
Ponedeljak [☽1]
Уторак
Utorak
Среда
Sreda [☿1]
Четвртак
Četvrtak
Петак
Petak
Субота
Subota [♄1]
Недеља
Nedelja [☉6]
Macedonian понеделник
ponedelnik [☽1]
вторник
vtornik
среда
sreda [☿1]
четврток
chetvrtok
петок
petok
сабота
sabota [♄1]
недела
nedela [☉6]
Lithuanian Pirmadienis Antradienis Trečiadienis Ketvirtadienis Penktadienis Šeštadienis Sekmadienis
Latvian pirmdiena otrdiena trešdiena ceturtdiena piektdiena sestdiena svētdiena
Hungarian hétfő [☽3] kedd [♂2] szerda [☿1] Slavic csütörtök Slavic péntek Slavic szombat [♄1] Slavic vasárnap [☉5]
Estonian esmaspäev teisipäev kolmapäev neljapäev reede laupäev pühapäev
Mongolian
(numerical)
нэг дэх өдөр
neg dekh ödör
хоёр дахь өдөр
hoyor dahi ödör
гурав дахь өдөр
gurav dahi ödör
дөрөв дэх өдөр
döröv dekh ödör
тав дахь өдөр
tav dahi ödör
хагас сайн өдөр
hagas sayn ödör [♄7]
бүтэн сайн өдөр
büten sayn ödör [☉7]
Mongolian
(Tibetan)
Даваа
davaa
Мягмар
myagmar
Лхагва
lhagva
Пүрэв
pürev
Баасан
baasan
Бямба
byamba
Ням
nyam
Turkish Pazartesi [☽2] Salı [♂4] Çarşamba [☿4] Perşembe [♃4] Cuma [♀4] Cumartesi [♄4] Pazar [☉4]
Luo Wuok tich Tich ariyo Tich adek Tich ang'uen Tich abich Chieng' ngeso Juma pil
Tok Pisin (Melanesian Pidgin) mande tunde trinde fonde fraide sarere sande

Days numbered from Saturday

In Swahili the day begins at sunrise rather than sunset, and so offset by twelve hours from the Arabic and Hebrew calendar. Saturday is therefore the first day of the week, as it is the day that includes the first night of the week in Arabic.

Etymologically speaking, Swahili has two "fifth" days. The words for Saturday through Wednesday contain the Bantu-derived Swahili words for "one" through "five." The word for Thursday, Alhamisi, is of Arabic origin and means "the fifth" (day). The word for Friday, Ijumaa, is also Arabic and means (day of) "gathering" for the Friday noon prayers in Islam.

Day
Number from One
Saturday
Day One
Sunday
Day Two
Monday
Day Three
Tuesday
Day Four
Wednesday
Day Five
Thursday
Day Five II
Friday
Day Zero
Swahili[16] jumamosi jumapili jumatatu jumanne jumatano alhamisi [♃2] ijumaa [♀4]

Mixing of numbering and planetary names

In the Žejane dialect of Istro-Romanian, lur (Monday) and virer (Friday) follow the Latin convention, while utorek (Tuesday), sredu (Wednesday), and četrtok (Thursday) follow the Slavic convention.[17]

Day
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
Istro-Romanian, Žejane dialect lur utorek sredu četrtok virer simbota [♄1] dumireca [☉1]

There are several systems in the different Basque dialects.[18]

Day: Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
Standard Basque, Guipuscoan Basque astelehena ("week-first") asteartea ("week-between") asteazkena ("week-last") osteguna ("Ortzi/Sky day") ostirala (see Ortzi) larunbata ("fourth", "meeting of friends"), neskenegun ("girls' day") igandea
Biscayne Basque astelena ("week-first"), ilen ("Moon day") martitzena ("Mars day") eguaztena ("day last") eguena ("day of days", "day of light") barikua ("day without supper"), egubakotx zapatua (compare with Spanish sábado from Sabbath) domeka (from Latin dominica [dies])

See also

Week wheel for children

Notes

Sunday

☉1 From Latin Dominicus (Christian Sabbath)
☉2 Holy Day and First-Day of the Week (Day of the Sun -> Light -> Resurrection -> Born again)(Christianity)
☉3 Resurrection (Christianity)
☉4 Bazaar Day
☉5 Market Day
☉6 No Work
☉7 Full good day
☉8 Borrowed from English week
☉9 From an Old Burmese word, not of Indic origin.

Monday

☽1 After No Work. In Russian also "Day After Week(end)" - see понедельник
☽2 After Bazaar
☽3 Head of Week
☽4 Master (as in Pir, because Muhammad was born on a Monday[citation needed])
☽5 From an Old Burmese word, not of Indic origin.

Tuesday

♂1 Thing (Assembly), of which god Tyr/Ziu was the patron.
♂2 Second day of the week (cf. Hungarian kettő "two")
♂4 From Arabic "ath-Thalaathaaʼ" (third day)

Wednesday

☿1 Mid-week or Middle
☿2 The First Fast (Christianity)

Thursday

♃1 The day between two fasts (An Dé idir dhá aoin, contracted to An Déardaoin) (Christianity)
♃2 Five (Arabic)

Friday

♀1 The Fast (Celtic) or Fasting Day (Icelandic) (Christianity)
♀2 Good Friday or Preparation (Christianity)
♀3 Day of Faith (Islam)
♀4 Gathering/Assembly/Meeting (Islam) – in Malta with no Islamic connotations

Saturday

♄1 Shabbat or seventh-day Sabbath (Judeo–Christian)
♄2 Wash or Bath day
♄3 Sun-eve (Eve of Sunday)
♄4 After the Gathering (Islam)
♄5 End of the Week (Arabic Sabt = Rest)
♄6 Week
♄7 Half good day

Further reading

  • Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  • Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  • Neugebauer, Otto (1979). Ethiopic astronomy and computus, Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, philosophisch-historische klasse, sitzungsberichte, 347 (Vienna)

External links

References

Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

  1. Nerone Caesare Augusto Cosso Lentuol Cossil fil. Cos. VIII idus Febr(u)arius dies solis, luna XIIIIX nun(dinae) Cumis, V (idus Februarias) nun(dinae) Pompeis. Robert Hannah, "Time in Written Spaces", in: Peter Keegan, Gareth Sears, Ray Laurence (eds.), Written Space in the Latin West, 200 BC to AD 300, A&C Black, 2013, p. 89.
  2. E. G. Richards, Mapping Time, the Calendar and History, Oxford 1999. p. 269 (The treatise is lost, but the answer to the question is known, see planetary hours).
  3. replacing a system of n "one-, three-, five-, ten-, or fifteen-day periods" (>Dáibhí Ó Cróinín, 2003, p. 7). MS. 17 (now held at St. John's College, Oxford), dating at least from 1043, records five week-day lists, which it names as follows: secundum Hebreos (according to the Hebrews); secundum antiquos gentiles (according to the ancient gentiles, i.e., Romans); secundum Siluestrum papam (according to Pope Sylvester[disambiguation needed], i.e., a list derived from the apocryphal Acta Syluestri); secundum Anglos (according to the English); secundum Scottos (according to the Irish).
  4. "we have a clear reflex of the Indo-European nominative singular, with a lengthened grade, giving archaic Old Irish diu; it is suggested that what we have in the Oxford list and in Cormac's Glossary is the oldest form of Old Irish dia, representing the old nominative case of the noun in adverbial usage." Dáibhí Ó Cróinín, 2003, p. 12
  5. The word scrol is glossed in Sanas Cormaic as Scroll .i. soillsi, unde est aput Scottos diu srol.i. dies solis "Srcoll, that is brightness, whence 'diu srol' among the Irish, that is Sunday".
  6. Ó Cróinín has Diu luna as "represent[ing] the transitional form between Latin dies lunae and the later, Classical Old Irish dia luain ... a translation of, not a calque on, the Latin ... [It] would seem to reflect a pre-assimilation state in respect of both words," Dáibhí Ó Cróinín, 2003, p. 13
  7. "The Irish word perhaps derives from Latin forms where cases other than the genitive were used, e.g., Marte."Dáibhí Ó Cróinín, 2003, p. 15
  8. A form unique to Irish, meaning uncertain. A "very old" word for Wednesday, Mercúir (borrowed from the Latin (dies) Mercurii), does occur in early Leinster poems but Ó Cróinín is of the belief that Diu eathamon "reflects a still older Irish word for 'Wednesday.'"
  9. A form unique to Irish. Ó Cróinín writes, "I suggest that it means simply 'on Thursday' ... it is temporal dat. of an n-stem (nom. sg. etham, gen. sg. ethamon - as in our Oxford list - and acc./dat. sg. ethamain)." (2003, p. 17) He furthermore suggests that etham ('arable land') "may be a noun of agency from ith (gen. sg. etho), with a meaning like corn-maker or some such thing; Diu eathamon might then be a day for sowing seed in a weekly regimen of activities such as we find in Críth Gablach." Dáibhí Ó Cróinín, 2003, p. 17. The form Ethomuin is found in Rawlinson B 502.
  10. A form unique to Irish, its meaning unclear.
  11. see J. Grimm, Teutonic Mythology, p. 122-123
  12. Monier-Williams, Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899), s.v. vāra.
  13. The Chinese encyclopaedia Cihai (辞海) under the entry for "seven luminaries calendar" (七曜历/七曜曆, qī yào lì) has: "method of recording days according to the seven luminaries [七曜 qī yào]. China normally observes the following order: Sun, Mon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn. Seven days make one week, which is repeated in a cycle. Originated in ancient Babylon (or ancient Egypt according to one theory). Used by the Romans at the time of the 1st century AD, later transmitted to other countries. This method existed in China in the 4th century. It was also transmitted to China by Manichaeans in the 8th century from the country of Kang (康) in Central Asia." (translation after Bathrobe's Days of the Week in Chinese, Japanese & Vietnamese, plus Mongolian and Buryat (cjvlang.com)
  14. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. Swahili days, months, dates
  17. [1] Archived 20 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  18. Astronomy and Basque Language, Henrike Knörr, Oxford VI and SEAC 99 "Astronomy and Cultural Diversity", La Laguna, June 1999. It references Alessandro Bausani, 1982, The prehistoric Basque week of three days: archaeoastronomical notes, The Bulletin of the Center for Archaeoastronomy (Maryland), v. 2, 16-22.