Pagan month names adopted by Roman Church

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The names of the 12 months of the year, known worldwide, have their origins in the paganism of ancient Rome. A variety of gods (pantheism) and the self-glorification of their former emperors. The Roman Catholic Church has adopted these idol names for its own liturgy and dedicated them in particular to Mary.

Pagan Origin of Month Names

The names of the months January to December that we are familiar with have their origins, and how could it be otherwise, in the mythology of ancient Rome. Most of the names of the months used today have their origins in the ancient Roman calendar, i.e. before the Julian calendar, which began in 45 BC. It is therefore not surprising that the names of the months are in many cases associated with one of the “gods and goddesses” of the Roman pantheon.

January

January has its origins in Janus (Latin ianua for gate), the divine protector of the city gates. He represented the god of exit and entrance. Janus is often depicted as a double face, looking in two directions.

February

In ancient Rome, February was the month of purification. The time of atonement and the festival of Februa. The purification of sins applied to the living as well as the deceased.

March

The Roman god of war, Mars, is the namesake for the month of March. In the ancient Roman calendar, the first of March was also the beginning of the year. This changed after 153 BC, when the consuls of the then Republic of Rome began their term of office on January 1st.

April

The month of blossoming. The month name April is derived from the Latin aperire (to open).

May

The month of May is again named after a “deity”. Named after the Roman goddess Maia. She was the partner of Vulcan. Maia was also considered the mother of Hermes, or the Roman Mercury. Among business people, she was the giver of profits and wealth.

June

June was named after the goddess Juno, the Greek variant Hera. She was considered the goddess of care, marriage and birth. Since Juno was considered the wife of the deity Jupiter, she was the “queen of the gods”.

July

Gaius Julius Caesar immortalized himself in July in 44 BC. It was his birth month. This is why this month was given his name. Julius Caesar was the first ruler of Rome to question the former republic and to portray himself as an “adorable, god-like, absolute ruler”. Caesar was also the first to claim the title “Pontifex Maximus” inherited from Pergamon, the last “stronghold” of the former Babylonian Empire.

August

This month was dedicated to the (officially) first Roman emperor Augustus in 8 BC. However, not during his lifetime, but after his death, as he died in this month.

September

The old way of counting the months can still be seen in September (Latin septem for seven). The ninth month today was once the seventh month of the year, starting in March.

October

As with the previous month, October also had the former “eight” as the eighth month, according to the old way of counting.

November

November comes from the Latin novem for nine. The old way of counting.

December

Once the tenth month of the year, hence the Latin word decem for ten.

There were once candidates for the names of the months October to December according to their position in the year. September was once supposed to be renamed after the Emperor Tiberius. Domitian was considered a candidate for October (month “Domitianus”). However, this did not prevail for a new name for the months.

Monate der römisch-katholischen Kirche

In light of the ancient Roman tradition of naming the months, the Roman Catholic Church has also assigned certain meanings to the individual months in its liturgical annual calendar.

January is the month for the Holy Name of Jesus.
The “Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary” took place in February.
March is dedicated to “Saint Joseph”.
April is the month of the Resurrection (Easter – Info).
May is the month of the “Blessed Virgin Mary” again.
June is considered the month of the “Sacred Heart of Jesus”.
July is the month of the “Precious Blood of Jesus”.
August is again dedicated to Mary, this time to her “Immaculate Heart”.
September is also dedicated to Mary, specifically to her sorrows.
October is dedicated to the “Holy Rosary”, and thus to Mary again.
In November, the “Holy Souls” are remembered separately.
December is the month of the “Immaculate Conception of Mary”.

The latter seems interesting in that a conception even on the last day of December cannot lead to a birth on December 25th of the following year (Info). This is probably part of the usual mysticism within this self-described Christian church of Rome.

Striking parallels

Various parallels to the pagan origins of the names of the months and the assignments within the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church cannot be overlooked. Given the true nature of the Papacy with its Church in tow, it is hardly a mere coincidence (Info). April, the “month of blossoming” and the Roman Catholic resurrection ceremony of Easter (Info).

May, the month of the goddess Maia, the giver of profit and wealth, and the “Blessed Virgin Mary”. June, the “month of care” and the Roman Catholic month of the “Sacred Heart”. February, the pagan month of “purification”. How fittingly, the month of “the purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary”.

It is fascinating that people, especially those who have devoutly submitted to the church law of the Roman Catholic Church, do not (or cannot) recognize this “Christianized paganism”. This is especially true of the almost idolization of the Catholic Mary (Info).

Bible verses from King James Version (1611)