What is the first day of the week?

[HVC]

Monday

Bad Christian. God rested on the 7th day, sabbath.

[viper37]

I've got this bloody annoying song stuck in my head.....

What song?

[Duque de Bragança]

For those languages that have Sunday as literally "first day," does the weekend include "First Day?" Or does the term used for "weekend" in English not imply in those languages that those two days are at the end of the week?

These kinds of language differences are fun.

Not that French uses Sunday as literally first day, but fin de semaine and week-end more often that not mean different things.
Fin de semaine = Thursday and Friday
Week-end Saturday and Sunday 

Fin de semaine is still sometimes a synonym of week-end, however. Yes, it's not clear at all.
Vacancelles, a once proposed synonym, never made it to common use.

[viper37]

Monday

Bad Christian. God rested on the 7th day, sabbath.

Shabbat (UK: /ʃəˈbæt/, US: /ʃəˈbɑːt/, or /ʃəˈbʌt/; Hebrew: שַׁבָּת, romanized: Šabbāṯ, [ʃa'bat], lit. 'rest' or 'cessation') or the Sabbath (/ˈsæbəθ/), also called Shabbos (UK: /ˈʃæbəs/, US: /ˈʃɑːbəs/) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday.


I don't know...  We inherited a day's rest to worship the Lord, but it's unclear if it's the last day of the week or the first day of the week for Catholics.

Roman Catholicism
In the Latin Church, Sunday is kept in commemoration of the resurrection of Jesus and celebrated with the Eucharist.^[74][75] The Lord's Day is considered both the first day and the "eighth day" of the week, symbolizing both first creation and new creation (2174).^[75] Roman Catholics view the first day as a day for assembly for worship.^[76][75] In the spirit of the Sabbath, Catholics ought to observe a day of rest from servile work, which also becomes "a day of protest against the servitude of work and the worship of money."^[77] This day is traditionally observed on Sunday in conjunction with the Lord's Day.^[78][79]

But more importantly:

In 1998 Pope John Paul II wrote an apostolic letter Dies Domini, "on keeping the Lord's day holy". He encouraged Catholics to remember the importance of keeping Sunday holy, urging that it not lose its meaning by being blended with a frivolous "weekend" mentality.

So, there you go.  No frivolous weekend mentality for good Catholics. Whatever that means.

[Sheilbh]

I feel like English would have a similar distinction. End of the week fees like Thursday-Friday and I think used like that, but is different than weekend.

[Duque de Bragança]

I feel like English would have a similar distinction. End of the week fees like Thursday-Friday and I think used like that, but is different than weekend.

Fim da semana vs fim de semana in Portuguese.

Definite vs indefinite.

[PJL]

Monday

Bad Christian. God rested on the 7th day, sabbath.

Which falls on Saturday....

Saturday as a free non-working day is a modern late 19th century invention (and even then it was originally a half-day). Sunday was always a day of rest. Unless you're Jewish, in which case it is Saturday.

[Josquius]

Surprised so many do Sunday.
I'd thought it was largely a Christian fundamentalist originated (from Judaism) quirk that was semi common in the US.

As to the song... An annoying Americans kids song that sounds very Christian and starts with Sunday.

[Jacob]

Saturday as a free non-working day is a modern late 19th century invention (and even then it was originally a half-day). Sunday was always a day of rest.

Well... since the Council of Laodicea in 321 CE, for Christians. However, the decision appears to have been (quoting wikipedia here) "that the commandment of God is no more valid, now being needed to follow the commandments of people". So even if you venerate your god on Sunday, it appears that move was for the convenience of rulers not god's word.

This is, of course, applicable for those who base the week on the word of Abraham's god - Saturday is the seventh day.

Personally I'm secular so I base the week start on the end of the weekend. But if it's about god's day of rest, then Saturday is the end of the week.

[Josquius]

Pretty sure the early Christians changed it explicity to differentiate themselves from the Jews no?

[viper37]

Pretty sure the early Christians changed it explicity to differentiate themselves from the Jews no?

The day to worship God gradually changed to Sunday from Saturday with the advent of Christianity.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabbath_in_Christianity

ISO recognizes Monday as the first day of the week.  US, Canada and Japan recognizes Sunday as the first day of the week.

[Tamas]

Surprised so many do Sunday.
I'd thought it was largely a Christian fundamentalist originated (from Judaism) quirk that was semi common in the US.

As to the song... An annoying Americans kids song that sounds very Christian and starts with Sunday.

I am surprised anyone can consider Sunday the start of the week. Isn't to called weekend for crying out loud? Why would the first day of the week be a day off right after the last day of the previous week? Abslotuely makes no sense.

[Valmy]

Sunday is the first day of the week.

I am surprised anyone can consider Sunday the start of the week. Isn't to called weekend for crying out loud? Why would the first day of the week be a day off right after the last day of the previous week? Abslotuely makes no sense.

Well it just has been that way my entire life. Every calendar I have ever owned has Sunday as the first day.

As far as not making any sense...it is completely arbitrary which day is the first day so it doesn't have to.

[Tamas]

So when you heathens say weekend you only mean Saturday?

[Sheilbh]

So when you heathens say weekend you only mean Saturday?

Those Protestants. Up to no good as usual.