The Months of the Year – The Months of the Year in Spanish

the names ofmonths of the year, the months of the year in spanish, reflect a set of historical influences to which the formation civilizations of the Spanish language and culture were subjected. starting with Greek mythology, which was later adopted and adapted by Roman culture, in which several months of the year were dedicated to gods and goddesses, passing through the simple numerical ordering of the months and even homage to eminent figures of the Empire Roman.

Read too:What time is it?

Which are they in the months of the year?

With all the historical influences mentioned above and also considering the evolution of Spanish in comparison to other Latin languages, the months of the year were defined and in this way they are used until today:

Spanish	Portuguese
enero	January
er	February
marzo	March
April	April
mayo	May
junio	June
july	July
August	August
septiembre	September
october	October
november	November
diciembre	December

The history of the names of months of the year

For modern generations, it is natural and unquestionable that the fraction of time we call

"year" dividesif in twelve months from 28 to 31 days. However, this was not always the case. Civilizations of the past divided their time based on observation now of the Moon, now of the Sun, now of the seasons and this was reflected in the establishment of their calendars.

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The Spanish language, like Portuguese, has its origins in Latin, the official language of the Roman Empire. THE time organization in rome received the influence of various cultures over time, so that, first, the year was divided into 10 months, based on the lunar calendar. This became known as the “Roman calendar”.

in a pompilio, the second king of Rome (716 a. Ç. to 674 a. C), promoted reforms in the calendar, adding two months after the tenth month. Thus, the calendar now has 12 months, divided into 355 days. In 46 a. C., under order of the emperor Julio Cesar, the calendar underwent a new reform, which set months of 29 or 31 days and defined the year of 365 days. Julius Caesar's calendar was called the “Julian calendar”.

However, this division was still imprecise, since, at each period of time, it was necessary to add days to the year to adjust it to the astronomical calendar. O definitive establishment of the calendar as we know it occurred in 1582, by order of Pope Gregory XIII, which is why the modern calendar is called Gregorian.

Read too: the days of the week – the names of the days of the week in spanish

Origin of the names of the months of the year

▪ enero: dedicated to Ianus (Janus), god of doors, beginnings, endings and transitions. Ianus was represented as a head with two faces in profile, which represented the past and the future.

▪ er: dedicated to Februus, god of purification, to whom rituals were performed during that month in Rome.

▪ marzo: dedicated to the god Mars, god of war. In that month the Roman war campaigns began.

▪ April: the origin of the name of the month of April is uncertain. One of the hypotheses is that it makes reference to the opening of the flowers and the beginning of the spring; the other is that it is dedicated to the goddess Aphrodite, who, according to mythology, was born from the foam (aphros, in Greek).

▪ mayo: dedicated to the Roman goddess Maya.

▪ junio: dedicated to the Roman goddess Juno.

▪ july: initially, it was called Quintiles, as it was the fifth month of the year (remember that, during the Roman calendar, the year began in March). After the Emperor's assassination Julio Cesar, this month was called Iulius, in his honor.

▪ August: previously called sextile, as it was the sixth month, it came to be called Augustus in honor of another emperor, Augustus.

▪ septiembre: comes from septembris, which meant “seventh month”.

▪ october: comes from octobris, “eighth month”.

▪ november: "ninth month", or November.

▪ diciembre: it was the tenth month, December.

the names of months of the year they are influenced by Roman mythology.

Important dates in the Hispanic world

Every Spanish-speaking country has its important festivals and celebrations throughout the year, but some of them are commonly celebrated between them.

▪ Reyes Magos (6 enero): celebration to the kings who, according to the Bible, went to greet the newborn Jesus. In Spanish-speaking countries, the Magi it's the figures that give the children a gift, instead of the Santa Claus. There are parades and horseback riding with people in the costume of kings. It is also the day when the birth, that is, the nativity scene, indicating the end of the year-end festivities.

Los Reyes Magos.[1]

▪ San Valentín (February 14): celebrated in many Hispanic countries like the Valentine's Day or Day of love and friendship. It refers to Saint Valentine, a Roman bishop martyred on February 14 for promoting weddings for soldiers, a practice that Emperor Claudius II had prohibited. In several Hispanic countries, on this date it is customary to send flowers, chocolate and gifts to loved ones.

▪ Día de la Hispanidad/Día de la Raza (October 12th): on October 12, 1492, Christopher Columbus arrived in America for the first time. In Spain, this date celebrates the Spanish colonizers' conquest of a new world. In Latin American countries, this date reflects the beginning of European colonization of indigenous peoples. This distinction in the interpretation of the historic day generates different celebrations depending on the countries. In still others, the 12th of October is called Indigenous Resistance Day, Day of Respect for Cultural Diversity, Decolonization Day etc.

Stamp used in Cuba, in 1992, commemorating the 400th anniversary of Columbus's arrival in America. [2]

▪ Noche Buena (December 24): in all Spanish-speaking countries, the eve of the Christmas (Christmas in Spanish), the Good night. Family and friends often get together to share dinner, which features items from the local cuisine.

See too: the numerals – the numbers in spanish

Exercise solved

1) In which month do the seasons below begin in the southern hemisphere? Choose the correct option:

The seasons of the year.

→ Spring (spring)

The) er

B) April

ç) septiembre

d) marzo

→ summer (summer)

The) october

B) diciembre

ç) july

d) mayo

→ otoño (autumn)

The) enero

B) August

ç) marzo

d) november

→ winter (Winter)

The) junio

B) october

ç) mayo

d) April

Resolution

→ c) septiembre

→ b) diciembre

→ c) marzo

→ a) junio

Image credits

[1] Yakov Filimonov / Shutterstock

[2] nephthali/ Shutterstock

By Diego Guimaraes Gontijo
Spanish teacher