Where Does The Name "December" Come From?

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If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, December might mean pulling off your boots so you can curl up with your smartphone and read Dictionary.com (hey, we can dream).</p> <p>But, what does the word <em>December</em> mean in the dictionary? And, where did the 12th month of the year get its name?</p> <h2> <span id="what-is-december-named-for"><strong>What is December named for?</strong></span> </h2> <p>December has marked the end of the year and the coming of winter since the ancient Romans established their first calendar. As its etymology indicates, <em><a href="https://www.dictionary.com/browse/december" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-linkid="536e3a">December</a> </em>is formed from the Latin root <em>decem-</em> which means “ten” … but December is our twelfth month. The strange numbering discrepancy is also present for the months of <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/september/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">September</a>, <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/october/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">October</a>, and <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/november/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">November</a>, which reference “seven,” “eight,” and “nine,” even though they’re our ninth, tenth, and eleventh months.</p> <div class='gf_browser_chrome gform_wrapper gform_wrapper_original_id_23 crb-sailthtru-subscribe_wrapper crb_inline_form_wrapper' id='gform_wrapper_402925696' ><form method='post' enctype='multipart/form-data' id='gform_402925696' class='crb-sailthtru-subscribe crb_inline_form' action='/e/december/'> <div class='gform_heading'> <p class='gform_title'>Keep Learning New Words Every Day!</p> <span class='gform_description'>Get the Word of The Day delivered straight to your inbox!</span> </div> <div class='gform_body'><ul id='gform_fields_402925696' class='gform_fields top_label form_sublabel_below description_below'><li id='field_402925696_1' class='gfield field_sublabel_below field_description_below hidden_label gfield_visibility_visible gfield--email gfield--large' ><label class='gfield_label' for='input_402925696_1' ></label><div class='ginput_container ginput_container_email'> <input name='input_1' id='input_402925696_1' type='email' value='' class='large' placeholder='yourname@email.com' aria-invalid="false" /> </div></li><li id='field_402925696_2' class='gfield gform_validation_container field_sublabel_below field_description_below gfield_visibility_visible gfield--honeypot gfield--' ><label class='gfield_label' for='input_402925696_2' >Email</label><div class='ginput_container'><input name='input_2' id='input_402925696_2' type='text' value='' autocomplete='off'/></div><div class='gfield_description' id='gfield_description__2'>This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.</div></li> </ul></div> <div class='gform_footer top_label'> <input type='submit' id='gform_submit_button_402925696' class='gform_button button' value='Sign Up' onclick='if(window["gf_submitting_402925696"]){return false;} if( !jQuery("#gform_402925696")[0].checkValidity || jQuery("#gform_402925696")[0].checkValidity()){window["gf_submitting_402925696"]=true;} ' onkeypress='if( event.keyCode == 13 ){ if(window["gf_submitting_402925696"]){return false;} if( !jQuery("#gform_402925696")[0].checkValidity || jQuery("#gform_402925696")[0].checkValidity()){window["gf_submitting_402925696"]=true;} jQuery("#gform_402925696").trigger("submit",[true]); }' /> <input type='hidden' class='gform_hidden' name='is_submit_23' value='1' /> <input type='hidden' class='gform_hidden' name='gform_submit' value='23' /> <input type='hidden' class='gform_hidden' name='gform_unique_id' value='' /> <input type='hidden' class='gform_hidden' name='state_23' value='WyJbXSIsImI4NDFhMDc0ODQ4ODY4ODYzNjM3OGI5MmQ5MGZkYmRjIl0=' /> <input type='hidden' class='gform_hidden' name='gform_target_page_number_23' id='gform_target_page_number_23' value='0' /> <input type='hidden' class='gform_hidden' name='gform_source_page_number_23' id='gform_source_page_number_23' value='1' /> <input type='hidden' name='gform_random_id' value='402925696' /><input type='hidden' name='gform_field_values' value='' /> </div> </form> </div><script type='text/javascript'>document.addEventListener( "DOMContentLoaded", function() { jQuery(document).bind('gform_post_render', function(event, formId, currentPage){if(formId == 402925696) {if(typeof Placeholders != 'undefined'){ Placeholders.enable(); }} } );jQuery(document).bind('gform_post_conditional_logic', function(event, formId, fields, isInit){} ); }, false );</script><script type='text/javascript'>document.addEventListener( "DOMContentLoaded", function() { jQuery(document).ready(function(){jQuery(document).trigger('gform_post_render', [402925696, 1]) } ); }, false );</script> <p>Why? Well, the ancient Roman calendar only had ten months in the year, beginning with the month of March. <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/january/">January</a> and <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/february/">February</a> were eventually added after December to the end of the year. But, by the time the <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/browse/julian-calendar">Julian calendar</a> was established in 45 BCE, January and February appeared at the beginning of the year, which bumped all of the original months (and their originally assigned names) back by two.</p> <h2> <span id="older-names-for-december"><strong>What are the older names for December?</strong></span> </h2> <p>Before <em>December</em> entered Old English, the names <em>Ǣrra Gēola</em> or <em>Gēolmōnað</em>, meaning “yule month,” were used. The early Germanic people referred to this wintry season as <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/browse/yuletide" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-linkid="536e3a"><em>yuletide</em></a>, a two-month period that spanned December and January. <span class="luna-langc italic"><em>Geōl </em></span>means “Christmas day” or “<a href="https://www.dictionary.com/browse/christmastide/#editors-notes-section-0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Christmastide</a>” (a word for the period from Christmas Eve to related feast days in early January).</p> <p><span class="luna-langc italic"><em>Geōl </em></span>is related to the Old Norse <em>jōl,</em> the name of the Pagan winter feast lasting 12 days. Many of the customs of the feast of <em>yule</em> influenced the ways that Christmas is celebrated, such as the tradition of burning a <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/browse/yule-log" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>yule</em> log</a> at Christmastime. Fun fact: the word <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/browse/jolly" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-linkid="536e3a"><em>jolly</em></a> may have derived from the same Old Norse root that brought us <em>yule</em>.</p> <p> <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/s/english-words-from-old-norse/#1" class="article__callout-link" target="_blank">What else has Old Norse brought us? Learn which words trace back to Old Norse here.</a> </p> <h2><strong> <span id="celebrations-in-december">What do we celebrate in December?</span> </strong></h2> <p>If you’re facing another cold winter, celebrating the <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/fall-equinox-solstice/">winter solstice</a>, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, or New Year’s Eve is sure to lift your “<a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/pop-culture/bah-humbug/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">bah humbug</a>” spirits! As you revel in the season, you might wonder <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/what-are-all-of-the-different-names-for-santa-claus/">what the different names for Santa Claus are</a> or <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/what-is-figgy-pudding/">what figgy pudding is</a>, or <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/boxing-day/">what Boxing Day (December 26) actually is.</a></p> <p>If you’re also celebrating a birthday in December, you might be a Sagittarius (born before December 22) and known as a<em> trailblazer</em> or an <em>innovator</em>. We have <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/sagittarius-words/">more words for Sagittarius here</a>, and we’ve also got <a href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/words-for-capricorns/">words for the zodiac sign of Capricorn</a>, for those born on or after December 22.</p> </div> <div class="article__woty"> <div class="article__woty-body"> <div class="article__woty-items"> <a class="article__woty-item" data-linkid="" data-ev="" data-link-name="" href="https://www.dictionary.com/e/january/"> <h4 class="article__woty-item-title"> Fight the chill with some red-hot knowledge on the origins of another winter month, January. </h4> </a> </div> </div> </div> </div> <footer class="article__foot"> <div class="share trigger-share-links"> <ul> <li> <a href="https://facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dictionary.com%2Fe%2Fdecember%2F" class="ico-facebook" target="_blank" data-linkid="begyaa"></a> </li> <li> <a 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Where Does The Name "December" Come From? | Dictionary.com