The Albanian names of months are similar:—1, T(osk) Ϳεννάρι, G(heg) Καλενδούρι, New Year month (Kalendae); 2, Σκουρτι, i. e. ‘short’; 3, T. Μαρσι, G. Φρουρι; 4, Πριλι; 5, Μαϳι; 6, Κορρίκου, harvest month; 7, T. (Ἀ)λονάρι, ‘threshing-floor month’ (a Greek loan-word), G. Κϳέρσουρι, probably ‘cherry month’; 8, Γόστι; 9, Βϳέστεα, autumn month, literally ‘bare month’, also βϳέστ’ επάρε, first autumn; 10, σε Μίτρε, month of Saint Demetrius, also βϳεστ’ ε δύτε, second autumn; 11, T. σε Μεχίλ, month of St. Michael, G. σε Μερί ε Στρούγες, month of the Virgin of Struga, also βϳεστ’ ε τρέτε, third autumn; 12, σε Νδερέ, month of St. Andrew[986].
The various Celtic series I omit[987], since they are very obscure and no new material is at my disposal; I shall only remark that they shew a mixture of distorted Latin and of native names, the latter being taken, at least in part, from the phenomena of the vegetation. The Basque names of months are:—1, New Year month or black month; 2, bull or wolf month; 3, tepid month; 4, weeding or fasting-bread month; 5, leaf month; 6, seed-time (sic!), bean or barley month; 7, harvest or wheat month; 8, month of drought; 9, fern or ear month; 10, gathering month; 11, sowing month or forest-clearing; 12, binding up of vegetation (?). They refer therefore throughout to the vegetation and to agriculture. For four months the Latin names are also in use[988].
I have purposely placed in the foreground these mingled series arising in modern times, since they shew how little the people can reconcile themselves to the unintelligible Latin names, and how the latter are crowded out by native names which by their relation to seasons, occupations, and festivals offer points of reference easy to remember. The months are nothing but seasons, the length and situation of which are regulated by the Julian calendar.
The Lithuanian and Lettish names of months refer exclusively to natural phenomena and the occupations of agriculture. The Lithuanian series is:—1, unexplained; 2, jackdaw month; 3, dove month; 4, birch month, or birch water-flowing; 5, cuckoo month; 6, fallow or sowing month; 7, linden month; 8, hot month or rye-cutting; 9, autumn month; 10, leaf-fall; 11, month of clods; 12, month of dryness (frost). The Lettish names are:—1, winter month; 2, snow or fasting-month; 3, dove or snow-crust month; 4, birch-sap month; 5, leaf month; 6, fallow or blossoming month; 7, hay or linden month; 8, rye month or dog (-days); 9, heath-blossom month; 10, autumn month; 11, frost month; 12, wolf month or Christmas[989].
Very similar but much more numerous and fluctuating are the names of months among the Slavonic peoples, collected by Miklosich along with the names of months of a number of other peoples. Yermoloff in his great work on the popular Russian calendar gives only a limited number of names, and these are rarely translated: with a few exceptions these names will be found in Miklosich. The latter writer has classified and discussed the names under their proper headings as follows:—(1) names taken from the vegetable kingdom, 18 in number; (2) from the animal kingdom, 9; (3) from natural phenomena in general, 17; (4) from periodically recurring actions, 10; (5) from customs and festivals, 25; in addition to which there are a few unexplained and three Latin names. Since it is my purpose to give an idea not only of the variety of the names but also of the fluctuating relationship with the Julian months, I arrange the material of Miklosich’s first four groups according to the months, omitting isolated and uncertain names. If the statement as to the corresponding Julian month in Miklosich is not clear, I add a mark of interrogation. I am also indebted to Prof. G. Kazarow of Sofia for detailed information as to the Bulgarian names of months, and for extracts from the Bulgarian work of Kovatschev on popular astronomy and meteorology; these sources are referred to respectively as Kaz. and Kov. An asterisk prefixed to the name of a month means that the same name is given to another month also; if prefixed to the abbreviation denoting the country, the asterisk shews that the name is given to two different months in that country. The names refer to:—1, January, *‘month of clods’, Czech, since the hard frost turns the earth into clods; ‘ice month’, Czech; *‘increasing of the day-light’, Old Bulg., Slovak, Croat.; ‘cold month’, Pol., Bulg.; *‘the Cutter’, Slovak, Bulg., Serb., which Miklosich rightly refers to the felling of trees, Yermoloff and others less well to the piercing cold; ‘the Great Cutter’, Bulg.; *‘kindling of the wheel’, *Bulg. (Kaz.)[990]. 2, February, ‘the Side-warmer’, Russ. (Yermoloff), latera calefaciens, i. e. the time when the cattle leave their stalls in order to warm themselves in the open (Miklosich); ‘the savage month’, Ruthen., Pol.; *‘the dry month’, *Slovak; ‘the snowy month’[991]; ‘wedding month’, Old Russ.[992]; *‘the Cutter’, Old Bulg., Croat.; ‘the Little Cutter’, Bulgarian. 3, March, *‘birch month’, Slovak, Ruthen., refers to the sap of the birch which now begins to flow; *‘grass month’, *Slovak; ‘time of deceitful weather’, Bulg.? Serb.? Old Bulg.; *‘the dry month’, Old Bulg., *Slovak, Croat.; ‘beginning of summer’ (lêtnik, Kaz.). 4, April, *‘birch month’ (in three different forms), *Old Bulg., Ruthen.; *‘blossoming month’, *Croat., Ruthen., Pol.; ‘oak month’, Czech, because the oak comes into leaf; *‘grass month’, *Slovak, *Croat., *Serb.; ‘the Liar’, or ‘the month that deceives the grass’, Bulg., (lǎžko, lǎži-trev, Kaz.); ‘the Fleecer’, ‘the Fleece-seller’, Bulg. (Kov., cf. Greek γδάρτης). 5, May, *‘blossoming month’, Slovak, *Croat., Czech, Bulg. (Kov.); *‘rose-blossoming month’, High Sorb.; *‘grass month’, Old Bulg., *Slovak, *Croat., Ruthen., Czech, Bulg.; ‘cornel month’, Sloven.; ‘maize-hoeing’, Bulg. (Kov.); *‘cherry month’, Bulg. (Kov.); *‘cochineal month’, Bulg. (červenijat, Kov.). 6, June, ‘bean-blossoming month’, Slovak; *‘cherry month’, Serb., *Bulg. (Kov., cf. the Albanian July); ‘month of ears’, Slovak; *‘linden month’, Slovak, Serb., since the linden blossoms then; *‘rose-blossoming month’, Low Sorb., Czech; ‘Mower’, Bulg. (Kov.); ‘hay-cutting’, Bulg. (Kaz.); *‘cochineal month’, Ruthen., Bulg., Czech, because the cochineals used for red dye are then collected; ‘grasshopper month’, Old Bulg.; ‘milk month’, Slovak; ‘fallow month’, Slovak, High Sorb. 7, July, *‘linden month’, Ruthen., Pol.; *‘cochineal month’, Old Bulg., Pol., Czech[993]; ‘the hot (month)’, Serb., Slovak, Bulg.; ‘hay month’, Ruthen., Bulg., Russ.; *‘cutting month’, Czech, refers to the hay-cutting; *‘harvest month’, Low Sorb.; ‘the Harvester’, Bulg. (Kaz.); *‘sickle month’, Old Bulg., Slovak, Serb., Bulg. (Kov.). 8, August, ‘month of ripeness’, Russ.; *‘sickle month’, Ruthen., Czech, Pol.; *‘cutting month’, in Moravia and among the Slovaks; ‘barley month’, Low Sorb.; *‘harvest month’, High Sorb., Bulg. (Kaz.); ‘threshing-floor month’, Bulg. (Kov., cf. Greek-Albanian Ἁλωνάρης); ‘fruit month’, Bulg. (Kov.); *‘gadfly month’, *Slovak, Ruthen.; ‘beginning of the lowing’ (i. e. the rutting of the deer, zarev), Old Bulg.; ‘time when people are carting’ (no doubt on account of the bringing in of the harvest), Slovak, Serb.; ‘dryer up of the rivers’, Bulg. (Kov.). 9, September, ‘sowing month’, Bulg. (Kov.); ‘month of gathering’, Bulg. (Kov.); *‘heath-plant month’, Old Bulg., Pol., Ruthen., (Czech, July or August); *‘time when the goats rut’, *Slovak; *‘gadfly month’, *Slovak; ‘the gloomy month’, Old Russ.[994]; *‘month of lowing’, ‘of rutting’, (záži) *Czech, (rujan, and kindred words) Old Bulg., Serb., Bulg., Old Russ., Czech (earlier); ‘gathering of the clusters’, Bulg.; ‘month of the (winter-)sowing’, Ruthen.; ‘old women’s summer’, Ruthen., Pol. (?); ‘autumn’, Russ., Slovak. 10, October, *‘leaf-fall’, Old Bulg., Serb., *Bulg. (Kaz.); ‘the yellow (month)’, Ruthen.; *‘time when the goat ruts’, *Slovak; *‘month of the lowing’ (řijen), Czech (present day); ‘time of flax-preparing’ (the name comes from a term for the waste products of the flax), Ruthen., Pol.; ‘vine month’, Slovak, Serb.; ‘gathering of the maize’, Bulg. (Kov.); ‘month of dirt’, Russ.; ‘the autumnal (month)’, Bulg. (Kaz.). 11, November, *‘leaf-fall’, Slovak, Ruthen., Czech, Pol., *Bulg. (Kov.); *‘time when the goat ruts’, *Slovak; *‘month of clods’, Old Bulg., Russ.; ‘threshing month’, Low Sorb. 12, December, ‘wolf month’, Czech, High Sorb. (rutting-time of the wolves); *‘month of clods’, Slovak, Croat., Ruthen. (?), Pol.; *‘increasing of the day-light’ (?), Serb., Russ.(?), Czech; ‘month of the snow-storm’, Ruthen.; ‘winter month’, Bulg. (Kov.); *‘kindling of the wheel’, *Bulg. (Kov., see above). More rarely the festivals give their names to the months. This is the case with Christmas, Candlemas, All Saints’ Day, the festival of the birth of the Virgin, and the feast of the Rosalia (= Whitsun), Slovak, Bulg. (Kaz.), and with 14 saints’ days, e. g. Martinzi, November, Bulg. (Kov.). With regard to Bulg. gorêštnik (= July) Kazarow writes to me: “gorêšt = ‘hot’; in July the people celebrate a fire-festival of three days’ duration, viz. the 15th, 16th, and 17th of July, gorêštnici”. Of the Latin names of months only three have been borrowed:—May (common), Slovak, Croat., Ruthen., Russ., Czech, Pol., Sorb.; more rarely April, Old Bulg., Sorb.; and March, Croat., Serb., Ruthen., Pol., High Sorb.
The great majority of the names refer to natural phenomena and country occupations. The variety of the series need not be specially pointed out, the numerous asterisks shew the fluctuation and variation of the nomenclature between two or even three months. Much is explained, as is indicated by the mention of the countries in which the names originate, by the extremely various climatic conditions prevailing in the countries occupied by the Slavs, and a further explanation of the variety is to be sought in the well-known phenomenon that when the seasons correspond only imperfectly with the months, the equalisation is carried out sometimes with one month, sometimes with another. It must be so, since among the same people the same name describes various months. Pairs of months are however rare: ‘the big’ and ‘the little’ sêčko (January and February), Bulg.; ‘the little grass-month’ (March) and the ‘big’ one (April or May), Slovak; the little and big ‘cochineal’ months (June and July), Czech, distinguished in the calendar of to-day as červen and červenec (diminutive), so that the names have changed places; and žătvar, ‘reaper’ (July) and žătvarskijat, ‘harvest-month’ (August), Bulgarian (Kazarow). Here also must be placed zarev and cognates, Old Bulg., Russ., Czech, which is inchoative and means ‘beginning of the lowing (the rutting)’, and rjujin and cognates, Old Bulg., Slovak, Serb., Old Russian, Czech, ‘the lowing’, i. e. the full rutting and therefore the second rutting-month. The character of all these names is only too obvious. Hence the fact that the word for month is very rarely added, though it appears in the translation. These names have proved so vigorous that in Czech and Polish they have ousted the Latin names (with the exception of May).
In the same way I give a summary of the German names of months, from the abundant compilations more particularly of Weinhold and Ebner. Here too I make no claim to completeness,—some names have been deliberately omitted—my purpose being only to give an idea of the variety and instability of the names. To this end I choose the forms which are most easily intelligible.
1, January:—bare month (the bare, naked month), *hard month, *winter month, ice month, *wolf month, threshing month, month of calves, ‘Great Horn’, *Volborn, Lasmaend, Laumonat (the last three unexplained). 2, February:—last winter month, wood month, fox month, ‘Little Horn’, Hornung, *Volborn, Rebmaend, Redmaend, Selle(maend), Sporkel, Sprokkelmaend. 3, March:—(first) ploughing month, drying month, *spring month, sowing month, pruning month, vernal month, spring. 4, April:—second ploughing month, *spring month, grass month, shepherds’ month, cuckoo month, the rough month (Rûmaend). 5, May:—ass month, month of joy, month of flowers, bean month. 6, June:—fallow month, *dog month, rose month, pasture month, Lusemaend (Luse probably = modern German Schildlaus, ‘cochineal’), summer month, fallow. 7, July:—(first) *Augst, hay month, *dog month; Heuet (hay-harvest), *Arne (harvest), *cutting (i. e. of the hay). 8, August:—(second) *Augst, harvest month, Arnemaend, cutting month, Kochmaend, month of fruit, Bîsmaend (when the cattle, tormented by the heat and the flies, run about (biset) the fields as if mad), *Arne, *cutting. 9, September:—second Augst, Augstin, cutting of oats, (*first) *autumn month, *sowing month, spelt month, barley month, boar month, *Fulmaend, Laeset, Hanfluchet, bean-harvest, first autumn, over-autumn, autumn sowing. 10, October:—(*first or *second) *autumn month, first winter month, *sowing month, *slaughtering month, *Folmaend, Aarzelmaend (since the year turns back), (second) autumn, *Laupreisi (leaf-fall). 11, November:—(*second or third) *autumn month, *winter month, Laubryszmaend, leaf month, month of rime, month of winds, month of dirt, *hard month, *slaughtering month, Smeermaend, *full month, *wolf month, acorn month, *Laupreisi. 12, December:—fourth autumn month, (second) *winter month, *hard month, *slaughtering month, month of bacon, *wolf month, hare month, second winter. There are also many names borrowed from feasts and saints’ days, such as (New) Year month and the synonymous Kalemaend = Calends month (January), Fassnachtmaend or Olle Wiwermaend (February), Klibelmaend (Conception of the Virgin, March), Holy Month or Christ Month. The Latin names March, April, May, and August have also become very popular; the last-named has for special reasons been included in the above list[995].
The history of the German names of months has been elucidated by Weinhold and for the Alemannic district by the work of Ebner, who bases his researches upon extensive information collected among the people. As early as the time of Charlemagne a German series of months had been created in order to bring the Julian months more closely home to the people, so that the list was based largely upon a popular foundation. The names are:—Wintarmânoth, Hornunc, Lenzinm., Ostarm., Wunnim., Brâchm., Hewim., Aranm., Witum., Windumem., Herbistm., Heilagm. This series attained great influence, but did not become universal; on the contrary it was subjected to alteration under the pressure of the agricultural terms. In spite of this early attempt at unity the German names for the months shew once more the variety and fluctuation with which the reader is now sufficiently familiar. A special interest attaches to the fact that the sources make it possible to follow how the names of months arise from the simple terms for the seasons. On this point Weinhold says, p. 2:—“In our sources the general statement in der erne (‘in the harvest’) preponderates over the month-name ernemanot (‘harvest-month’); im brâchet (‘in the fallow’), im höuwet (‘in the hay-harvest’) hold their own alongside of brâch- and höu-monat (‘fallow-, hay-month’), im wimmot (‘in the vintage’) persists, since windumemânot (‘vintage-month’) had long since died out. From the phrases in der sât, in dem snite (‘in the sowing’, ‘in the cutting’) are painfully evolved a sâtmân and a schnitmonat (‘sowing-, cutting-month’). We find autumn and winter as names of months, and also the non-German augst, divided into three; we can see the uncertainty with which laubbrost and laubrîse (‘sprouting and falling of the leaves’) contract into names of months.” Accordingly the above list shews that alongside the names compounded with ‘month’ the simple terms from seasons and occupations of the year are frequently found as names for the months. March = Lenz (spring), June = Brachet (fallow), July = Heuet (hay-harvest), August = Arne (harvest), September = Bonenarve, Hanfluchet, erst Herbst, Herbstsaat, Überherbst, Laeset (Lesezeit) (bean-harvest, hemp-gathering, first autumn, autumn-sowing, late autumn, harvest time), October = ander Herbst, Herbst, Laupreisi (second autumn, autumn, leaf-fall), December = ander Winter. Of great significance is the state of affairs found in the Alemannic sources of the 14th century[996]; side by side with the compound forms the simple often appear, but always as definite names of months. Towards the end of the century they then begin to have a loose connexion with the conception ‘month’, e. g. brachot der manod (‘fallow the month’). This shews the method by which these names have become names of months, and Ebner judges the process quite correctly when he says that the definite names of months were only secondarily evolved from the general time-indications. He adds:—“This observation can often be made in the sources, viz. that alongside of the month-name which exactly circumscribes a lunar period (sic!, must be ‘a Julian month’) a simple conception of time also appears. These simple terms, such as ‘autumn’ for September, also appear as general time-indications, especially in the old laws. They originally have this character, and they shew it even to-day. Little by little they become stereotyped into fixed names of months, and enter into association with the conception ‘month’. In this sense as definite names of months the simple terms live for a long time in the sources alongside of the full terms (those with ‘month’), but in the end lose their force as definite names of months; to-day they are in dialects general time-indications”[997]. There is therefore an attempt to render popular the unfamiliar Julian divisions of the year by giving them popularly intelligible names; Charlemagne by his series of months had already tried to systematise the process. The same phenomenon shews itself in the single fragment of a Gothic calendar which has come down to us, where November is equated to fruma jiuleis.
The fact that the people regarded the months as seasons, and did not clearly distinguish them from the latter as divisions of time with a definite number of days, has sympathetically affected those Latin names which became really popular. When we hear of a ‘first’ and a ‘second’ May, the name is evidently loosely regarded as a general term for the early summer. Augst comes to mean simply ‘harvest’[998]; hence July is called ‘the first Augst’ and August ‘the second Augst’, or the latter is named Augst and September is called Ander Augst, Augstin, or Haberaugst (oat-harvest).