Days of the week in Spanish
Each time I introduce days of the week in Spanish to my students I think "it's such a pity that there is no cool song about this subject", you know something like "Friday I'm in love" which is, I suppose, a constant element of many English classes.
While I keep searching for an appropriate song I'm trying to make this vocabulary list as interesting as possible, which is why, I have included some linguistic and cultural facts that will help you to remember it better. After all, learning Spanish should be a pleasure, not a torture, don't you think?
How to say the days of the week in Spanish
| En español | In English |
|---|---|
| Lunes | Monday |
| Martes | Tuesday |
| Miércoles | Wednesday |
| Jueves | Thursday |
| Viernes | Friday |
| Sábado | Saturday |
| Domingo | Sunday |
Days in Spanish - linguistic curious facts
--> The days of the week in Spanish are used with masculine articles (el, un).
--> The word el día (a day) is an exception. Although it terminates in - a, it's still a masculine gender.
--> In Spanish there is a concept of "juernes" which you will use when, for some reason, you have a Friday off, so your weekend starts on Thursday night.
--> The word fin de semana is a literal translation from English. What is more, Spaniards love the abbreviation finde. What they apparently love less is the English language. Wondering why? Take a look at the article How to say jeans in Spanish where the mystery is revealed.
--> Unlike in English, the names of the days in Spanish are written in lower-case letters.
--> And if you need some exercises with days of the week, in the article How to say on Monday in Spanish you will find what you're looking for.
®El Jueves
Cultural and curious facts
--> Tuesday 13th brings bad luck in Spain which is perfectly shown by the expression En martes ni te cases, ni te embarques.
--> El Jueves written with upper case is the name of a Spanish satirical magazine, famous for its rather ripe sense of humour. The full title of the magazine is El Jueves, la revista que sale los miércoles.
--> In Spain there are both national and regional bank holidays.
--> Many people think that the name of a Spanish supermarket DIA has to do with the word "día". However in fact the abbreviation DIA stands for "Distribuidora Internacional de Alimentación".
--> And if, by any chance, you´re looking for a Spanish movie with a name of a day in the title, I can recommend you "Los lunes al sol".