Feriae
Feriae ( Latin , plural; originally fesiae ) was the name for festivals in ancient Rome . There were two types of celebrations: public celebrations, feriae publicae , and private celebrations, feriae privatae . The latter include the feriae familiares and feriae singulorum . They were tied to families and clans, gentes , or to certain groups. Birthdays, dead sacrifices and the like were celebrated here. In general, the feriae only meant the feriae publicae , which in turn were organized in subgroups:
- feriae stativae : days officially determined by the calendar
- feriae conceptivae : on a calendar, within an officially determined period; annual redefinition and announcement of the Rex sacrorum
- feriae imperativae : extraordinary festivals, in a crisis situation by an official with Empire were determined
The feriae nundinae , market days as routine festivals, are not part of the feriae publicae .
Characteristic of the feriae publicae was the general rest from work, especially the rest of all legal activities, since these days were nefasti . Cultic acts associated with the feriae were performed by representatives of the people, priests and magistrates. Who had to take part in the festivities was determined individually for each festival. There was no general obligation to participate, but was limited to defined groups of people.
While the generally applicable feriae stativae were noted in the calendars and are quite well documented through corresponding mentions and finds, this knowledge is largely lacking for the group of the feriae conceptivae . Individual finds, such as in the case of the feriae Latinae , nevertheless provide some insight. While the number of vacation days remained more or less constant during the time of the Roman Republic , it was increased after Caesar's death through commemorative days and, especially during the imperial era, it was increased by celebrations for the birthdays and deaths of the emperors .
The singular form feria is only documented in a Christian context and designated in particular the individual holidays of Easter week as prima feria , secunda feria, etc. in order to separate them from the pagan feriae . In later Latin (and in today's Portuguese), in contrast to the original meaning, feria stands precisely for the simple days of the week , both in the liturgical sense ("day on which no Sunday or festival falls") and, with an ordinal number, to distinguish from one another ("secunda feria" = Monday etc .; very clearly preserved in today's Portuguese). The Roman breviary leads this to an order of St. Pope New Year's Eve I back: for Christians and especially for the clergy, every day is a holiday.
See also
literature
- Jörg Rüpke : Calendar and Public: The History of Representation and Religious Qualification of Time in Rome . de Gruyter, Berlin 1995, ISBN 3-11-014514-6
- Werner Eisenhut : Feriae. In: The Little Pauly (KlP). Volume 2, Stuttgart 1967, column 536 f.
Individual evidence
- ^ Version before 1962, Matutin of December 31