| Revision as of 19:39, 6 July 2021 view sourceZaslav (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users14,644 edits Make section title clearer.← Previous edit | Revision as of 19:43, 6 July 2021 view source Zaslav (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users14,644 edits Simplify. Get rid of payroll; if there is any reason for this, it should not be in the intro.Next edit → | ||
| Line 6: | Line 6: | ||
| A '''fortnight''' is a unit of time equal to 14 ]s (2 ]s). The word derives from the ] term {{lang|ang|fēowertyne niht}}, meaning "{{transl|ang|fourteen ]}}".<ref>{{cite news|title=Fortnight|work=The Concise Oxford Dictionary|edition= 5th|date= 1964|page= 480}}</ref><!-- contraction of M.E. ''fourteniht'', from O.E. ''feowertyne niht'', lit. "fourteen nights", preserving the ancient Germanic custom of reckoning by nights, mentioned by ] in "Germania" xi. Related: Fortnightly. The fortnight is a unit of time equal to 14 days, e.g., "I'm meeting Adam in Venice in a fortnight" --><ref>''Senight'', ''sennight'' or ''se'night'' (seven-night), an old word for the week, was still in use in the early 19th century, to judge from ]'s letters.</ref> | A '''fortnight''' is a unit of time equal to 14 ]s (2 ]s). The word derives from the ] term {{lang|ang|fēowertyne niht}}, meaning "{{transl|ang|fourteen ]}}".<ref>{{cite news|title=Fortnight|work=The Concise Oxford Dictionary|edition= 5th|date= 1964|page= 480}}</ref><!-- contraction of M.E. ''fourteniht'', from O.E. ''feowertyne niht'', lit. "fourteen nights", preserving the ancient Germanic custom of reckoning by nights, mentioned by ] in "Germania" xi. Related: Fortnightly. The fortnight is a unit of time equal to 14 days, e.g., "I'm meeting Adam in Venice in a fortnight" --><ref>''Senight'', ''sennight'' or ''se'night'' (seven-night), an old word for the week, was still in use in the early 19th century, to judge from ]'s letters.</ref> | ||
| In North America it is usual to say '']''. | |||
| Some ] and salaries are paid on a fortnightly basis;<ref>{{cite web | |||
| |url=http://www.centrelink.gov.au/internet/internet.nsf/payments/pay_how_dsp.htm | |||
| Neither of these synonymous terms should be confused with '']'', since half a month is slightly longer than a fortnight, except in February of a non-leap year. | |||
| |title=Australian Government – How much Disability Support Pension do I get? | |||
| |access-date=22 May 2008 | |||
| |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080416024130/http://www.centrelink.gov.au/internet/internet.nsf/payments/pay_how_dsp.htm | |||
| |archive-date=16 April 2008 | |||
| |url-status=dead | |||
| |df=dmy | |||
| }}</ref> however, in North America it is far more common to use the term '']''. Neither of these synonymous terms should be confused with '']'', which divides a year into exactly 24 periods (12 months × 2), instead of the 26 (≈] ÷ 2) of fortnightly/biweekly. | |||
| ==Astronomy== | ==Astronomy== | ||
Revision as of 19:43, 6 July 2021
Time period of two weeks Not to be confused with Fortnite. For other uses, see Fortnight (disambiguation).
A fortnight is a unit of time equal to 14 days (2 weeks). The word derives from the Old English term fēowertyne niht, meaning "fourteen nights".
In North America it is usual to say biweekly.
Neither of these synonymous terms should be confused with semimonthly, since half a month is slightly longer than a fortnight, except in February of a non-leap year.
Astronomy
Further information: Eclipse cycleIn astronomy, a lunar fortnight is half a lunar synodic month, equivalent to the mean period between a full moon and a new moon (and vice versa). This is equal to 14.77 days.
Analogs in other languages
In many languages, there is no single word for a two-week period, and the equivalent terms "two weeks", "14 days", or "15 days" (counting inclusively) have to be used.
- Celtic languages: in Welsh, the term pythefnos, meaning "15 nights", is used. This is in keeping with the Welsh term for a week, which is wythnos ("eight nights"). In Irish, the term is coicís.
- Similarly in Greek the term δεκαπενθήμερο (dekapenthímero), meaning "15 days", is used.
- The Hindu calendar uses the Sanskrit word "paksha", meaning one half of a lunar month, which is between 14 and 15 solar days.
- In Romance languages there are the terms quincena (or quince días) in Galician and Spanish, quinzena or quinze dies in Catalan and quinze dias or quinzena in Portuguese, quindicina in Italian, quinze jours or quinzaine in French, and chenzinǎ in Romanian, all meaning "a grouping of 15"; there are also the terms bisettimanale in Italian, bisemanal in Spanish, bissemanal in Portuguese, bisetmanal in Catalan, bihebdomadaire in French, and bisǎptǎmânal in Romanian, that literally mean "biweekly".
- Semitic languages have a special "doubling suffix". When added at the end of the word for "week" it changes the meaning to "two weeks". In Hebrew, the single-word שבועיים (shvu′ayim) means exactly "two weeks". Also in Arabic, by adding the common dual suffix to the word for "week", أسبوع, the form أسبوعين (usbu′ayn), meaning "two weeks", is formed.
- Slavic languages: in Czech the terms čtrnáctidenní and dvoutýdenní have the same meaning as "fortnight".
See also
References
- "Fortnight". The Concise Oxford Dictionary (5th ed.). 1964. p. 480.
- Senight, sennight or se'night (seven-night), an old word for the week, was still in use in the early 19th century, to judge from Jane Austen's letters.
- Littmann, Mark; Fred Espenak; Ken Willcox (2008). Totality: Eclipses of the Sun. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-953209-4.
- Weisstein, Eric W. "Synodic Month definition".
- BBC (16 October 2014). "BBC Wales - Catchphrase". BBC Wales. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
Wythnos is a week.
- "Do You Know How to Say Fortnight in Different Languages?". www.indifferentlanguages.com.
| Time measurement and standards | ||
|---|---|---|
| International standards |
|   |
| Obsolete standards | ||
| Time in physics | ||
| Horology | ||
| Calendar | ||
| Archaeology and geology | ||
| Astronomical chronology | ||
| Other units of time | ||
| Related topics | ||