calends
9.9
The first day of the month in ancient Rome used for paying debts
- noun
- /ˈkælɛndz/
- Archaic
:
calendas
- In ancient Rome, debts were often settled on the first day of the calends.
Examples
-
The merchants eagerly awaited the calends to collect their payments for the month.
-
On the calends, the city held celebrations to mark the start of the new month.
-
The text mentions a day, the 13th of the Calends, but no month.
Academic text (2004) -
During this time, an extremely bright star appeared in the circuit of the New Moon at the beginning of the night of the 13th of the Calends.
Academic text (2004)
Synonyms
1
9.9
The first day of the month in ancient Rome
serves commonly as a settlement or payment date
Surface Forms
calends plural
Etymology
The word calends comes from the Latin calendae, from calare meaning 'to call', because Roman officials would announce the start of a new month by 'calling' people together. So, the calends became the 'first day' of the month and a time for official news or payments, an idea that lives on in the word calendar.