OSDIA CULTURAL NOTE for July and August 2023
What do July and August have in common for Italian Americans? They are both named after famous Romans!
July is named for Julius Caesar, who was killed in 44 BC by his so-called “friends” in the Roman Senate. August was named in honor of his nephew, Augustus Caesar, who became the first Roman Emperor. July and August are two months named after real historical figures from our Italian heritage.
The other months also have interesting stories to tell:
January starts the year with a tribute to Janus, the gatekeeper. He was a Roman god with two faces, one facing the past and one looking to the future, something a lot of us do every New Year.
February honors Februa, a Roman purification ceremony held every February 15th.
March is named after Mars, the god of war. In Ancient Rome, there were several festivals in March to celebrate Mars and to get his blessing on the next military campaign. Apparently, the Roman army thought January and February were terrible months to start a war. Although Romans were eager to conquer the world, they waited until March when the weather was nicer and food was more plentiful than in winter.
April is the month all the flowers start to bloom. The name of this month comes from the Latin root of the Italian word “aprire”, which means “to open”.
May is named after Maia, an earth goddess who protected the tender new plants and flowers of spring.
June honors Juno, the wife of the main Roman god, Jupiter. Juno is the goddess of marriage and childbirth, which is how June weddings became a popular tradition.
July and August complete the summer months before we come to September, October, November, and December, which are named after the numbers seven, eight, nine, and ten, respectively. But wait! These are actually the ninth, tenth, eleventh,and twelfth months of the modern year. What happened? The ancient Roman calendar actually started in March with the beginning of spring. If March is the first month, then September, October, November, and December take their rightful numerical place in the Roman calendar. Later, the Gregorian calendar put January and February at the beginning of our year and the numbered months lost their place in line.
By Charlene Pardo