For anyone studying a foreign language, all vocabulary related to the calendar is very important.
Through the use of the names of the Months of the year and of the days of the week we can, for example, schedule a trip, make an appointment and arrange a dinner.
see how to say the months of the year in spanish (the months of the year in Spanish), master the terms of spanish calendar and improve your fluency in the Hispanic language.
Look at the list below and learn about the origin of the month names in Spanish:
| Spanish | Portuguese | Name origin |
|---|---|---|
| Enero | January | Initially called Ianuro, in honor of God Iano, god of doors, gates and beginnings. It was so designated because it is the month that starts the year. Later, it was called Enero. |
| Febrero | February | Inspired by the name of the goddess fever, goddess of the purification festival, which used to take place during this time of year. |
| marzo | March | Inspired by the name of God Mars, son of Februa and god of war. It was formerly the first month of the Roman calendar. |
| April | April | Derives from "aperit", Latin verb meaning "to open". It is related to the opening of flowers, which takes place during this period in the northern hemisphere. |
| mayo | May | Inspired by the name of the goddess maia, the goddess of fertility. |
| Junio | June | Inspired by the name of the goddess Juno, goddess of marriage, birth and women. |
| Julio | July | Initially it was the fifth month of the calendar and therefore it was known as Quintiles. It was later renamed in honor of the Roman Emperor Julius Caesar. |
| August | August | Inspired by the name of the Roman leader Augustus Caesar. |
| September/September* | September | The Roman calendar started in March and thus September was the seventh month. However, Emperor Julius Caesar applied a reform that instituted January as the first month and thus, September became the ninth month of the year. *despite recognizing both words as valid, the RAE (Real Academia Española) recommends ifPtiembre as preferred spelling. |
| october | October | October was the eighth month of the year before the reform applied by Emperor Julius Caesar. In Latin, "octo" means "eight". |
| november | November | November was the ninth month of the year before the reform applied by Emperor Julius Caesar. In Latin, "november" means "nine". |
| december | December | December was the tenth month of the year before the reform applied by Emperor Julius Caesar. In Latin, "dec" means "ten". |
Examples
- Mi cumpleanõs en marzo. (My birthday is in March.)
- Year is the first month of the year. (January is the first month of the year.)
- Our vacaciones empiezan en deciembre. (Our vacation starts in December.)
- Maria traveled to the April. (Maria left on April 2nd.)
- The Spanish course empieza en ferero. (The Spanish course starts in February.)
- Diciembre es the month of Christmas. (December is Christmas month.)
- Brazil celebrates the day of the novios and the 12th of June. (In Brazil, Valentine's Day is celebrated on June 12th.)
Calendar in Spanish
To better understand the Spanish calendar, see the figure below:
Note that weekday representation starts with Moons (Monday), unlike the Brazilian calendar which usually starts with Sunday.
days of the week in spanish
Meet themweekdays:
- L: Moons (Monday)
- M: mars (Tuesday)
- M: Miercoles (Wednesday)
- J: youth (Thursday)
- V: Viernes (Friday)
- s: Saturday (Saturday)
- D: Sunday (Sunday)
Abbreviated form of months
The abbreviated form of the months in Spanish is written with the first three letters of the respective word in full.
Below is a list of abbreviations in Spanish and correspondence in Portuguese:
| Spanish | Portuguese | full translation |
|---|---|---|
| ENE | JAN | January |
| FEB | FEB | February |
| SEA | SEA | March |
| APR | APR | April |
| MAY | MAY | May |
| JUN | JUN | June |
| JUL | JUL | July |
| AUG | AUG | August |
| SEP/SET | SET | September |
| OCT | OUT | October |
| NOV | NOV | November |
| DIC | TEN | December |
Curiosities
Discover some of the main dates celebrated by countries that have Spanish as their official language.
Día de San Valentín/ Día de los novios (Valentine's Day)
When: February 14 (February 14th)
Where: Spain and Hispanic countries in Latin America
Description: date when it is customary to give gifts to loved ones (friends, family members, boyfriends, boyfriends, spouses, etc.)
april vacation
When: April (about a week after Holy Week)
Where: Seville, Spain
Description: traditional cultural festival that lasts for two weeks, where you can enjoy local cuisine, art and music. Although not mandatory, most participants wear typical clothes or props.
San Fermines/Sanfermines (St. Firmino's Day)
When: July 7th - 14th (7th - 14th of July)
Where: Pamplona, Spain
Description: party in honor of São Firmino, whose most traditional celebration is a bullfight called enclose.
US encierros, the bulls are released along three streets of the historic center and the participants must run from them towards the city's bullring.
tomato
When: last miserables of august (last wednesday of august)
Local: Bunol, Spain.
Description: party where a tomato fight takes place between the participants.
Día de la Hispanidad (Day of Hispanity)
When: October 12th (October 12th)
Where: Spain and Hispanic countries in Latin America
Description: day in which the discovery of America by the Spaniard Christopher Columbus is commemorated, thus uniting the ancient world (Europe) with another geographical horizon.
Día de los muertos (Day of the dead)
When: November 1 and 2 (November 1st and 2nd)
Where: Mexico
Description: family and friends usually make a kind of altar and decorate it with flowers and candles to honor their deceased loved ones.
It is also quite typical to eat skulls made from sweets and the so-called pan de muerto (a kind of sweet bread). The meal takes place at the altars, which are sometimes made in cemeteries.
Video
Watch the video below and learn to pronounce the months in Spanish.
Exercises
1. The sixth month of the year is:
a) diciembre
b) marzo
c) junio
d) mayo
Correct alternative: c) join
2. In Brazil, carnival generally is in:
a) ferero
b) enero
c) october
d) mayo
Correct alternative: a) ferero
3. Christmas in:
a) ferero
b) diciembre
c) october
d) july
Correct alternative: b) diciembre
4. The primer of mayo is:
a) the Mother's Day
b) Christmas
c) the day of work
d) the Day of the Fathers
Correct alternative: c) el Día del trabajo
5. The noveno month of the year is:
a) septiembre
b) october
c) mayo
d) november
Correct alternative: a) septiembre
See also other Spanish texts:
- Definite and indefinite articles in Spanish
- adjectives in spanish
- false cognates in spanish
- Spanish verbs
- nouns in spanish
- Spanish in Enem: infallible tips for you to beat the test
- Main slang in Spanish (Spain and Latin America)
