THE CALENDAR

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXII, Issue 19437, 24 October 1925, Page 17 (Supplement)

THE CALENDAR

HOW THE MONTHS GAINED THEIB NAMES.

The months of tho year, as we know them, received their names in the days of tho Homans, and, as was natural, some were christened after pagan gods, which were believed to exert a special influence at particular periods of the year. The Roman year began in March, which took its name from Mars, the god of war—perhaps because March is a blustering, fighting kind of month'. April was derived from the Latin “aperrie” (to open), this being the time of tho year when trees commenced to bud. May was named from Maia, the goddess of growth. June was named after (the famous Roman), July from Julius Caesar, and August from Augustus Caesar. September was the seventh month, and owes its name to this fact, while Oc tober, November, and December, which were the eighth, nineth, and tenth months, were also named in this manner. January took its name from Janus, the two-faced god, in order to signify the idea that this month looked forward to the new year as well as back upon the old. February derives its name from the Latin “februare (to purify), because in that month ceremonies of funeral purification were held in Rome.