WEEK

A period of seven days, of uncertain origin, but which has been used from time Immemorial in eastern countries. The week did not enter into the calendar of the Greeks, who div ided the civil month into three periods of ten days each; nud it was not introduced at Rome till after the reign of Theodosius. By some writers the use of weeks is supposed to be a remnant of the tradition of the by others, that it was suggested by the phases of the moon: while a third cla , with more probability, refer its origin to the seven planets known in ancient times. This opinion explains the circumstance that the days of the week have been universally named after the planets, according to a particular order. In the ancient Egyptian astronomy,the order of the planets, in resect of distance from the earth, beginning with the most remote, is Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, the Sun, Venus, Mercury, the Moon. The day was divided into 24 hours, and each succe ive hour consecrated to a particular planet in the order now stated; so that one hour being consecrated to Saturn, the next fell to Jupiter, the third to Mars, and so on; and each day was named after the planet to which its first hour was consecrated. Now, suppose l"e AW boat of a particular day to have been consecrated to Saturn, it is evident that Saturn would also have the 8lh, the 15th, and the 22d hours. The 23d hour would therefore fall to Jupiter; the 24th to Mars; and the 25tb, or the first hour of the following day, would belong to the Sun, from which it would take its name. By proceeding in the same manner, it is found that the first h^ur of the third day would fall to the Moon, the first of the fourth day to Mars, of the fifth to Mercury, of the sixth lo Jupiter, and of the seventh to Venus. The cycle being completed, the first hour of the eighth day would return to Saturn, and all the 'others constantly succeed in the same order. According lo Dlo Cabins, the Egyptian week began with Saturday. The Jews, on their (light from Egypt, made Saturday the last day of the week. The Saxons seem to have borrowed the week from some eastern nation, substituting the names of their own divinities for those of the gods of Greece, [n England, the Latin names of the days are still retained in legislative and judiciary acts. (See Ehcii. Brit., "Calendar.") [s. 1345]