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Today is the fifth day of the fifth month of the Gregorian calendar. If January was named for Janus, the Roman god of gates and beginnings; February for the Roman purification festival of Februa; March for Mars, the Roman god of war; and April to commemorate the beginning of the spring season; how then did May arrive at its name? In Honour of the goddess, Called Maia?According to ancient Greek legend, the month May was named for the Greek goddess, Maia, who was identified with the Roman goddess of fertility, Bona Dea, whose festival was held in May. Conversely, the Roman poet Ovid provides a second etymology, in which he says that the month of May is named for the maiores, a Latin word for elders. Some Interesting Facts About May, the Fifth Month
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The table below shows the months of the year used in English-speaking countries and many other parts of the world. The list shows the order of the months, starting from January (month 1). The abbreviations or short forms shown are the most common, but other abbreviations are possible, for example: Ja./Fe./Ma. or J./F./M. The days column shows the number of days in the month. All months have 30 or 31 days, except for February which has 28 days (29 in a leap year). Every fourth year, the month of February has 29 days instead of 28. This year is called a "leap year" and the 29th day of February is a "leap day". A leap year has 366 days instead of the usual 365. Most years that can be cleanly divided by four are leap years. 2016, 2020 and 2024, for example, are leap years.
The seasons are approximate and depend on latitude. Some parts of the world have only three seasons. The seasons shown here are for the North Temperate Zone (for example North America). In the southern hemisphere, the seasons are reversed. |