Viking Influence in the Days of the Week

Every time you say “Thursday,” you’re naming the thunder god. Four of the English days of the week honor Norse gods the Vikings also worshipped: Tyr, Odin (Woden), Thor, and Frigg. The names are older than the Vikings, though. In fact, they were coined centuries earlier among the Germanic peoples, whose languages were still closely related and who shared these gods. Meanwhile, Monday and Sunday keep the moon and sun, and Saturday kept its Roman god, Saturn.

The Days of the Week and the Norse Gods at a Glance

Day	Named for	Roman day	Old Norse
Sunday	The sun	dies Solis, the sun	sunnudagr
Monday	The moon	dies Lunae, the moon	mánadagr
Tuesday	Tyr	dies Martis, Mars	týsdagr
Wednesday	Odin (Woden)	dies Mercurii, Mercury	óðinsdagr
Thursday	Thor	dies Iovis, Jupiter	þórsdagr
Friday	Frigg	dies Veneris, Venus	frjádagr
Saturday	Saturn (Roman name kept)	dies Saturni, Saturn	laugardagr, “washing day”

When Did the Days of the Week Get Their Norse Gods?

The seven-day planetary week, with each day ruled by the sun, the moon, or one of five planets, spread through the Roman world from Hellenistic astrology by the first century A.D. (Before that, Romans used an eight-day market cycle.) Germanic peoples probably adopted it from the Romans, though Professor Jackson Crawford allows they may have taken it from the Greeks. According to Crawford, they named the days sometime before the 300s or 400s, while English and German were still one language, by swapping in their own gods for the Roman ones.

Which of the Norse Gods Holds Tuesday Among the Days of the Week?

Tuesday belongs to Tyr (Old English Tiw), matched with Mars, god of war. In Snorri’s Prose Edda, Tyr is Odin’s son, but the Eddic poem Hymiskviða makes him the son of the giant Hymir (a story we tell in Thor and Tyr Face the Anger of Hymir).

Which Norse God Owns Wednesday Among the Days of the Week?

For reasons that are unclear, Odin was equated with Mercury. As a result, he became the namesake for the fourth day of the week. In fact, Odin has many names, including Wotan and Woden.

Which Norse God Gave Thursday Its Name Among the Days of the Week?

Thor took up Jupiter’s mantle and the fifth day of the week. The match made sense because Jupiter and Thor are both gods of thunder and lightning.

Which of the Norse Gods Lends Friday Its Name Among the Days of the Week?

The Romans gave the sixth day to Venus. The English then matched her with Frigg (Old English Frige), Odin’s wife. Some scholars think Frigg and Freyja were once a single goddess, which is why Friday is sometimes called “Freyja’s day.”

Why Is Saturday Hot Water Day Among the Norse Days of the Week?

In Old Norse, Saturday was laugardagr, “washing day” or “bath day.” Still, remember the Danes who, an English chronicler grumbled, bathed every Saturday? (Read more in our post on Viking hygiene.)

Keep reading: the Norse had their own names for the months, too, in Months of the Norse Calendar. For more on the god behind Thursday, see The Common Man’s God – Thor.

So the next time you’re glad it’s Friday, thank Frigg. Which day is your favorite? Tell us in the comments.