The Origin of the Seven-day Week in Scandinavia: Part 1: The Theophoric Day-names

Abstract

Some scholars have contended that the seven-day week in Scandinavia predates the introduction of Christianity. This argument has had its basis in the fact that four of the seven vernacular day-names include the names of ancestral gods and goddesses, respectively Týr, Oðinn, Þorr, and Frigg. In the present article the argument is taken up for reconsideration. The use of theophoric day-names by the Church in England and Germany at the time of the introduction of Christianity into Scandinavia (c. 950-1100) is surveyed in detail. On this basis, it is proposed that Church institutions would not have resisted the introduction of such names in the newly Christianized Scandinavia.