A Week Without God

[Cyrano]

Sonnabend, Don? What happened to Samstag?

Besides, what's the origin of Dienstag (day of service)?

(as for Donnerstag, for the non-German speakers, it's named after Donnar, Germanic god of thunder) - one more example that the days are named after similar deities in different cultures.

[Don Enrico]

Sonnabend is the North- and Middle-East-German word, coming from the Germanic tradition to start a day with the evening before (Sonnabend is the evening before Sunday).

Samstag is used mainly in the South and West of Germany as well as in Austria and Switzerland. It comes from Greek sabbaton, i.e. Day of Saturn.

Dienstag is not Dienst-tag (day of service) but Diens-tag, going back to the Germanic god Tyr, whom the Romans called "Mars Thingsus" (Mars, protector of the thing), giving us the day "Dies Martis" (Day of Mars), which was translated as Dienstag .

[Cyrano]

Thanks, Don.

Always nice to learn something (and no wonder I hardly ever heard someone saying Sonnabend, given where I live, and the fact that all the Germans I know professionally are from the South) .

And once again, tuesday is associated with the god of war.

It would be interesting to know why. I read somewhere the Romans named the *month* of Mars so because it's the end of winter and the right moment to start a military campaign, but I never noticed anything particularly warlike about tuesday.

[DawnStorm]

Originally Posted by Skeptic

ago and have a very happy life.

But silly me, trying to make sense of glurge. When will I ever learn.

Well there's your problem right there--how can you learn if you don't believe?

*removes tongue from cheek; checks for bends*

I think we're all guilty of trying to make sense of glurge.

[Alarm]

Originally Posted by Cyrano

Thanks, Don.

Always nice to learn something (and no wonder I hardly ever heard someone saying Sonnabend, given where I live, and the fact that all the Germans I know professionally are from the South) .

And once again, tuesday is associated with the god of war.

It would be interesting to know why. I read somewhere the Romans named the *month* of Mars so because it's the end of winter and the right moment to start a military campaign, but I never noticed anything particularly warlike about tuesday.

Because Tuesday is when you can "attack" your work, having finally gotten rid of all the messages and eamils gatehred from Friday, through the weekend. And you don't yet have all the interuptions of hump day,Thursday and Friday.

[imjustasteph]

Well, I think it's pretty clear. What they meant to say was, a week without gods.

[SatansHobbit]

I want to change my first name to Donnerstag.

Girly's knickers would drop at the mere mention of me.

[Auburn Red]

Originally Posted by Skeptic

I always get annoyed with these people who think that anyone who doesn't believe in God is a sad, lonely, sinful individual with no quality of life. I have been an atheist since I left school over 30 years ago and have a very happy life.

But silly me, trying to make sense of glurge. When will I ever learn.

Because if they didn't then all of those glurge writers and Chicken Soup people would be out of a job. Now you wouldn't want that to happen would you?

[DawnStorm]

Originally Posted by Auburn Red

Because if they didn't then all of those glurge writers and Chicken Soup people would be out of a job. Now you wouldn't want that to happen would you?

No; unemployment's bad enough as it is.