Czech months: Difference between revisions

The names of Czech months are, as in Polish, Croatian, Ukrainian and Belarusian not based on the Latin names used in most European languages. The suffix -en is added to most of the months' names.

• January -- leden (from led, ice)
• February -- únor (probably from the word root -nor-, infinitive form nořit (se), to plunge, to welter, as the ice welters under the lake surface)
• March -- březen (either from bříza, birch, or from březí, with young etc., as the forest animals, mainly hares and rabbits, are pregnant at that time)
• April -- duben (derived from dub, oak)
• May -- květen (from květ, blossom), originally máj. The word květen first appeared in Jungmann's translation of Atala from 1805 as a poetism and translation for French fleurs de lune, but quickly gained acceptance. Jungmann was probably also influenced by the Polish word kwiecień ("April").
• June -- červen (either from červený, red, or from červ, worm, both related to fruit)
• July -- červenec (the same as červen with a comparative (more) component)
• August -- srpen (from srp, sickle)
• September -- září (lit. "it shines", but most likely from říje (rutting), the time when the - mainly deer - males want to couple)
• October -- říjen (from říje, see September)
• November -- listopad (literally "leaf-fall")
• December -- prosinec (either from prosit to beg, to ask, to plead, but more probably from prosinalý, pallid, because sky is pallid in this time

See also

• Belarusian months
• Bulgarian months
• Croatian months
• Macedonian months
• Polish months
• Slovenian months
• Ukrainian months

External links

• http://projetbabel.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7222 A comprehensive table of Slavic and Baltic month names, explanation in French.