The Calendar

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Time was and is still one of my favorite aspects of The Tales of the Drui.

My goal with Tales of the Drui was to revive the Viking Age. This meant there could be little to no Roman influence. Weapons, ranks, and terminology all had to reflect the Norse and Scandinavian culture, which was uninfluenced by the Roman culture in the 10th century. Nothing created a greater challenge for me than the calendar system.

Roman Calendar vs. Norse Calendar

The months were the first thing to go. Norse tracked time only by the moon. Rome tracked time by the sun. The Norse calendar revolved around the new and full moon whereas the Romance calendar is almost identical to the calendar we use today.

Etymology month = monath

Days of the Week

Sun  Day (Sunday)

Moon day (Monday)

Tyr’s Day (Tuesday)

Odinn’s Day (Woden in Germany hence Wednesday)

Thor’s day (Thursday)

Frey’s Day (Friday)

Lauderdag (Laundry Day)

Days of the Month or Monath (Moon)

Calendar yields from the Roman word “Kalends,” which was the first day of the month referred to as the Bill Due Day (Some things never change). Month comes from the Norse word for Moon when they tracked days by the moon or the monath.

Jol or Yule Tid (December)

Disting (First day of the Norse year)

Blod (January)

Eostre-Monath or Astramonath (April)

Midsummer (June)

The Elding

The Elding is the name I gave to the Alfar (elves) once they reach maturity. From birth to adulthood, the Alfar mature as humans do. However, when an Alfr reaches maturity between the ages of 19 and 22, the aging process slows to a point of standstill. This almost stagnant period is called The Elding.

When an Alfr reaches their Elding, they are expected to marry. Many settle into a profession.

Perspective of Time

Imagine if you lived for thousands of years. One hundred years would feel like a moment. For this reason, Alfar wars can last for ages.

Sources

My research spanned more than seven years and is credited to the following sources.

John Lindow: Professor of Berkeley

Jacob Grimm: 19th Century linguist

Snorri Sturleson: Author of the Ancient Icelandic Norse text, The Prose Edda

NASA

The Moon Calendar provided by MoonConnection.com

The Irish Invasion Texts known as Lebor Gabála Érenn

 

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