Appendix F:
Calendar of Church Feast and Fast Days
© 2020 Jeffrey Love, Inger Larsson, Ulrika Djärv, Christine Peel, and Erik Simensen, CC BY 4.0 https://doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0188.10
The ecclesiastical calendar below combines the information given in the OSw, ODan, OGu, OFar, OIce and ONorw laws. The language of the last three of these is throughout recorded as ON. The dates given are those known from the medieval Catholic calendar, supplemented by information from current practice. Where a saint was celebrated on a number of days in the year, the date(s) given derive either from a specific statement in the law, or from the context. Some of the dates given differ from those now current in England and these have been noted. The English equivalents given here are those that are most often used currently, whereas the actual translations employed by the individual editors of the laws are not consistent. The latter can be found in the body of the lexicon.
Ref: Lithberg and Wessén 1939, 75–113.
|
Date or extent of feast where more than one day; range of dates for the feast, where it is movable |
Feast name in the Old Norse Laws |
Language |
(Standard) English translation and explanatory notes |
|
movable: 27th November–3rd December |
advent |
ODan, OSw |
Advent |
|
6th December |
nikulásmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Nicholas |
|
7th December |
ambrósiusmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Ambrose |
|
13th December |
magnúsmessa |
ON |
Feast of the Translation of St Magnus (Erlendsson of Orkney) |
|
21st December |
thomasmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Thomas |
|
23rd December |
þorláksmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Þorlákr |
|
24th December |
helga náttin |
ON |
Christmas Eve |
|
jólanátt |
ON |
||
|
25th December |
jóladagr |
ON |
Christmas Day/Season |
|
jólahelgr |
ON |
||
|
jul |
OSw, ODan |
||
|
jól |
ON |
||
|
5th January |
tolftidagher |
OSw |
Twelfth Night |
|
tolftidagher |
ODan |
||
|
6th January |
þrættandidagher |
OSw |
Feast of the Epiphany |
|
þrettándi dagr jóla |
ON |
Not Twelfth Day, but Epiphany. Twelfth Night is 5 Jan, the vigil of this Feast. |
|
|
11th January |
brettifumessa |
ON |
Feast of St Brictiva |
|
21st January |
agnesmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Agnes |
|
25th January |
pálsmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Paul (not to be confused with the Feast of SS Peter and Paul, 29th June) |
|
1st February |
brigíðarmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Brigid |
|
movable: the Sunday before Ash Wednesday: 1st February–7th March |
kötsunnudagher |
OSw |
Sunday before Lent, Quinquagesima |
|
2nd February |
maríumessa recorded as kyndilmessa in a manuscript variant |
ON |
Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary |
|
kyndilmæssa |
OSw |
Candlemas |
|
|
movable: 4th February–10th March |
askuoþensdagher |
OSw |
Ash Wednesday |
|
movable: from Ash Wednesday to Holy Saturday (the day before Easter Sunday): 4th February until 21st March–10th March until 24th April |
langafasta |
ON |
Lent |
|
movable: 8th February–14th March |
hvitisunnudagher (drottins dags i hvita dogum in Grg) |
OSw |
First Sunday in Lent |
|
22nd February |
pétrsmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Peter (not to be confused with the Feast of SS Peter and Paul, 29th June) |
|
24th February |
matthiasmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Matthias |
|
mattíasmessa |
ON |
An alternative date is 14th May |
|
|
movable: the Sunday before Palm Sunday: 8th March–11th April |
kæra sunnudagher |
OSw |
Fifth Sunday in Lent, otherwise called Passion Sunday |
|
12th March |
gregoriusmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Gregory |
|
movable, starting with Palm Sunday:15th March–18th April |
dymbilvika |
OSw |
Holy Week (the week before Easter) |
|
movable: 18th March–21st April |
kloknaoþensdagher |
OSw |
Wednesday in Holy Week, Wednesday next before Easter |
|
movable: 19th March–22nd April |
skærþorsdagher |
OSw |
Maundy Thursday |
|
skíriþórsdagr |
ON |
||
|
movable: 20th March–23rd April |
langafre(a)dagher |
OSw |
Good Friday |
|
langafrjádagr |
ON |
||
|
21st March |
benedictusmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Benedict |
|
movable: 22nd March–25th April |
paskadagher |
OSw |
Easter Day |
|
páskadagr |
ON |
Easter Day |
|
|
movable: 22nd March–25th April |
paskar |
OSw |
Easter season |
|
paske |
ODan |
||
|
páskar |
ON |
||
|
25th March |
mariumessa i fastu |
OGu |
Feast of the Annunciation, also called Lady Day |
|
maríumessa í föstu |
ON |
||
|
maríumessa um várit |
ON |
||
|
varafrudagher (i fastu) |
OSw |
||
|
16th April |
magnúsmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Magnus (Erlendsson of Orkney) |
|
23rd April |
jóhannesmessa (variant of: jóansmessa) |
ON |
Feast of St Jón Ögmundarson, bishop of Hólar 1106–21 (celebrated from 1200; cf. note in the translation of Grágás) |
|
25th April |
(litli) gangdagher |
OSw |
Rogation Day; despite its Nordic designation, the original and principal Rogation Day in the Catholic Calendar, possibly the successor to the Roman ambarvalia, a ceremony designed to guard against blight in the seed |
|
gangdagr |
ON |
||
|
26th April–2nd May |
crucisuke |
ODan |
The week following the Feast of St Mark on 25th April and thus followed by krossmessa, the Invention of the Cross, on 3rd May (see below) |
|
movable: the 3 days preceding Ascension Day: 27th to 29th April–31st May to 2nd June |
gangdagahelgr |
ON |
Rogation Days (sometimes coinciding with crucisuke, q.v., if Easter were at its earliest date) |
|
gangdaghar |
OGu |
||
|
gangdagar |
ON |
||
|
helgavika |
ON |
Rogation Week |
|
|
movable: 30th April–3rd June |
hælghiþorsdagher |
OSw |
Ascension Day |
|
uppstigningardagr |
ON |
||
|
1st May |
philippus messa ok jakobus |
ON |
Feast of SS Philip and James (the lesser) |
|
1st May |
valborghamæssa |
OSw |
This is usually called Walpurgis’ Day, rather than the Feast of St Walpurga, as it had and has secular overtones. It is not clear in the texts if it is the Eve, 30th April that is referred to, or to the feast day itself. |
|
3rd May |
crucismisse |
ODan |
Invention of the Cross (3rd May according to glossary in Routledge edition. That is, the Sunday following crucisuke, q.v. The word ‘invention’ in this context = ‘finding’) |
|
krossmessa |
ON |
The same word is used for both this feast and for that of the Exaltation of the Cross, 14th September |
|
|
krossmessa um várit |
ON |
||
|
movable: 10th May–13th June |
pingizdagher |
ODan, OSw |
Whitsunday |
|
15th May |
hallvarðarmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Hallvard |
|
18th May |
sankta eriks dagh |
OSw |
Feast of St Erik |
|
9th June |
kolumbamessa |
ON |
Feast of St Columba |
|
17th June |
botulfsmæssa |
OSw |
Feast of St Botulf |
|
bótolfsmessa |
ON |
||
|
24th June |
jónsmessa |
ON |
Feast of St John the Baptist |
|
jóansmessa |
ON |
||
|
jónsvaka |
ONorw |
||
|
28th June |
pétrsmessuaptann |
ON |
Vigil of the Feast of St Peter |
|
29th June |
apostlamæssudagher |
OSw |
Feast of SS Peter and Paul |
|
petersmessa |
OSw |
Feast of St Peter (specifically this June date, shared with St Paul, not the February date, which is only mentioned in Grg) |
|
|
sankti petrs messa |
OGu |
||
|
pétrsmessa |
ON |
||
|
2nd July |
svitunsmessa |
ON |
St Swithun’s Day (note that in the English calendar St Swithun’s Day is 15 July) |
|
8th July |
seljamannamessa |
ON |
Feast of the Saints of Selja (i.e. St Sunniva and her companions; St Sunniva’s shrine was moved to Bergen in 1170) |
|
seljumannamessa |
ON |
||
|
heilagra manna (messa) í Selju |
ON |
||
|
10th July |
knútsmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Canute (celebrated on 19th January in England) |
|
25th July |
jakobsmessa |
ON |
Feast of St James (the Great) |
|
29th July |
olafsdagher |
OSw |
(Earlier) Feast of St Olaf |
|
olafsmæssa |
OSw, ODan |
||
|
ólafsmessa |
ON |
||
|
ólafsmessa hin fyrri |
ON |
||
|
3rd August |
ólafsmessa hin øfri |
ON |
Later Feast of St Olaf |
|
10th August |
laurinzardagher |
OSw |
Feast of St Lawrence |
|
laurinzardagher |
OSw |
||
|
lafrinzsmæssa |
OSw |
||
|
laurentiusmessa |
ON |
||
|
laurentiusmessa |
ON |
||
|
15th August |
mariumæssa (fyrra) |
OSw |
Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary |
|
mariemisse fyrre |
ODan |
||
|
maríumessa fyrri |
ON |
||
|
maríumessa fyrri |
ON |
||
|
24th August |
bartholomeusmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Bartholomew |
|
bartholomeusmessa |
ON |
||
|
1st September |
yliansmæssa |
OSw |
Feast of St Giles |
|
8th September |
mariumæssa (öfra) |
OSw |
Feast of the Nativity of Our Lady (or the Blessed Virgin Mary) |
|
maríumessa øfri |
ON |
||
|
maríumessa síðari |
ON |
||
|
14th September |
krossmessa |
ON |
Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. (The same name is used for both this and the Invention of the Cross, 3rd May) |
|
krossmessa um haustit |
ON |
||
|
krossmessa hin øfri |
ON |
||
|
21st September |
mattéimessa; mattéusmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Matthew |
|
matthaeusmessa |
ON |
||
|
29th September |
mikialsmæssa |
OSw |
Michaelmas |
|
mikjalsmisse |
ODan |
||
|
mikjálsmessa |
ON |
||
|
mikialsmæssodagher |
OSw |
Michaelmas Day |
|
|
mikialsdagher |
OSw |
||
|
30th September–6th October |
sialadagher |
OSw |
Monday after Michaelmas |
|
28th October |
símonsmessudagr ok judas |
ON |
Feast of SS Simon and Jude |
|
tveggjapostulamessa/-messudagr |
ON |
Feast of the Two Apostles |
|
|
1st November |
hælghunamæssudagher; aldra hælghuna dagher |
OSw |
All Saints’ Day |
|
helgunamessa |
OGu |
||
|
allraheilagramessa |
ON |
||
|
2nd November |
sialamæssudagher |
OSw |
All Souls’ Day |
|
11th November |
martinsmæssa |
OSw |
Martinmas |
|
marteinsmessa |
ON |
||
|
sancta martens dagher |
OSw |
St Martin’s Day |
|
|
22nd November |
ceciliomessa |
ON |
Feast of St Cecilia |
|
23rd November |
klementsmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Clement |
|
clemensmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Clement |
|
|
25th November |
katrinamæssa |
OSw |
Feast of St Catherine of Alexandria |
|
30th November |
andreasmessa |
ON |
Feast of St Andrew |
|
Various: Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday following St Lucy’s Day (13 December), the first Sunday in Lent, Pentecost (Whitsun), and Holy Cross Day (14 September) |
imbrudagr |
ON |
Ember Days (i.e. the days of fasting at the turn of the seasons: winter, spring, summer and autumn respectively) |