Everyday LifeGreek → English
Paraskevi
/paraskeˈvi/proper noun
The Greek word for Friday, and a common woman's name.
The Greek roots
παρά
pará
alongside, beside
σκευή
skeuḗ
equipment, preparation
Literally: “preparation”
The story of the word
Jews called the day before the Sabbath the day of preparation, and Greek-speaking Christians took paraskeuḗ straight into the calendar, which is why Friday in Greek is still Preparation while Wednesday and Thursday are merely numbered. Saint Paraskevi is invoked for eyesight and painted holding a dish with two eyes in it; her feast is 26 July. Greeks do not fear Friday the thirteenth, incidentally, but Tuesday the thirteenth, because Constantinople fell on a Tuesday.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Byzantine Greek → English
Same family
skeuomorphparallelparadox
In a sentence
Paraskevi keeps her name day on 26 July and ignores her birthday entirely.