History of Each Month: April

Our calendar has the names of 12 months and although we may vaguely know of the name's origin, there is a rich history behind the name chosen for each month. This will be a series, each focusing on the current month. The source for the information I share is from The Stories of the Months and the Days, by Reginald C. Couzens, 1923. Here is some of what he wrote about April:

"This month of April has only thirty days, which is the number said to have been given to it by Romulus. The king who came after him gave it only twenty-nine, but Caesar, when he altered the calendar, gave it thirty again.

The name April comes from the Latin word aperire, which means "to open", and the month was no doubt so named because it is during April that the earth, which has been bound by the sharp frosts of winter, once again opens beneath the warm rays of the sun; the withered sheaths fall away from the ripened buds, which, opening out, disclose to our eyes their long hidden treasures of beautiful colour.

We find that the month was sacred to Venus, the Roman Goddess of Beauty, and some people think for this reason that the name April comes not from aperire, but from Aphrilis, which in turn comes from Aphrodite, the name given to the Goddess of Beauty by the Greeks."

We will be doing 1 ATC for 1 partner. It can be any media, it can be literal or figurative. You can certainly do more research if you wish, or simply draw from what is quoted here. Your ATCs just need to reflect in some manner the history behind the name of April. SInce we are a dedicated private group, I don't need to go into the details of a good swap.

Have fun with it!