Thursday: Thor's Day
Thursday is named after Thor, the hammer-wielding Norse god of thunder.
Silver pendant shaped like Thor's hammer.
©bigstockphoto.com/Tund
Thursday is the day between Wednesday and Friday. It is the fourth day of the week, according to the international standard ISO 8601.
Naming Thursday - Thor’s Day
The English word Thursday is named after the Norse god of thunder, Thor. Thursday means Thor’s day in Old English. Thor is represented riding a chariot drawn by goats and wielding his hammer.
In most languages with Latin origins, the day is named after the god and planet Jupiter. Jupiter is depicted as the chief god of sky and thunder who maintained his power with his thunderbolt.
- Middle English – thursday or thuresday
- Old Norse – thorsdagr – Thor’s day
- Old English – thunresdæg – Thunder’s day
- Latin – dies Jovis – Day of Jupiter
- Ancient Greek – hemera Dios – Day of Zeus
Position in the Week
Thursday is the fourth day of the week according to the international standard ISO 8601. It is the fifth day of the week in countries that use the Sunday as the first day of the week in their calendar.
In Slavic languages and in Chinese, Thursday is the fourth day, while the Greeks and Portuguese refer to Thursday as the fifth day.
What is the first day of the week?
Common Events on Thursday
In the United Kingdom, all general elections have been held on a Thursday since 1935, and this has become a tradition, although not a requirement of the law. The Thursday before Easter is also known as Maundy Thursday or Sheer Thursday in the United Kingdom, which is traditionally a day of cleaning and giving out Maundy money.
Long weekends and bank holidays
In the United States, Thanksgiving Day is an annual festival celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November.
In Australia, most movies open on Thursday nights. Most Australians are paid either weekly or biweekly on a Thursday, so most shopping malls are generally open until 9 pm, which is later than other weekdays. Shopping malls see this as a good opportunity for business to stay open longer than usual because most paychecks are cashed by Thursday morning.