Days and Months

Fun Facts About Days and Months

• The seven-day week originated with the ancient Babylonians around 4,000 years ago. It stems from their lunar calendar's division into the four phases of the moon (New Moon, First Quarter, Full Moon, Last Quarter) where each phase lasts roughly 7 days.
• Four days of the week are named after Norse gods: Tuesday (God of War), Wednesday (Odin), Thursday (Thor), and Friday (Goddess of Love).
• Saturday is named after the Roman god Saturn, while Sunday and Monday honor the Sun and the Moon, respectively.
• The original Roman calendar had only 10 months, starting with March and ending in December. It essentially ignored the uncounted winter period which was irrelevant to agricultural (and military) activities. January and February were added later in 713 BC.
• The names of the twelve months of the year come from the Roman calendar, which honored their gods, rulers and marked the numerical positions in the original 10-month year. For instance, January is named for Janus, the God of Beginnings; July after Julius Caesar, who was born that month; and October from Latin meaning "seven", as it was the 7th month.
• The month of August, named for the first Roman Emperor Augustus, was given 31 days (instead of 30) so it wouldn't be shorter than Caesar's July, thereby avoiding any perceived slight to Augustus when compared to Caesar.
• Here's a simple calendar rule: months that start on a Sunday will always have a Friday the 13th. Use it for a party trick.