Thursday — From Old English to English | etymologist.ai
thursday
/ˈθɜːz.deɪ/·noun·before 900 CE·Established
Origin
Thunder's day — honoring Thor/Thunor, the storm-god equated with Jupiter, both lords of sky and hammer.
Definition
The fifth day of the week in many cultures, following Wednesday and preceding Friday.
The Full Story
Old Englishbefore 900 CEwell-attested
From OldEnglish 'þūnresdæg,' meaning 'day of Þunor,' the Anglo-Saxon god of thunder. Þunor (Old Norse Þórr, or Thor) was identified with the Roman god Jupiter through interpretatio germanica, making Thursday the Germanictranslation of Latin 'Iovis diēs' (day of Jupiter). Both deities wielded thunder and lightning as their primary weapons and served
Did you know?
The equation of Thor with Jupiter that gives us Thursday = Iovis diēs is not just functional — both gods' names trace back to weather phenomena: Thor from PIE *(s)tenh₂- (to thunder) and Jupiter from PIE *Dyēu-pəter (Sky Father), though they come from different roots entirely.