Dates, Days and Months

It's difficult to understand other languages. Even the most rudimentary things like days and dates turn into a morass if you don't understand the language. It's even worse if calendars changed! We hope to offer a little help here.

The following days of the weeks and months of the year may help you translate tombstones or documentary material:

THE DAYS OF THE WEEK
ENGLISH	GERMAN	CZECH	NORWEGIAN	WELSH *(Dydd/Nos)	FRENCH
Sunday	Sonntag	Nedele	Sondag	Dydd Sul/No Sul	dimanche
Monday	Montag	Pondeli	Mandag	Llun	Lundi
Tuesday	Dienstag	Utery	Tirsday	Mawrth/Fawrth	mardi
Wednesday	Mittwoch	Streda	Onsdag	Mercher/Fercher	mercredi
Thursday	Donnerstag	Stvertek	Torsday	Iau	jeudi
Friday	Freitag	Patek	Fredag	Gwener/Wener	vendredi
Saturday	Samstag	Sobota	Lordag	Sadwrn	samedi

* Welsh does not use Sun-day as in English. Sunday would be Dydd Sul. Sunday night (Sun-night) would be Nos Sul. One also has to watch for mutations in night references to Tues-night, Wednes-night, and Fri-night which become Nos Fawrth (instead of Mawrth), Nos Fercher (instead of Mercher), and Nos Wener (instead of Gwener).

THE MONTHS OF THE YEAR
ENGLISH	GERMAN	CZECH	NORWEGIAN	WELSH	FRENCH
January	Januar	Leden	Januar	Ionawr	janvier
February	Februar	Unor	Februar	Chefror	fevrier
March	Maerz	Mars	Mars	Mawrth	mars
April	April	Duben	April	Ebrill	avril
May	Mai	Keten	Mai	Mai	mai
June	Juni	Cerven	Juni	Mehefin	juin
July	Juli	Cervenec	Juli	Gorffennaf	juillet
August	August	Serpen	August	Awst	aout
September	September	Zari	September	Medi	septembre
October	Oktober	Rijen	Oktober	Hydref	octobre
November	November	Listopod	November	Tachwedd	novembre
December	Dezember	Prosinec	Desember	Rhagfyr	decembre

NOTE: Notice the obvious influence of Latin, the "language of the church," on the days of the week and month, as in March, for the god of war, Mars.


THOUGHTS ABOUT CALENDARS
In the ecclesiastical calendar, December was the tenth month, hence the names September (Sept=7), October (Octo=8), etc. The "Old Style" calendar was in effect in the British Empire before 1752, when the present calendar was adopted. The historical calendar recognized January 1 as the first day of the year, while the ecclesiastical calendar recognized March 25 as the first day. Thus, dates between those two days were often written with both year numbers (e.g., January 5, 1712/13). Also, the old calendar was defective by 11 days, so when the switch was made to the new calendar on September 2, 1752, dates were often made compatible with it by adding 11 days. Folks went to bed September 2 and woke up the next day on September 13; there were many protests against the thought of losing 11 whole days out of one's life!

Example: Under the double-dating system, George Washington was born February 11, 1731/32 ("Old Style" or "O.S."). Adjusting this to the new calendar made it February 22, 1732 ("New Style" or "N.S."). Next time somebody bemoans the fact that we aren't really celebrating George Washington's birthday when we get a holiday on the nearest Monday to February 22, tell 'em when George was actually born: the 11th day of the 12th month of 1731, not the 22nd day of the 2nd month of 1732!

Return to the Beginner Center
Return to the Resource Center

The Genealogy Forum - Main Page
Surname Center | Internet Center | Message Boards
Resource Center | Reunion Center | File Library
Genealogy Forum News
Shop With Us

Genealogy Forum.com is a production of
Golden Gate Services, Inc. of Armada, Michigan.
© 1998 - 2005 All Rights Reserved. Brenda Jean Bova, President.
The Genealogy Forum is a member of the Federation of Genealogical Societies and the National Genealogical Society.
Tree logo provided by MeadPond Designs and is the trademark of GenealogyForum.com.

© 2005 Some graphics By Carol, All Rights Reserved  

 If you have any questions or comments,
please contact GenealogyForum@aol.com