The Week

Nomenclature

What should the week be called?

General

Aitken

The term is named for Robert G. Aitken, Director Emeritus of the Lick Observatory above San Jose, who in 1936 designed the first complete Martian calendar.

Pro

Con

Areoweek

The term is derived from "Ares" and "week".

Pro

Con

Martian week

Pro

Con

This term might be truncated to "week" in commom usage, resulting in confusing a Martian week with an Earth week, which may be different units of time.

MWeek

Pro

Con

This term might be truncated to "week" in commom usage, resulting in confusing a Martian week with an Earth week, which may be different units of time.

Vicis

The term is Latin for "week."

Pro

Latin is the basic language for Martian geographic nomenclature.

Con

Week

Pro

Con

The term does not explicitly distinguish between an Earth week and a Martian week, which may be different units of time.

What naming convention should be used for the days of the week?

General

Table Table of Weekday Names

Alphabetical artificial

Seven days: Axatisol, Benasol, Ciposol, Domesol, Erjasol, Fulisol, Gaviosol

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document The Darian Defrost Calendar
Frans Blok
Document The Rotterdam Month and Weekday Naming System
Frans Blok
Document Waar blijft de tijd op Mars?
Frans Blok

Alphabetical ICAO + English

Eight days: Victor, Whiskey, X-ray, Yankee, Zulu, Saturday, Sunday, Funday (Alfa through Uniform are used as month names)

Pro

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) phonetic alphabet is used by Air Traffic Control (ATC) and pilots throughout the world for radio communications.

Con

Source Documents:
Document Calendar for Mars
Mike Kretsch

Chinese elements

Five days: Water, Earth, Wood, Metal, Fire

Pro

Con

Diatonic musical + "noon"

Seven days: Donoon, Renoon, Minoon, Fanoon, Sonoon, Lanoon, Tinoon

Pro

The names of the notes in the diatonic musical scale universally known and are independent of language.

Con

Source Documents:
Document A Four Season Split-year Calendar for Mars
Peter Kokh
Document The "Mars Pulse" Calendar
Peter Kokh

English

Six days: Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Seven days: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document Time Measures on Mars
Robert G. Aitken
Document Arih Martian Calendar
Igor Arih
Document Seasons on Mars
Frank N. Bauregger
Document A Thought for the Future
William H. Becker
Document Mars Calendar
Blort
Document Simplest Possible Mars Calendar Used in the Novel As It Is On Mars
Thomas W. Cronin
Document Time Keeping on Mars
Alan Dechert
Document 600-Year Martian Calendar
Alan Dechert
Document Space Studies 200 Group Project
Ryan Kramer et al.
Document Martian Calendar
Roger E. Kuiper
Document Mars Clock and Calendar
I. M. Levitt
Document Calendar for Mars
Robert S. Richardson
Document Time on Mars
John J. G. Savard
Document A Calendar for Mars
Josef Šurán
Document A Mars Calendar
Richard Weidner
Document A Timekeeping System For Mars
Ben Weiss
Document Options for Martian Timekeeping
William Woods

English + "dim"

Seven days: Sundim, Mondim, Tuesdim, Wednesdim, Thursdim, Fridim, Saturdim

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document A Calendar for Mars
Josef Šurán

English + "sol"

Seven days: Monsol, Tuesol, Wednesol, Thursol, Frisol, Satursol, Sunsol

Seven days: Sunsol, Phobosol, Earthsol, Wednesol, Thursol, Frisol, Satursol

Seven days: Sunsol, Tuesol, Wensol, Thursol, Frisol, Satsol

Nine days: Sunisol, Wensol, Frisol, Earsol, Thursol, Satursol, Urasol, Neptasol, Plutosol

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document An Easily Understood Calendar and Time System for Mars
Leon G. Heron
Document Further Thoughts on Vophicism
Mark Knoke
Document Zubrin's Mars Calendar
Peter Kokh

English cardinal numerical

Ten days: Onesday, Twosday, Threesday, Foursday, Fivesday, Sixday, Sevensday, Eightsday, Ninesday, Tensday

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document The Thothian Wheel
Fred Hightower

English ordinal numerical

Ten days: Firstday, Secondday, Thirdday, Fourthday, Fifthday, Sixthday, Seventhday, Eighthday, Ninthday, Tenthday

Pro

Con

English planetary

Seven days: Sunday, Phobosday, Deimosday, Earthday, Venusday, Jupiterday, Saturnday
Seven days: Solday, Mercuryday, Venusday, Earthday, Marsday, Jupiterday, Saturnday
Ten days: Sunday, Mercday, Venuday, Earthday, Marsday, Joviday, Saturday, Uraniday, Neptuday, Plutoday

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document The Millennium Mars Calendar
James M. Graham and Kandis Elliot
Document Rationale for the Martian Calendar's Structure
Bill Hollon
Document Martian Year Revisited
M. Vertregt and Francis Graham

English planetary + "sol"

Seven days: Sunsol, Mercsol, Venusol, Earthsol, Marsol, Jovsol and Satsol

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document Elemental Martian Calendars
Terry Phelan

Esperanto ordinal numbers

Seven days: unua, dua, tria, kvara, kvina, sesa, sepa

Pro

Advantages are:
  • They are short (mostly two syllables).
  • They sound good.
  • They are not tied to a particular natural language.
  • They are not astronomically "Earth-centric."

Con

Latin

Seven days: Dies Solis, Dies Lunae, Dies Martius, Dies Mercurii, Dies Jovis, Dies Veneris, Dies Saturni

Pro

Latin is the basic language for Martian geographic nomenclature.

Con

"Sol" + Latin

There are two seven-day naming systems:

Sol Solis, Sol Lunae, Sol Martis, Sol Mercurii, Sol Jovis, Sol Veneris, Sol Saturni

Sol Solis, Sol Lunae, Sol Ares, Sol Mercurii, Sol Jovis, Sol Veneris, Sol Saturni

Pro

Latin is the basic language for Martian geographic nomenclature.

Con

Source Documents:
Document The Darian System
Thomas Gangale
Document Martian Dreams Time System
Linda Naughton and Robert O'Meara

Latin planetary + "sol"

Seven days: Heliosol, Neriosol, Libersol, Terrasol, Venusol, Mercusol, Jovisol

Seven days: Solisol, Phobosol, Deimosol, Terrasol, Hermesol, Venusol, Jovisol

Seven days: Sunsol, Phobosol, Deimosol, Terrasol, Venusol, Mercurisol, Jovisol

Nine days: Solisol, Mercasol, Vensol, Terrasol, Jupisol, Satursol, Urasol, Neptasol, Plutisol

Pro

Latin is the basic language for Martian geographic nomenclature.

Con

Source Documents:
Document Further Thoughts on Vophicism
Mark Knoke
Document The Areosynchronous Calendar
Shaun Moss
Document Clock and Calendar
Shaun Moss
Document The Utopian Calendar
Mars Time Group

Magical arts and mysticism

Kether, Chokmah, Binah, Chesed, Geburah, Tiphareth, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, Malkuth

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document The Thothian Wheel
Fred Hightower

Martian fictional

Bel, Abriq, Sepir, Dajan, Mar damq, Ikkar, Tamanaqar

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document Le Calendrier Martien
Olivier Prud'homme

Martian geographical

Seven days, named for the largest volcanoes on Mars (only four were defined): Olympus, Ascraeus, Pavonis, Arsia

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document Zubrin's Mars Calendar
Peter Kokh

Mercury astronauts

Seven days: Shephard, Grissom, Glenn, Carpenter, Schirra, Cooper, Slayton

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document Zubrin's Mars Calendar
Peter Kokh

Mixture of English, Latin, Greek, and Arabic planetary + "day"

Eight days: Solsday, Joviday, Kronsday, Urnsday, Neptaday, Terraday, Vensday, Qahrsday

Pro

Con

Multiple languages

Pro

Whatever the seven days are called in each language on Earth will be fine with a seven-day week.

Con

Star names: Pleiades

Seven days: Alcyone, Asterope, Celaeno, Electra, Maia, Merope, and Taygeta

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document Zubrin's Mars Calendar
Peter Kokh

Star names: Ursa Major

Seven days: Dubhe, Merak, Phad, Megrez, Alioth, Mizar, Alkaid

Pro

Con

Source Documents:
Document Zubrin's Mars Calendar
Peter Kokh

There shouldn't be any names

Pro

Con