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| Mythologies behind Seven-day Week |
The Origin
A week is a unit of time equal to seven days. The seven-day week stems from ancient Mesopotamia around 600 BCE. The earliest evidence of an astrological significance of a seven-day period is a decree of king Sargon of Akkad around 2300 BC. Akkadians venerated the number seven, and the key celestial bodies visible to the naked eye numbered seven (the Sun, the Moon and the five closest planets).
Some ancient and traditional cultures had different week lengths, including ten days in Egypt and an eight-day week for ancient Romans, who later switched to a seven-day week.Historically, indigenous Indian timekeeping relied on a luni-solar system divided by lunar phases (tithis), months, and fortnights (pakshas). The adoption of the seven-day week (Vara) occurred alongside Indo-Greek and Mesopotamian cultural exchanges, eventually solidifying in Sanskrit astronomical texts like the Surya Siddhanta and Pancasiddhantika between the 1st and 6th centuries CE
Naming the Days of the Week
Babylonian astrologers divided the 29 1/2 day lunar cycle into four seven-day periods, correlating with the visible sky’s "seven wanderers": the Sun, the Moon, and the five visible planets (Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn). The Romans also named these after the same planets, and their names are still in use by the Romance languages. For example, Mars-day, what we know as Tuesday, still lives on in Spanish, French, and Italian as Martes, Mardi, and Martedì, respectfully.
In the Greco-roman calendar, the days of the week were also named for the seven classical planets, which included the Sun and Moon. The names of the seven days of the week in the Hindu calendar (Vara) are derived from the Navagrahas, the major celestial bodies or "planets" visible to the naked eye. Each day is explicitly named after a specific cosmic deity that corresponds exactly with the classical planets of Western and Roman astronomy.
Sunday and Monday correspond to the Sun and Moon, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday were adapted by Anglo-Saxons to honor their pagan gods Tiwas/Týr, Woden/Odin, Thor, and Frigg/Freyja.
Monday
Monday gets its name from Old English Mōnandæg, which literally translates to "Moon's day." This etymology directly descends from the ancient Roman practice of naming the day dedicated to Luna, the goddess of the moon. In Mesopotamian mythology, the primary lunar god is known as Nanna in Sumerian and Su’en (or Sin) in Akkadian.
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| Akkadian Su'en - Hindu Soma |
In Indian calendar, Monday is called Somavāra: Named after Soma, the Moon deity.
Tuesday
In the Roman calendar, Tuesday was known as dies Martis (Mars's Day). When these concepts spread to Northern Europe, the Anglo-Saxons and Norsemen substituted their own equivalent deities into the Roman calendar system. The word "Tuesday" comes from the Old English word tīwesdæg, which literally means "Tiw's Day". Tiw was the ancient Germanic and Norse god of dueling, law, and heroic glory, and is equivalent to the Roman war god Mars.
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| Norse Tiw - Hindu Mangala |
In India, Tuesday is called Maṅgalavāra: Named after Maṅgala, the planet Mars and god of war.
Wednesday
The word "Wednesday" originates from the Old English word wōdnesdæg, which translates to "Woden's Day". Woden (Odin) was the chief god in Norse and Anglo-Saxon mythology, associated with wisdom, art, and war.
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| Norse Odin - Buddha |
Thursday
The word "Thursday" originates from Thor, the Norse god of thunder, strength, and protection. Jupiter was the Roman god of sky and thunder, Thor held the same prominence and traits in Norse mythology, making him the natural substitute.
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| Norse Thor - Hindu Brahspati |
Friday
The word "Friday" comes from the Old English frīġedæġ, meaning "day of Frig". Frigg (or Frigga) is the the Queen of Asgard, wife of Odin. She is Norse goddess of marriage, motherhood, and domestic arts.
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| Norse Frigga - Hindu Shukra |
In Hinduism, Friday is called Śukra-vāra named after Sage Shukra (also known as Shukracharya) as the god of the planet Venus and the revered Guru (teacher) of the Asuras. Derived from the Sanskrit word for "clear" or "bright," Shukra indicates an ancient sage with fair complexion, possibly from Persia/Mesopotamia. Some scholars interpret him as Zoroaster, the teacher of Avesta who rejected Vedic Hinduism.
Saturday
Saturday gets its name from the Latin phrase dies Saturni, which translates to "Saturn's Day." It was named by the ancient Romans in the 2nd century to honor Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture, wealth, and time. He is depicted devouring one of his children out of fear of a prophecy that one of his children would overthrow him.
In India, Saturday is called Śani-vāra after Shani is the divine personification of the planet Saturn and the Hindu god of karma, justice, and retribution. He acts as the ultimate judge, delivering consequences based on a person's deeds, speech, and thoughts.
Sunday
The origin of Sunday combines ancient mythology from Mesopotamia, Egypt, Rome, and India. The name literally means the "day of the Sun," tracing back to the Dictionary.com Old English word Sunnandæg and the Latin diēs sōli.
Ra (often spelled Re) is the supreme ancient Egyptian god of the sun, light, and creation. Considered the king of the gods, he was believed to have created the universe and humanity.
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| Egyptian Ra - Hindu Ravi |
Why is it so Similar?
Did you find similarities between Sumerian, Egyptian, Roman, and Hindu names of the week days? These terms originated in one ancient world and then others adopted them over time. The spread and "copying" of these ideas happened through historical mechanisms and cultural diffusion—where knowledge was traded, conquered, or borrowed, and then refined by civilizations.
Now I would allow the interpreters to spin it their way on where these terms originated.
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