WHAT IS A WEEK?

Cromwell Argus, Volume LXI, Issue 3160, 27 April 1931, Page 7

WHAT IS A WEEK?

How Its Seven-Day Length Originated. There are few words used oftener than "week." In a week's time, we say, and we talk of things that happen weekly, but rarely do we ask what a week is". Probably the average person would reply readily that a week is a group of seven days, but that will not do. In some parts of the world it is a group of three days, and in others a week is ten days. At the Prench Revolution there was an attempt to reform the calendar and go back to the ways of ancient Greece, counting thirty days to every month, and making every month contain three weeks. But that was not a success. The word "week" comes from the German "Wikon", meaning change or succession, and the length of this succession of days is usually decided by the Moon or the market. In places where a market is held every third day the week is three days long; in districts where a market is held every eight days, there is an eightday week. Persia, Java, Celebes, Malaysia, and New Guinea have fiveday weeks. The Muyscas of South America have a three-day week, African weeks vary from three to eight days, Europe has a seven-day week. Where did Europe get her week, and what decided its length? Like most things, says a writer in "My Magazine," it came from the Romans, but it did not originate in Rome. During the reign of Theodosius the sevenday week came into' use, and Rome imagined that it was Egyptian; but in truth it came from the Jews, who believed that God made the world in six days and rested on the seventh. Christianity was just beginning to creep across the world in those days, but the masses were still pagan, and they accepted the seven-day week as; a moon week. Each day was dedicated to one of the planets, Sun day, Moon day, Mars day, Mercury day, Jove day, Venus day, and Saturn day; and in France the names of the Roman gods still persist in Mardi, Mercedi, Jeudi, Vendredi and Samedi. But it would appear that our stout Anglo-Saxon forefathers refused to call the days after foreign gods, and renamed them after their own divinities, Tlw, Woden, Thor. Frigga, and Seterne.