# How did the term "Fortnight" come into being? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 20, 2011, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561 "2011-11-20T17:39:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2011, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/21 "2011-11-20T22:54:44Z")
If you’d care to observe it in the wild - here are some examples: [http://www.bbc.co.uk/search/news/?q=fortnight](http://www.bbc.co.uk/search/news/?q=fortnight) ---
**Author:** ![Sal\_Ammoniac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@Sal\_Ammoniac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sal_Ammoniac)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/22 "2011-11-21T00:29:10Z")
Another way to put the question is why we in America have so little use for the term. As we’ve seen from the thread, the British, the French and the Australians – among many others, I’m sure – find it useful to have a ready term for half a month’s worth of time. Why don’t we? ---
**Author:** ![Toucanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Toucanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toucanna)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/23 "2011-11-21T01:06:59Z")
> [@Gymnopithys](#): > > A period of fourteen nights: equivalent to French “une quinzaine” (de jours).{snip} > [@robert\_columbia](#): > > You can get a fortnightly paycheck (i.e. you get paid every two weeks).{snip} FWIW, cognate to “quinzaine” is the Spanish “quincena”: _In Guatemala, Mexico and Panama, [“quincena”] is used to refer to the paying of half of the monthly salary received by a worker… It should be noted that is is called “quincena” even when this payment isn’t made strictly every 15 days…_ Excerpted from: [Quincena - Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre](http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quincena), (translated by me). ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/24 "2011-11-21T01:14:57Z")
> [@Mangosteen](#): > > However, if its meaning is strictly 14 days (like a week is strictly 7 days), then I fail to see how it could be commonly used. It’s interesting that you can see a use for a word that means exactly 7 days, but not one that means exactly 14. ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/25 "2011-11-21T01:55:44Z")
> [@Sal\_Ammoniac](#): > > Another way to put the question is why we in America have so little use for the term. As we’ve seen from the thread, the British, the French and the Australians – among many others, I’m sure – find it useful to have a ready term for half a month’s worth of time. Why don’t we? Especially since, as I understand it (and as noted by others in the thread), a lot of US workers are paid fortnightly. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/26 "2011-11-21T02:07:33Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > It’s interesting that you can see a use for a word that means exactly 7 days, but not one that means exactly 14. …really not that odd. There are seven days and then a reset. ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/27 "2011-11-21T02:47:48Z")
> [@Push\_You\_Down](#): > > …really not that odd. There are seven days and then a reset. Hmm. Payday. 14 days elapse. Payday. 14 days elapse..etc It just seems odd that someone would live in a society where some things happen every 14 days and find it surprising that there exists a word for “14 days”, and ask why such a word is useful. ---
**Author:** ![Sierra\_Indigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Sierra\_Indigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sierra_Indigo)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/28 "2011-11-21T03:20:21Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > As I noted in [this post](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=13647215&postcount=42) in a previous thread, many activities occur on a fortnightly basis, and the word fortnight is in constant use here. I actually used it about ten minutes ago, explaining a staff member’s absence this morning…“she has a fortnight’s leave”. What he said. I get paid fortnightly. So I do my grocery shopping fortnightly. I run a roleplaying game once a fortnight on the Friday. The game is this Friday, so the next session after that will be in a fortnight’s time. I also play in another game once a fortnight on the Saturday. The last session of that was the Saturday just gone, so the next one is a fortnight from Saturday. When the game finished and everyone was leaving we said “See you in a fortnight” Because I get paid fortnightly I also buy my bus tickets on a fortnightly basis. I put money towards my mortgage once a fortnight. I see my family on average about once a fortnight. My mum’s got a fortnight’s leave over Christmas but between public holidays, mandatory shutdown and weekends, she only needs to take two days actual paid leave. It was mentioned in another thread, possibly the pay one, about frequent confusion between Americans about what someone means when they talk about something happening “Bi-weekly” - is it two times a week or once every two weeks? Well, fortnight removes that ambiguity. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/29 "2011-11-21T03:28:06Z")
> [@Sal\_Ammoniac](#): > > Another way to put the question is why we in America have so little use for the term. As we’ve seen from the thread, the British, the French and the Australians – among many others, I’m sure – find it useful to have a ready term for half a month’s worth of time. Why don’t we? We do. Both “biweekly” and “bimonthly” are used to refer to something that happens every two weeks/twice a month, like how often I get paid or how often we have staff meetings at my job. “Fortnightly” has an advantage over these in that it’s more precise; “biweekly” can also be used to mean “twice a week” and “bimonthly” to mean “every two months”. ---
**Author:** ![Sal\_Ammoniac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@Sal\_Ammoniac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sal_Ammoniac)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/30 "2011-11-21T03:41:11Z")
“Bi-weekly” is one of those words you use at your own peril. Ask a hundred people what it means, and half will say twice a week, and the other half twice a month. ---
**Author:** ![Mornac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Mornac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mornac)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/31 "2011-11-21T03:51:27Z")
> [@leahcim](#): > > But only because conventionally they count today as part of the period. Like in music, a first interval is two notes with the same pitch, and a second is a one note and the next note up, &c. –Why thank you leahcim. I’ve asked at least a dozen French about that over the years and all I ever got for a response was one of those quizical “you anglophones always ask the stupidest questions” looks that they’re so good at when they could have just as easily given me the reasonable explanation that you just have. (I take it your not French then?) ---
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/32 "2011-11-21T04:28:02Z")
> [@Sierra\_Indigo](#): > > What he said. > > I get paid fortnightly. So I do my grocery shopping fortnightly. I run a roleplaying game once a fortnight on the Friday. The game is this Friday, so the next session after that will be in a fortnight’s time. I also play in another game once a fortnight on the Saturday. The last session of that was the Saturday just gone, so the next one is a fortnight from Saturday. When the game finished and everyone was leaving we said “See you in a fortnight” > > Because I get paid fortnightly I also buy my bus tickets on a fortnightly basis. I put money towards my mortgage once a fortnight. I see my family on average about once a fortnight. My mum’s got a fortnight’s leave over Christmas but between public holidays, mandatory shutdown and weekends, she only needs to take two days actual paid leave. > > It was mentioned in another thread, possibly the pay one, about frequent confusion between Americans about what someone means when they talk about something happening “Bi-weekly” - is it two times a week or once every two weeks? Well, fortnight removes that ambiguity. Why don’t you play every week? ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/33 "2011-11-21T04:33:01Z")
> [@Sal\_Ammoniac](#): > > “Bi-weekly” is one of those words you use at your own peril. Ask a hundred people what it means, and half will say twice a week, and the other half twice a month. Agree. Ditto bi-monthly. Drives me crazy. As close to a useless noun as possible, where you _have_ to ask (“inflammable” is often cited as a bipolar word, but that doesn’t come up so often). ---
**Author:** ![Sierra\_Indigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Sierra\_Indigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sierra_Indigo)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/34 "2011-11-21T04:39:57Z")
> [@Mangosteen](#): > > Why don’t you play every week? :dubious: … Because we don’t. The schedule works out best for the players involved to play fortnightly. There are different players involved, so the weeks involved are different. ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/35 "2011-11-21T05:16:45Z")
> [@Mangosteen](#): > > Why don’t you play every week? So **Sierra Indigo** ’s group should play every week because you don’t like the fact that they play fortnightly? Edit: And the reason you don’t like the fact that they play fortnightly is that you don’t like the word “fortnight”? ---
**Author:** ![Sierra\_Indigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Sierra\_Indigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sierra_Indigo)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/36 "2011-11-21T05:27:20Z")
To clarify: There are five people involved with each game, but the layout is different. The game I run is fortnightly on Friday evenings. I am the GM. Brad, Luke, Kayleigh and Alex are the players. The other game, run on alternate weeks is on Saturday afternoons. Brad is the GM. Luke, Stewart, John and I are the players. Although there are three core players involved, there are four players who only play one of the two games that are running. Two of those players are only available on Friday evenings, so that’s when my game runs. The other two players are only available between lunchtime and about 6pm, and because I work full time the only days that I’m available in those hours are Weekends, so the other game runs on the Saturday. Because there are two different games and two different groups, running both games weekly would eat up between 10-12 hours of weekend time between Friday night and Saturday afternoon. So in the interest of not overloading anyone and burning players or GMs out, we play each game once a fortnight on alternating weeks. ---
**Author:** ![BeaMyra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/2bfe46/32.png) [@BeaMyra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeaMyra)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/37 "2011-11-21T06:50:40Z")
I think part of the thing the OP is getting at, as someone else said, was the use of fortnight to mean more than one. You can say we get paid every two weeks or every three weeks, or we go on holiday every month or every two months. But you (usually) don’t hear we get paid, every two fornights. You’d say, once a month. You’d not say, we get paid every half fornight. You’d say once a week. And so on ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/38 "2011-11-21T07:08:03Z")
Good point. And yes - fortnight is seldom used as a unit. ETA: I have seem it used that way, for example, if a holiday camp is organising a series of two- week events, they might describe them as fortnights, and you might book to attend fortnight 3. ---
**Author:** ![maggenpye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecc23a/32.png) [@maggenpye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maggenpye)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/39 "2011-11-21T08:15:47Z")
I get paid fortnightly, that is every two weeks or 26 times a year. If I got paid bi-monthly, I’d get paid twice a month or 24 times a year. You gonna cover the missing pay? Well are ya, punk? I used to pay an account monthly, but the gradually shifting pay-in date vs pay-out date meant I had to change payments to an alternate fortnightly date. My bank even had an on-line option for that because it does make an appreciable difference for regular payments. eta: That second glass of wine may have been a mistake. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561/40 "2011-11-21T17:15:51Z")
_Sennight_ was once a common alternative for\* week\*. OED has cites up to the late 19th century. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-term-fortnight-come-into-being/603561.md?page=3)