Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 3, 1892.djvu/231

Rh Malagasy week, together with their respective san-ándro names, and their special numbers and characters:—

English Name. Malagasy Name. San-àndro Name. Arabic Origin. Meaning. Character. Number.

Sunday Alahàdy Samòsy Shams Sun good 1

Monday Alatsinainy Alakamàry Al-gamar Moon bad 5

Tuesday Talàta. Mariky Marrik Mars good 2

Wednesday Alarobia Motarita Utarit Mercury good 6

Thursday Alakamisy Mosataro Mushtari Jupiter bad 3

Friday Zomà Zohàra Zahro Venus bad 7

Saturday Asabòtsy Johady Zahal Saturn neutra 4

The fourth column of the above list gives the Arabic names of the Seven Planets, from which Mr. Dahle shows that the san-àndro names of the week-days were clearly derived.

Anyone who has the slightest knowledge of Latin will see immediately that what were in Malagasy the extraordinary day-names, only used in san-àndro, were in Latin the ordinary day-names (Dies Solis, Lunæ, Martis, etc.); and their retention in part amongst modern European nations, with changes, as among ourselves, for Teutonic god-names, for some days, is well known. The explanation, says Mr. Dahle, of this rather curious fact, no doubt, is that the astrology of Babylonia spread both to Arabia and from thence to Madagascar, and also to Europe; and that, according to this astrology, the planets in question, and the gods identified with them, held the sway over the days of the week; and it depended on the supposed nature of each planet whether the day under its sway should be considered a lucky or an unlucky one. Why such differences were supposed to result from the different