Yeris Tyd (Newe).-New Year's Day, in the accounts of the prioress of St. Mary de Pree: "Item paid for Wassells at New Yeris tyd & Twelf tyde ij' ixd."-Monast. Anglic., t. III, p. 359. Ymber, Ymbir, Ymbur Dayes.-Ember or Embring Days. The derivation from embers, or ashes (see Embring Days, p. 112, 113). does not seem to be probable; the Saxon term ymbren, or rather ymb-ryn, and emb-ryn, signifies a revolution, circuit, circle, course, or anniversary. Somn., in v. Ymber dagar, and Mirk, in a short collection of papal decrees, says-" Calyxtus pope ordeyned to faste þe ymbir dayes” (MS. Claud., A. II, fo. 153 b.) In the Harleian MS. poems on festivals, supposed to be earlier than 1326, (Cod. 2277), we have "ymbur in Leynte." The following account of these fasts, comprises nearly the whole of a homily of the 15th century, on the "Jejunium Quatuor Temporum."-" The quater temper shall be this weke called þe ymber dayes, Wednysday, Fryday, & Saturday, which dayes Kalixte þe *** ordeynd by a generall councell to be fasted .iiij. tymes in þe yere for certeyn causes and resons folowyng. Holy fadirs in þe olde lawe they fasted .iiij. tymes in þe yere ageyns .iiij. high festes, and what caused and moved pe holy fadir *** of Rome Kalixte to make vs faste .iiij. tymes in þe yere first, in Marche or elles by þat tyme pe first Wednesday of clene lent, and þat tyme abowte Marche is a tyme þat dryeth þe erth and all pat is in þe erth; wherefore we fast þat tyme to dry up þe erth of our bodyes. -We fast also betwix haruest and sede tyme þe Wednysday after þe exaltacion of pe holy crosse in þe moneth of Septembre after haruest þ we may haue grace to gaddir fruytes of God in to be barne of our consciense.Also we fast in Aduent, þe Wednysday after seynt Luce in December biforn Cristemas and p' is in wyntre. Wynter fleeth all vntrifty wedis and noxus, therefore we fast pt tyme to flee and destroye all stinking wedis and vycious lyuing. After þe opynyon of men, and diverse cuntreyes speche, these quatuor tempora be called ymber dayes, cause whi, olde fadirs on tho dayes whan they shuld fast, þei wolde ete cakes pt were bake vndir þe asshes in þe ymbers and pt was callid panis subcinereus, þt is to sey, brede vndir asshes; so p' in etyng brede undir asshes in þe ymbres þei remembreed pt þei were but asshes, and they shulde to asshes torne ageyn" (Harl. MS., 2247, fo. 191, 191 b.) The words where the asterisks occur are carefully erased by some zealous protestant. In a receipt to make "sawge y farced" of the time of Richard II, it is recommended, "if it be in Ymber day to take sauge butt'ayren' and lat it stonde wel by þe sause † s'ae it forth." -Forme of Cury, n. 160, p. 72. Ymbre Day." Tart in Ymbre Day."-Forme of Cury, n. 165, p. 74. Ymbren Weeks.-Ember Weeks: 7 peoper podner dagar on feoper ymbɲen pucan (Ll. Alfred, c. 5). Brompton translates the term Jejunia Legitima.-Chron., p. 826. Ymins. For Hyems, in Whethamstede's Chron., p. 453. Ypanti, Ypapanti.-For Hypapanti: "Usque ad Ypapanti Domini."-Gul. Neubrig., Hist., l. I, c. 38. YPOLITE & his Companions.-Aug. 13: L. 46. YPOLITUS.-Aug. 13: G. 411; V. 429; T. 442; E. 456. Hypolitus and all his family, to the number of 19, martyred at Rome under Decius (Petr. de Natal., 1. VII, c. 56). The origin of this saint is contained in the following passage: "Another is Saint Hippolytus of whom the Martyrology says, 'Romæ beati Hippolyti martyris,' &c. The 13th of August is at Rome the feast of the blessed martyr Hippolytus, who for the glory of the faith, under Valerian the Emperor, after other torments, had his feet tied to wild horses and was dragged over beds of briars and thistles, till, his whole body being torn to pieces, he gave up the ghost. Every one who has read Ovid knows this to be Hippolytus the son of Theseus, whom Phædra his mother-in-law falling in love with, solicited to her bed, which, when the youth refused, abhorring the crime, she accused him to his father of his having forced and ravished her, upon which Theseus, enraged, prayed to Neptune to destroy him. Neptune being engaged by promise to grant whatever Theseus desired, sent a monster from the sea, which so terrified the horses which drew the car of Hippolytus that they ran wild, threw their master, and dragged his body along the ground till it was torn in pieces." Yule Day.-Christmas Day (see vol. I, p. 92, 98, 282; and Erra Geola, Erra Iula, Giuli). Mallet says, in his Northern Antiquities, that the northern nations celebrated Iuul on the night of the winter solstice, which they called Mother Night, as the parent of the rest; and that it was a feast in honor of Thor, the sun The Greenlanders to the present day, keep a sun-feast about the 22nd of December, to rejoice at the return of the sun, and the expected renewal of the hunting season (Crantz, Hist. Greenl., v. I, p. 176). Keysler and Ihre trace the term gild to the early period of the history of the Goths, when the nation met in honor of their false gods, especially at the winter solstice, every one bringing meat and drink for the purpose of mutual entertainment. Hence, the Sueio-Gothic Julgille still signifies the feast of Yule. Yvernagium.-Hibernagium, or Hybernagium, from the Fr. Hyvernée. Zeir, Zer.-Year. The Z is an awkward substitute for the 3, in zen, which was probably pronounced yer, or year: "At Amlerwyck the twenty sevinct day of Februare, the zeir of our lord God one thousand five hundred fifty nyne zeris" (Rymer, Fœder., t. VI, p. iii, p. 95). "To the terme of x zere here aftyr," 9 Hen. VI.-Rotuli Parliamenti, t. IV, p. 385. Zeris Day.-New Year's Day. See Geris Day, which is another and more correct mode of representing the MS. character. 1 сес M XX Zher. A Year, in an agreement in 1384 for a day of Marche: "Yis Endenture made at ye water of Eske, besid Salom the xv of Marcz ye zher of our Lord and iiii, betwixt the noble lardis and meghty Siris Henry Percy Erle of Northumbro' of thet'n part, and Archibald of Douglas Lord of Galway on ye toyr parte," &c.-Nicholson & Burns, Hist. Westm., v. I, p. xxxix, n. PERPETUAL LUNAR KALENDAR. THE additional column in March and April, contains the Paschal Terms relative to the Golden Numbers & Epacts, and it comprises March 18 to Apr. 5 inclusively. These terms indicate the day of March or April on which falls the 14th of the paschal moon, designated by the Golden Number, or by the Epact of a year after March 7. Thus, for example, the Golden Number XVI in the second column, and Epact XXIII opposite March 8, marking the new moon for that day of the month, indicate that the 14th of this paschal moon I will fall on the 21st of this month. In fact, from 8 to 21, within which these two numbers are comprised, are fourteen days. It is the same in the other epacts of the paschal moon. We have only to remember that, before 1582, these epacts were not considered for finding the paschal moon. They serve only since that year, and only for the new kalendar. The old one is always regulated by the Golden Number. Though Easter may fall on thirty-five different days, from March 22 to April 25 inclusively, nevertheless the paschal term, or 14th of the paschal moon, can fall only 29 days, of which the first is March 21 and the last April 18. The reason of this difference is easily understood. It is because different Easters may have the same paschal term, according to the different days of the week on which it may fall. For example, the Easters of March 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 & 28, may equally have March 21 for the paschal term, according to the day of the week on which this term falls. If March 21 is Sunday, Easter will fall Sunday after, and so of the others. For the same reason, April 18 is the last paschal term. For since seven different Easters may have the same paschal term, it follows, that the term April 18 is common to the seven Easters, and, consequently, the last of all. The paschal term, being known, shews Easter by means of the Dominical Letters. Thus: Easter fell March 27 in 1785, because the letter B of this year is marked at March 27, the first Sunday which falls after the 26th of this month. In 1786, the Golden Number being I, the Epact is XI, and the Dominical or Sunday Letter, A. This concurrence shews Easter to have fallen April 2; for Epact XI gives April 2 as the term, and April 16 is the first Sunday after the 14th day from the term April. April 19 was Easter in 1840-when the Letter was D, the Golden Number XVII, and the Epact VII; for April 6 is the term, and D falls fourteen days after it, on April 19. 1841 has Letter C, Golden Number XVIII, and Epact XVIII; then Epact XVIII gives March 26 as the term, and C is found at April 11, after the 14th day from the term: it is, therefore, April Day. VOL. II. 3 н |