# Early Germanic calendars

The early Germanic calendars were the regional calendars used among the early Germanic peoples before they adopted the Julian calendar in the Early Middle Ages. The calendars were an element of early Germanic culture.
The Germanic peoples had names for the months that varied by region and dialect, but they were later replaced with local adaptations of the Julian month names. Records of Old English and Old High German month names date to the 8th and 9th centuries, respectively. Old Norse month names are attested from the 13th century. As with most pre-modern calendars, the reckoning used in early Germanic culture was likely lunisolar. As an example, the Runic calendar developed in medieval Sweden was lunisolar, fixing the beginning of the year at the first full moon after winter solstice.

## Months

The Germanic calendars were lunisolar, the months corresponding to lunations. Tacitus writes in his Germania (Chapter 11) that the Germanic peoples observed the lunar months.
The lunisolar calendar is reflected in the Proto-Germanic term *mēnōþs "month" (Old English mōnaþ, Old Saxon mānuth, Old Norse mánaðr, and Old High German mānod, Gothic mēnōþs), being a derivation of the word for "moon", *mēnô — which shares its ancestry with the Greek mene "moon", men "month", and Latin mensis "month".

## Days and weeks

Tacitus gives some indication of how the Germanic peoples of the first century reckoned the days. In contrast to Roman usage, they considered the day to begin at sunset, a system that in the Middle Ages came to be known as the "Florentine reckoning". The same system is also recorded for the Gauls in Caesar's Gallic Wars.
    "They assemble, except in the case of a sudden emergency, on certain fixed days, either at new or at full moon; for this they consider the most auspicious season for the transaction of business. Instead of reckoning by days as we do, they reckon by nights, and in this manner fix both their ordinary and their legal appointments. Night they regard as bringing on day."
The concept of the week, on the other hand, was adopted from the Romans, from about the first century, the various Germanic languages having adopted the Greco-Roman system of naming of the days of the week after the classical planets, inserting loan translations for the names of the planets, substituting the names of Germanic gods in a process known as interpretatio germanica.

## Calendar terms

The year was divided into a summer half and a winter half, as attested in Old English and medieval Scandinavian sources. In Scandinavia this continued after Christianization; in Norway and Sweden the first day of summer is marked by the Tiburtius Day [de] (14 April) and the first day of winter by the Calixtus Day (14 October).
The month names do not coincide, so it is not possible to postulate names of a Common Germanic stage, except possibly the names of a spring month and a winter month, *austrǭ and *jehwlą. The names of the seasons are Common Germanic, *sumaraz, *harbistaz, *wintruz, and *wazrą for "spring" in north Germanic, but in west Germanic the term *langatīnaz was used. The Common Germanic terms for "day", "month" and "year" were *dagaz, *mēnōþs and *jērą. The latter two continue Proto-Indo-European *mḗh$_1$n̥s, *yóh$_1$r̥, while *dagaz is a Germanic innovation from a root *d$^h$eg$^{wh}$- meaning "to be hot, to burn".
A number of terms for measuring time can be reconstructed for the proto-Germanic period.
    modern English Proto- Germanic Old English English Scots West Frisian Dutch Low Saxon German Old Norse Icelandic Faroese Swedish Norwegian Danish Gothic Term Nynorsk Bokmål daytime, 24 hour period *dagaz dæġ, dōgor day day, dey dei dag Dag Tag dagr, dǿgn / dǿgr dagur dagur dag, dygn dag, døgn/døger dag, døgn dag, døgn 𐌳𐌰𐌲𐍃 night time *nahts niht night nicht nacht nacht Nacht Nacht nátt nótt nátt natt natt natt nat 𐌽𐌰𐌷𐍄𐍃 week *wikǭ ƿiċe week wouk wike week Wekke Woche vika vika vika vecka veke uke uge 𐍅𐌹𐌺𐍉 month *mēnōþs mōnaþ month month moanne maand Mohnd (maond) Monat mánaðr mánuður mánaður månad månad måned måned 𐌼𐌴𐌽𐍉𐌸𐍃 year *jērą ġēar year year, ear jier jaar Johr (jaor) Jahr ár ár ár år år år år 𐌾𐌴𐍂 interval / timespan / period *tīdiz tīd tide tide tiid tijd Tiet Zeit tíð tíð tíð tid tid tid tid *𐍄𐌴𐌹𐌳𐌹𐍃 hour / timespan / period *tīmô tīma time time tími tími tími timme time time time *𐍄𐌴𐌹𐌼𐌰 Spring *langatīnaz lencten Lent Lentren linte lente Lent Lenz *𐌻𐌰𐌲𐌲𐌰𐍄𐌴𐌹𐌽𐍃 Spring *wazrą- vár vor vár vår vår vår forår (vår) *𐍅𐌰𐌶𐍂 Summer *sumaraz sumor summer simmer simmer zomer Sommer Sommer sumar sumar summar sommar sommar / sumar sommer sommer *𐍃𐌿𐌼𐌰𐍂𐍃 Autumn / Fall *harbistaz hærfest harvest hairst hjerst herfst Harvst Herbst haustr haust heyst höst haust høst efterår (høst) *𐌷𐌰𐍂𐌱𐌹𐍃𐍄𐍃 Winter *wintruz ƿinter winter winter winter winter Winter Winter vintr / vetr vetur vetur vinter vinter / vetter vinter vinter 𐍅𐌹𐌽𐍄𐍂𐌿𐍃

## Month names
### Medieval

Bede's Latin work De temporum ratione (The Reckoning of Time), written in 725, describes Old English month names. Bede mentions intercalation, the intercalary month being inserted around midsummer.
The following is an English translation of Bede's Latin text:
   "It did not seem [right] to me that I should speak of other nations' observance of the year and yet be silent about my own nation's.
   In the old days the English people calculated their months according to the course of the moon. Hence, after the manner of the Greeks and the Romans, [the months] take their names from the Moon, for the Moon is called mona and the month monath.
   * The first month, which the Latins call January, is Ġiuli;
   * February is called Solmonath;
   * March Hrethmonath;
   * April, Eosturmonath;
   * May, Thrimilchi;
   * June, Litha;
   * July [is] also [called] Litha;
   * August, Weodmonath;
   * September, Helegmonath;
   * October, Winterfilleth;
   * November, Blodmonath;
   * December, Ġiuli – the same name by which January is called.
   They began the year on the 8th kalends of January [25 December], when we celebrate the birth of the Lord. That very night, which we hold so sacred, they used to call by the heathen word Modranecht, that is, "mother's night", because (we suspect) of the ceremonies they enacted all that night.
   Whenever it was a common year, they gave three lunar months to each season. When a year with an embolismic month occurred (that is, one with 13 lunar months -- instead of the usual 12) they assigned the extra month to summer, so that three months together bore the name "Litha"; hence they called [the embolismic] year "Thrilithi". It had four summer months, with the usual three for the other seasons.
   But originally, they divided the year as a whole into two seasons: summer and winter. They assigned the six months in which the days are longer than the nights to summer, and the other six to winter. Hence they called the month in which the winter season began "Winterfilleth", a name made up from "winter" and "full moon", because winter began on the full Moon of that month.
   Nor is it irrelevant if we take the trouble to translate the names of the other months:
   * The [two] months of Giuli derive their name from the day when the Sun turns back [and begins] to increase, because one of [these months] precedes [this day] and the other follows.
   * Solmonath can be called "month of cakes", which they offered to their gods in that month.
   * Hrethmonath is named for their goddess Hretha, to whom they sacrificed at this time.
   * Eosturmonath has a name which is now translated "Paschal month", and which was once called after a goddess of theirs named Eostre, in whose honour feasts were celebrated in that month. Now they designate that Paschal season by her name, calling the joys of the new rite by the time-honoured name of the old observance.
   * Thrimilchi was so called because in that month the cattle were milked three times a day; such at one time, was the fertility of Britain or Germany, from whence the English nation came to Britain.
   * Litha means "gentle" or "navigable", because in both these months the calm breezes are gentle, and they were wont to sail upon the smooth sea.
   * Weodmonath means "month of tares (weeds)", for they are very plentiful then.
   * Helegmonath means "month of sacred rites".
   * Winterfilleth can be called by the invented composite name "winter-full".
   * Blodmonath is "month of immolations", for then the cattle which were to be slaughtered were consecrated to their gods.
   Good Jesu, thanks be to thee, who hast turned us away from these vanities and given us [grace] to offer to thee the sacrifice of praise."
Charlemagne (r. 768–814) recorded agricultural Old High German names for the Julian months. These month- and seasonal-names remained in use, with regional variants and innovations, until the end of the Middle Ages across German-speaking Europe, and they persisted in popular or dialectal use into the 19th century.
The only agreement between the Old English and the Old High German (Carolingian) month names is the naming of April as "Easter month". Both traditions have a "holy month"; however, it is the name of September in the Old English system and of December in the Old High German one.
A separate tradition of month names developed in 10th century Iceland, see #Icelandic calendar.
    Julian month Old English Old High German January Æfterra Gēola "After Yule", or "Second Yule" Wintar-mánód February Sol-mōnaþ ('mud month') Hornung March Hrēþ-mōnaþ "Month of the Goddess Hrēþ" or "Month of Wildness" Lenzin-mānod "spring month" April Easter-mōnaþ "Easter Month", "Month of the Goddess Ēostre" or "Month of Dawn" Ōstar-mānod "Easter month"; see also Ostara May Þrimilce-mōnaþ "Month of Three Milkings" Winni-mánód "pasture month" June Ærra Līþa "Before Midsummer", or "First Summer" Brāh-mānod "fallow month" — Þrilīþa "Third (Mid)summer" (leap month) — July Æftera Līþa "After Midsummer", "Second Summer" Hewi-mānod "hay(making) month" August Wēod-mōnaþ "Weed month" Aran-mānod "harvest month" September Hālig-mōnaþ "Holy Month" Witu-mānod "wood month" October Winterfylleth "Winter full moon" Wīndume-mānod "vintage month" November Blōt-mōnaþ "Blót Month", "Month of Sacrifice" or "Month of bloodshed" Herbist-mānod "autumn month" December Ærra Gēola "Before Yule", or "First Yule" Hailag-mānod "holy month"

### Modern correspondences

The Old High German month names introduced by Charlemagne persisted in regional usage and survive in German dialectal usage. The Latin month names were in predominant use throughout the medieval period, although the Summarium Heinrici, an 11th century pedagogical compendium, in chapter II.15 (De temporibus et mensibus et annis) advocates the use of the German month names rather than the more widespread Latin ones.
In the late medieval to early modern period, dialectal or regional month names were adopted for use in almanacs, and a number of variants or innovations developed, comparable to the tradition of "Indian month names" developed in American Farmers' Almanacs in the early 20th century. Some of the Farmers' Almanacs' "Indian month names" are in fact derived from continental tradition. The Old English month names fell out of use entirely, being revived only in a fictional context in the Shire calendar constructed by J. R. R. Tolkien for use in his The Lord of the Rings.
    Julian month Old High German Middle High German Dutch West Frisian January Wintar-mánód ("winter month") Wintermonat louwmaand ("tanning month") Foarmoanne ("fore month") February Hornung ("horning") Hornung sprokkelmaand ("month of gathering"), schrikkelmaand ("bissextile month") Sellemoanne ("filthy, unclean month") March Lenzin-mānod ("spring month") Lenzmonat ("spring month"), Dörrmonat ("dry month") MHG lenzemânot lentemaand ("spring month") Foarjiersmoanne ("spring month") April Ōstar-mānod ("Easter month") Ostermonat ("Easter month") grasmaand ("grass month" ≈ Fr.R.Cal. Prairial) Gersmoanne ("grass month") May Winni-mānod ("pasture month") Wonnemonat ("month of joy") wonnemaand ("month of joy"), bloeimaand ("flower month" = Fr.R.Cal. Floréal), Mariamaand ("Mary's month") Blommemoanne ("bloom month") June Brāh-mānod ("fallow month") Brachmonat ("fallow month") zomermaand ("summer month"), braammaand, wedemaand ("woad month"), wiedemaand ("weed month") Simmermoanne ("summer month") July Hewi-mānod ("haying month") Heumonat ("haying month") vennemaand ("pasture month"), hooimaand ("hay month") Heamoanne, haaimoanne ("haying month") August Aran-mānod, MHG arn-mânôt ("harvest month") Erntemonat ("harvest month") oogstmaand ("harvest month" ≈ Fr.R.Cal. Messidor, koornmaand ("corn month") Rispmoanne ("harvest month"), flieëmoanne ("flea month") September Witu-mānod ("wood month") Herbstmonat ("autumn month") herfstmaand ("autumn month"), gerstmaand ("barley month"), evenemaand ("oats month") Hjerstmoanne ("autumn month") October Wīndume-mānod ("vintage month") Weinmonat, Weinmond ("vintage month"), Herbstmonat, Gilbhart ("yellowing") wijnmaand ("wine month"), Wijnoogstmaand ("vintage month" = Fr.R.Cal. Vendémiaire), zaaimaand ("sowing month") Wynmoanne ("wine month"), bitemoanne ("sugar beet month") November Herbist-mānod ("autumn month") Wintermonat ("winter month"), Herbstmonat slachtmaand ("slaughter month"), bloedmaand ("blood month"), nevelmaand, mistmaand ("fog month" ≈ Fr.R.Cal. Brumaire), smeermaand ("pork feeding month") Slachtmoanne ("slaughter month") December Hailag-mānod ("holy month"), MHG heilmânôt Christmonat ("Christ month"), Heiligmonat ("holy month") wintermaand ("winter month"), midwintermaand ("Midwinter month"), sneeuwmaand ("snow month" = Fr.R.Cal. Nivôse), Kerstmismaand ("Christmas month"), Joelmaand ("Yule month"), wolfsmaand ("wolves' month"), donkere maand ("dark month") Wintermoanne ("winter month"), Joelmoanne ("Yule month")

## Icelandic calendar

A special case is the Icelandic calendar, developed in the 10th century: Inspired by the Julian calendar it introduced a purely solar reckoning with a year, having a fixed number of weeks (52 weeks or 364 days). This necessitated the introduction of "leap weeks" instead of Julian leap days.
The old Icelandic calendar is not in official use anymore, but some Icelandic holidays and annual feasts are still calculated from it. It has 12 months, of 30 days broken down into two groups of six often termed "winter months" and "summer months". The calendar is peculiar in that each month always start on the same day of week. This was achieved by having 4 epagomenal days to bring the number of days up to 364, and then adding a sumarauki week in the middle of summer of some years. This was eventually done so as to ensure that the "summer season" begins on the Thursday between 9 and 15 April in the Julian calendar. Hence Þorri always starts on a Friday sometime between 8 and 15 January of the Julian calendar, Góa always starts on a Sunday between 7 and 14 February of the Julian calendar.
    Skammdegi "Short days" 1 Gormánuður"slaughter month" or "Gór's month"mid October – mid November 2 Ýlir"Yule month"mid November – mid December 3 Mörsugur"fat sucking month"mid December – mid January 4 Þorri"frozen snow month"mid January – mid February 5 Góa"Góa's month"mid February – mid March 6 Einmánuður"lone month" or "single month"mid March – mid April Náttleysi "Nightless days" 1 Harpa(goddess?)mid April – mid May 2 Skerpla(goddess?)mid May – mid June 3 Sólmánuður"sun month"mid June – mid July 4 Heyannir"hay working month"mid July – mid August 5 Tvímánuður"two month" or "second month"mid August – mid September 6 Haustmánuður"autumn month"mid September – mid October
Many of the months have also been used in Scandinavia, the Norwegian linguist Ivar Aasen wrote down the following months in his dictionary, coming in this order:
       Jolemåne Torre Gjø-Kvina
Two of the names are identical to Iceland, and other is similar. They have developed differently in different regions. Þorri is pronounced "tærri", "torre" and similar, and can mean both the moon after Yule-month, or be a name for January or February.

## Footnotes

* ↑ From Ch. 29, Vita Karoli Magni Mensibus etiam iuxta propriam linguam vocabula imposuit, cum ante id temporis apud Francos partim latine partim barbaris nominibus pronunciarentur. [For months he also imposed terms according to his own language, since before that time among the French they were pronounced partly in Latin and partly by barbarian names.]
* ↑ The format and meanings of the Carolingian month names probably also influenced d'Eglantine when he assigned names to the months in the French Republican Calendar.
* ↑ Bede calls it "the month of cakes, which they offered in it to their gods". Perhaps the cakes he mentioned looked like they were made of mud, due to their color and texture. Or the cakes and the mud could be unrelated, with the name "mud month" being literal: It was the month of mud due to wet weather England endures in February.
* ↑ The name Hornung for February, the only name in the list without the "month" suffix, is explained by König (1997) as a collective of horn, taken to refer to the antlers shed by red deer during this time. Older explanations compare the name with Old Frisian horning (Anglo-Saxon hornung-sunu, Old Norse hornungr) meaning "bastard, illegitimate son", taken to imply a meaning of "disinherited" in reference to February being the shortest of months.
* ↑ According to Bede, the month aligning with Julian October was named Winterfylleth "because winter began on the first full moon of that month".
* ↑ Blōt-mōnaþ meaning "blood month" is probably a reference to the regular slaughter of those livestock that were not going to be kept through the winter, at the end of the last pasturing season, when they would begin to need fodder that was saved to feed the rest over the coming winter. So in addition to any religious sacrifice, the slaughter was also practical. Compare Blōt-mōnaþ = "blood month" with Welsh: Tachwedd = "slaughtering", and Finnish Marraskuu = "Moon of death".
* ↑ Haddock (1992) gave an extensive list of "Indian month names" along with the individual tribal groups they were supposedly associated with, which were later repeated by Long (1998). Haddock supposes that certain "Colonial American" moon names were adopted from Algonquian languages (which were formerly spoken in the territory of New England), while others, for lack of a native-America source are assumed to be based in some European language and culture. For example, the Colonial American names for the May moon, "Milk Moon", "Mother's Moon", "Hare Moon" have no parallels in the supposed native names, so they are presumed European, while the Colonial name for November, "Beaver Moon" is supposedly translated from an Algonquin name.
* ↑ These archaic or poetic Dutch names are recorded in the 18th century and were used in almanacs during the 19th century.
* ↑ In Middle High German, any of the months November, December, January and (more rarely) February was also given the name hartmân, hartmânot "hard month".
* ↑ The month-name Hornung survived in southern German dialects, and in the 19th century was also used officially in Switzerland as a synonym of February.
* ↑ Middle High German month-name lenzemânot survived in modern German use only in poetic or archaizing language, e.g. Schiller in a dedication: "Mannheim den 14. des lenzmonats 1785".
* ↑ Middle High German ôstermânôt; occasional modern use in poetic language, Herder in dem blühnden ostermonat, da die erde neu sich kleidet.
* ↑ From Faber (1587) mixed Latin / German text: ... maius, der may, a frondibus Carolus Magnus den wonnemonat, id est mensem amoenitatis olim nuncupavit Crude translation: ... Maius, the May time, from the pages of Charles the Great the wonnemonat, that is, he once called the month of pleasantness
* ↑ OHG winnimanoth "pasture month", from an old word winni "pasture". The name does not seem to survive into MHG, but is revived in the 16th century (from the Carolingian month list), but etymologized as wunnemânôt "month of joy" This reinterpreted revived form becomes a popular poetic name of May in modern German.
* ↑ Remains in use 15–16th centuries, brachmonat, brachmon.
* ↑ Heumonat remained in use in 16th century (Luther: am zehenten tage des heumonds).
* ↑ The word oogst "harvest" itself comes from Latin Augustus.
* ↑ MHG herbestmânôt. Herbstmonat "autumn month" remains a productive compound which may refer to any month in autumn (September, October or November). Occasionally numbered as erster, anderer, dritter Herbstmonat. Herbstmond is revived as a name of September in 18th-century almanacs.
* ↑ MGH winman, wynmanot MLG wijnmaand, survived into early modern use only in very rare Westphalian wynmaent. Weinlesemonat specifically as the translation of the Vendémiaire of the French Republican Calendar.
* ↑ Gilbhart is a pseudo-archaic name coined in the early 20th century.
* ↑ Wintermonat is a name for January in Alemannic and Frisian; in MHG more generally any month in winter. As a name of November (the first month of winter) in 12th-century glossaries, and more widely during the 14–18th centuries.
* ↑ MGH wolfmânôt for November or (more rarely) December.
* ↑ The first day of Harpa is celebrated as Sumardagurinn fyrsti, the First Day of Summer.
* ↑ Harpa is a female name, probably a forgotten goddess.
* ↑ Skerpla is also a female name, probably yet another forgotten goddess.