I can't memorize and repeat quickly the month names in English even though I've been studying English. I'd like to know if there are some ways or maybe a strategy to learn the month names in English.
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There is a question about learning the day names that has some techniques that might be helpful: ell.stackexchange.com/q/38392– ColleenVCommented Mar 14, 2016 at 17:10
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@ِDear ColleenV, I don't have problem with the day names, but unfortunately I have trouble with the month names– user62498Commented Mar 14, 2016 at 17:14
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What is your native language? Do you know any other languages with comparable month names (French, German, Russian, Dutch)?– Glorfindel ♦Commented Mar 14, 2016 at 18:03
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4I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it's about memory aids, not English as such.– FumbleFingersCommented Mar 14, 2016 at 18:19
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1Learning English (and any language) includes "memory aids."– Alan CarmackCommented Mar 14, 2016 at 22:40
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1 Answer
I memorized the month names like this:
"January, February,
March, April, May,
June, July, August,
September, October, November, December".
Here are some mnemonics that can help:
- January is named for the two-faced Roman god Janus, who looked both backwards and forwards.
- February might be named for a time of burnt offerings at the end of the old Roman calendar.
- Then there are six short names in a row:
- March was the first month of the old Roman calendar; March 25 used to be the first day of the English calendar. It is named for the Roman god Mars.
- April, May, and June are girls' names. "April showers bring May flowers."
- July is named for the first Roman emperor, Julius Cæsar.
- August is named for the second Roman Emperor, Augustus.
- September, October, November, and December count the months (starting with March!):
"sept-" = 7, "oct-" = 8, "nov-" = 9, "dec-" = 10.
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3Does this help? Because I can't see how....– user29750Commented Mar 14, 2016 at 18:11
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The "starting with march" bit is incorrect. The reason that the months 9 to 12 are called 7 to 10 in latin is that the roman emperors Julius and Augustus wanted months named after themselves, but they wanted summer months... so they put their months in the middle and moved the later months on by two. Commented Mar 14, 2016 at 18:33
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2That's not correct. The emperors renamed two existing months, Quintilis and Sextilis, after themselves. The old 10 month Roman calendar began with March. January and February were added around 700BC.– ssavCommented Mar 14, 2016 at 23:45