# Why don't fundamentalist Christians get worked up over the days of the week? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 11, 2011, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574 "2011-05-11T21:58:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![mac\_bolan00](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b3f665/32.png) [@mac\_bolan00](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mac_bolan00)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/21 "2011-05-12T04:31:51Z")
the week is uniformly norse. saturday was named after surtur, not saturn of roman mythology. ---
**Author:** ![Hambil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3be4f8/32.png) [@Hambil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hambil)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/22 "2011-05-12T04:42:09Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > I’ll throw out a few idea,s which I would guess all have a little impact, and, with others, collectively keep it from being an issue: > > 1. No one (or not many) actually worships Wotan, Thor, Frigga, et al any more Definitely not true. Modern Paganism is on the rise. The modern Pagan typically worships many, many types of God forms from more than just one Pantheon - depending on the group they hang out with, their personal beliefs, and even the situation they are celebrating. As to the original Op, I am sure if you look hard enough you can find a Christian that is opposed to just about anything. But, an awful lot of things (Easter, Christmas, etc…) have roots in Pagan religion. It is common for a conquering culture to ‘absorb’ the religion of the conquered, and end up with a hybrid result. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/23 "2011-05-12T05:57:20Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > Didn’t Quakers do this at one time? Quakers still refer to Sunday as First Day. The idea was to have\* plain \*names for the days. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/24 "2011-05-12T07:55:53Z")
> [@mac\_bolan00](#): > > the week is uniformly norse. saturday was named after surtur, not saturn of roman mythology. Not according to any source I’m aware of. (The _Oxford English Dictionary_, for example, says Saturday is from _Saturni dies_, “Saturn’s day”, by way of the Germanic languages which borrowed the name from Latin.) ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/25 "2011-05-12T08:13:59Z")
> [@mac\_bolan00](#): > > the week is uniformly norse. saturday was named after surtur, not saturn of roman mythology. Surtur is one of the bad guys, not someone you name a day after. The norse called it bathing day, and derivations of that name are what we Scandinavians use today. There’s no doubt the English name for the day is derived from Saturn. ---
**Author:** ![Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hypnagogic_jerk/32/4252_2.png) [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypnagogic_Jerk)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/26 "2011-05-12T08:32:13Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > Also of note, the anti-religious fundies who spearheaded the French revolution \*did \*get worked up over the names of the days and months of the year, and made their own that were more tied with the cycles of nature. They also took the opportunity to set the calendar on the metric system while they were at it. > It didn’t catch. I always thought it was a shame - Germinal, Floréal, Thermidor, Frimaire… they really were quite poetic. The problem, of course, was that even if one was to accept the revolutionary idea of moving to ten-day weeks and 20-hour days, the names of the months just didn’t travel well being entirely tied to France’s climate. And as Revolutionary France moved into conquering mode, they figured that it just wasn’t worth the hassle. The names of the days, though, were if I remember correctly just the equivalent of “first day,” “second day,” and so on until “tenth day.” > [@robert\_columbia](#): > > Similar to the French ones, the days of the week in Spanish are: Italian as well. I think those names are universal to Romance languages (I’m not sure about Romanian.) ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/27 "2011-05-12T09:06:32Z")
> [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](#): > > Italian as well. I think those names are universal to Romance languages (I’m not sure about Romanian.) [It’s different in Portuguese.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Differences_between_Spanish_and_Portuguese#Days_of_the_week) ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/28 "2011-05-12T11:02:43Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > Your Freya’s day is our vendredi, the day of Venus It’s Frigg, Freya is another goddess. > [@mac\_bolan00](#): > > the week is uniformly norse. saturday was named after surtur, not saturn of roman mythology. > [@naita](#): > > Surtur is one of the bad guys, not someone you name a day after. The norse called it bathing day, and derivations of that name are what we Scandinavians use today. There’s no doubt the English name for the day is derived from Saturn. Very true. Our forefathers were cleanly people who took a bath at least once a week. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/29 "2011-05-12T11:26:59Z")
> [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](#): > > There’s only so many cows you can have at once. As it is, they’ve got a limitless supply. ::::snerk::::: I think they have unlimited supply of prewadded panties. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/30 "2011-05-12T11:37:43Z")
> [@Hambil](#): > > Definitely not true. Modern Paganism is on the rise. The modern Pagan typically worships many, many types of God forms from more than just one Pantheon - depending on the group they hang out with, their personal beliefs, and even the situation they are celebrating. I’m aware of this and hence the parenthetical. I suppose we just disagree on the term ‘not many’ means. It’s my opinion that, comparatively speaking, Frigga is not worshipped by many people. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/31 "2011-05-12T12:27:59Z")
Maybe we could get some fundie church to start petitioning to change the official spelling of Sunday to Sonday. Afterall, it’s for worshipping the Son of God, not the Sun in the sky. Then it could become yet another pointless national debate distracting us from actual important issues. ---
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/32 "2011-05-12T14:23:28Z")
The names of the days of the week are not a moral issue, neither are they a religious issue. There is nothing in the bible or in historical church teaching about them. Since the disagreements we fundamentalists have with others concern moral and spiritual matters, why would we care any more about what the days are called than anyone else? ---
**Author:** ![Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hypnagogic_jerk/32/4252_2.png) [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypnagogic_Jerk)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/33 "2011-05-12T16:13:09Z")
> [@cckerberos](#): > > [It’s different in Portuguese.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Differences_between_Spanish_and_Portuguese#Days_of_the_week) Ah yes, I’d heard of this but had forgotten. Thanks for pointing it out. Still, Saturday and Sunday at least seem to be the same. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/34 "2011-05-12T16:16:48Z")
Not to mention the months of January, February, March, April, May & June, all named after Roman gods and goddesses. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/35 "2011-05-12T16:31:58Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > Didn’t Quakers do this at one time? That was the months of the year. They used 1st Month, 4th Month, 9th Month etc. Never the names. However, I am not sure if they still do that. ---
**Author:** ![squidfood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a87d85/32.png) [@squidfood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squidfood)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/36 "2011-05-12T16:34:53Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > Monday is still Lundi - that’s the same, day of the moon but > Your Tyr’s day/ is our mardi, the day of Mars. > Your Wotan’s day is our mercredi, the day of Mercury > Your Thunor’s day is our jeudi, the day of Jovis (Jupiter) > Your Freya’s day is our vendredi, the day of Venus > Your Saturn’s day is our samedi, the day of the Sabbath > Finally, your Sunday is our dimanche, the day of the Lord. > > … tied with the cycles of nature. Note that these seven are the names of the seven classic naked-eye visible “planets” (sky wanderers not fixed against the seasonal star progression) and so these names are very much tied with natural cycles. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/37 "2011-05-12T16:38:39Z")
I always assumed they simply didn’t know the pagan origins of the day names, and thought that Jesus made them up while he was writing the English language. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/38 "2011-05-12T16:46:01Z")
> [@cckerberos](#): > > [It’s different in Portuguese.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Differences_between_Spanish_and_Portuguese#Days_of_the_week) 😕 Wait, if Sabbado means Sabbath, then why is Sunday Lord’s Day? Isn’t that what Sabbath means?!? ---
**Author:** ![Blaster\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cab0a1/32.png) [@Blaster\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blaster_Master)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/39 "2011-05-12T16:57:07Z")
I’m not exactly a fundamentalist Christian, but I don’t celebrate religious holidays that basically put a Christian veneer on pagan rituals (eg, Christmas, Easter) because, to put it simply, I think it’s sacrilegious. That said, I don’t have issue with things that have pagan origin in and of themselves; in fact, I find a lot of other things derived from pagan traditions rather interesting, particularly the mythologies. The days of the week don’t have that sort of connection to religious rites, so I see no reason for anyone to take offense at them. To be honest, I’m at least as surprised at the reverse, that those who have pushed for secularization of certain things (eg, BC/AD to BCE/CE) haven’t made a similar push to secularize more of the various religious traditions including, not only the days of the week, but months, holidays, and other things as well. It seems to me that both the religious and non-religious have been happy to keep with traditions they like, even if they conflict with their beliefs when more closely examined. ---
**Author:** ![Asympotically\_fat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e47c2d/32.png) [@Asympotically\_fat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asympotically_fat)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2011, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574/40 "2011-05-12T17:05:57Z")
What’s all this Saturday, Sundany, Monday, January, February, etc nonsense? Today is Duodi, 22 Floréal 219 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-fundamentalist-christians-get-worked-up-over-the-days-of-the-week/581574.md?page=3)