Lent

== Etymology ==
[[File:Holy Week procession in Granada, Nicaragua.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Lent observers, including a [[confraternity of penitents]], carrying out a street procession during [[Holy Week]], in [[Granada, Nicaragua]]. The violet color is often associated with penance and [[Detachment (philosophy)|detachment]]. Similar Christian penitential practice is seen in other [[Christian countries]], sometimes associated with fasting.<ref name="Knowlton2004">{{cite book|last=Knowlton|first=MaryLee|title=Macedonia|year=2004|publisher=Marshall Cavendish|language=en|isbn=978-0761418542|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780761418542/page/125 125]|quote=Traditionally, as in many Christian countries, the carnival marked the beginning of Lent, which ushered in a six-week period of fasting for Christians.|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780761418542/page/125}}</ref>]]
The English word ''Lent'' is a shortened form of the [[Old English]] word {{lang|ang|lencten}}, meaning "[[Spring (season)|spring season]]", as its [[Dutch language]] cognate {{wikt-lang|nl|lente}} ([[Old Dutch]] {{lang|odt|lentin}})<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.etymologiebank.nl/trefwoord/lente1 |title=lente (voorjaar) |website=etymologiebank.nl |access-date=28 January 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204125151/http://www.etymologiebank.nl/trefwoord/lente1 |archive-date=4 February 2016 }}</ref> still does today. A dated term in [[German language|German]], {{lang|de|Lenz}} ([[Old High German]] {{lang|goh|lenzo}}), is also related. According to the ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'', 'the shorter form (? Old Germanic type *''laŋgito''- , *''laŋgiton''-) seems to be a derivative of *''laŋgo''- long […] and may possibly have reference to the lengthening of the days as characterizing the season of spring'. The origin of the -''en'' element is less clear: it may simply be a [[suffix]], or ''lencten'' may originally have been a compound of *''laŋgo''- 'long' and an otherwise little-attested word *-''tino'', meaning "day".<ref name="EB1911">{{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Lent |volume=16|page=427}}</ref>

In languages spoken where Christianity was earlier established, such as [[Greek language|Greek]] and [[Latin]], the term signifies the period dating from the 40th weekday before Easter. In modern Greek the term is {{lang|el|Σαρακοστή}} ({{transliteration|el|Sarakostí}}), derived from the earlier {{lang|el|Τεσσαρακοστή}} ({{transliteration|el|Tessarakostí}}), meaning "fortieth". The corresponding word in [[Latin]], {{lang|la|quadragesima}} ("fortieth"), is the origin of the terms used in Latin-derived languages and in some others.

Examples in the [[Romance languages|Romance language]] group are: [[Catalan language|Catalan]] {{lang|ca|quaresma}}, [[French language|French]] {{lang|fr|carême}}, [[Galician language|Galician]] {{lang | gl | coresma}}, [[Italian language|Italian]] {{lang|it|quaresima}}, [[Occitan language|Occitan]] {{lang|oc|quaresma}}, [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] {{lang|pt|quaresma}}, [[Romanian language|Romanian]] {{lang|ro|păresimi}}, [[Sardinian language|Sardinian]] {{lang|sc|caresima}}, [[Spanish language|Spanish]] {{lang|es|cuaresma}}, and [[Walloon language|Walloon]] {{lang|wa|cwareme}}.<ref name=":0" />{{citation needed span|Examples in non-Latin-based languages are: [[Albanian language|Albanian]] {{lang|sq|kreshma}}, [[Basque language|Basque]] {{lang|eu|garizuma}}, [[Croatian language|Croatian]] {{lang|hr|korizma}}, [[Irish language|Irish]] and [[Scottish Gaelic]] {{lang|ga|carghas}}, [[Swahili language|Swahili]] {{lang|sw|kwaresima}}, [[Filipino language|Filipino]] {{lang|tl|kuwaresma}}, and [[Welsh language|Welsh]] {{lang|cy|c(a)rawys}}.|date=November 2022}}

In other languages, the name used refers to the activity associated with the season. Thus it is called "fasting period" in [[Czech language|Czech]] ({{lang|cs|postní doba}}), [[German language|German]] ({{lang|de|Fastenzeit}}), and [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]] ({{lang|no|fasten}}/{{lang|no|fastetid}}), and it is called "The Great Fast" in [[Arabic language|Arabic]] ({{lang|ar|الصوم الكبير}} – {{transliteration|ar|al-ṣawm al-kabīr}}), [[Syriac language|Syriac]] ({{lang|syr|ܨܘܡܐ ܪܒܐ}} {{transliteration|syr|ṣawmā rabbā}}), [[Polish language|Polish]] ({{lang|pl|wielki post}}), [[Russian language|Russian]] ({{lang|ru|великий пост}} – {{transliteration|ru|vieliki post}}), [[Ukrainian language|Ukrainian]] ({{lang|uk|великий піст}} –  {{transliteration|uk|velyky pist}}), and [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]] ({{lang|hu|nagyböjt}}). [[Romanian language|Romanian]], apart from a version based on the Latin term referring to the 40 days (see above), also has a "great fast" version: {{lang|ro|postul mare}}. [[Dutch language|Dutch]] has three options, one of which means ''fasting period'', and the other two referring to the 40-day period indicated in the Latin term: {{lang|nl|vastentijd}}, {{lang|nl|veertigdagentijd}} and {{lang|nl|quadragesima}}, respectively.<ref name=":0" /> In India, it is called चरम चालीसा (''Charam Chalisa'' - meaning, "climax forty"). In [[Maltese language|Maltese]], despite being a descendant of Arabic, the term ''Randan'' is used, which is distinctive when compared to the dialects of Arabic. Despite the centuries of [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] influences, the term remains unchanged since the [[Aghlabids|Arab occupation of Malta]].