A red letter day (sometimes hyphenated as red-letter day) is any day of special significance or opportunity. Its roots are in classical antiquity; for instance, important days are indicated in red in a calendar dating from the Roman Republic (509–27 BC).[1]
In medieval manuscripts, initial capitals and highlighted words (known as rubrics) were written in red ink. The practice was continued after the invention of the printing press, including in Catholic liturgical books. Many calendars still indicate special dates, festivals and holidays in red instead of black.
In the universities of the UK, scarlet days are when doctors may wear their scarlet 'festal' or full dress gowns instead of their undress ('black') gown.
In Norway, Sweden, Hong Kong, South Korea, Indonesia and some Latin American countries, a public holiday is sometimes referred to as "red day" (rød dag, röd dag, 빨간 날, 紅日, tanggal merah), as it is printed in red in calendars.[2]
Liturgical and ecclesiastical use
editThe term "red letter day" originates from the medieval practice of marking the festivals of the Christian calendar in red ink in illuminated manuscripts and calendars. These were distinguished from "black letter days," which were ordinary weekdays or the feast days of minor saints.[3] The practice is etymologically related to the word rubric, derived from the Latin rubrica (red ochre), which referred to the instructions for a liturgy written in red ink to distinguish them from the text of the prayers.[4]
Anglican tradition
editIn the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion, red letter days are those major feast days for which a specific Collect, Epistle, and Gospel are provided in the Book of Common Prayer. These days traditionally include:
- All Sundays of the year
- Feasts of Our Lord (e.g., Christmas, The Epiphany, Easter, The Ascension)
- Feasts of the Apostles and Evangelists
- The Annunciation and the Purification of the Virgin
- All Saints' Day and St. Michael and All Angels[5]
Historically, "black letter days" in the Anglican calendar (minor saints and commemorations) did not have special liturgical provisions in the 1662 prayer book, though they were noted for historical and devotional purposes. On red letter days, it was traditionally expected that the Holy Communion would be celebrated, and in many jurisdictions, these were also legal public holidays during which secular work was discouraged.[3]
Roman Catholic and other Western usage
editWhile the specific phrase "red letter day" is most common in English-speaking countries with an Anglican heritage, the practice of highlighting significant feasts in red is universal across Western Christian liturgy. In the General Roman Calendar, the highest-ranking feasts—Solemnities and Feast days—correspond to the concept of red letter days.
In medieval Europe, these were "days of obligation" (festum fori), where the faithful were required to attend Mass and abstain from servile work.[6] Although modern liturgical printing often uses various colors or bold fonts, the historical distinction remains a foundational element of hagiography and the organization of the Liturgical year.
Legal
editOn red letter days, judges of the English High Court (King's Bench Division) wear, at sittings of the Court of Law, their scarlet robes (see court dress).[7] Red letter days for these purposes are a fixed selection of saints' days (sometimes coinciding with the traditional start or end dates of the legal terms during which sittings of the High Court take place) and of national celebrations, mostly associated with senior members of the British royal family (and, therefore, changing from generation to generation).
Current red letter days in the United Kingdom
editThis section needs to be updated. The reason given is: Update needed on what will change or changed after Elizabeth II's death. (September 2022) |
The list of red letter days currently observed in the United Kingdom (and on which, if a weekday, judges of the English High Court (King's Bench Division) traditionally wear, at sittings of the Court of Law, their scarlet robes)[8] is as follows:[9]
October
November
- 1st (All Saints)
- 14th (King Charles III, born, 1948)
- 2nd Saturday in November (Lord Mayor's Day)
- 30th (St Andrew)
December
- 21st (St Thomas)
January
- 25th (Conversion of St Paul)
February
- 2nd (Candlemas)
- 6th (Queen's Accession, 1952)
- Moveable (Ash Wednesday)
- 24th (St Mathias)
March
April
- 21st (Queen Elizabeth II born, 1926)
- 25th (St Mark)
May
- 1st (St Philip and St James)
- Moveable (Ascension Day)
June
- 2nd (Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, 1953)
- 2nd Saturday in June (Queen's Official Birthday)
- 10th (Duke of Edinburgh born, 1921)
- 11th (St Barnabas)
- 24th (St John the Baptist)
- 29th (St Peter)
July
- 25th (St James)
Days which will never fall within the legal term are not red letter days (examples being Christmas Day and Easter Day).
Former red letter days in the United Kingdom
editA comparison can be drawn with the Red Letter Days listed 100 years ago in Dress and Insignia Worn at His Majesty's Court (1921), which are on the same principle (a fixed selection of saints’ days, plus days honouring senior members of the Royal Family), except that the modern list adds the national saints of Wales and Scotland (St David and St Andrew, not listed in 1921) although not the national saint of England (St George). The 1921 listing, in full, is:[10]
Red Letter Days on which the Judges of the High Court (King's Bench Division) wear, at Sittings of the Court of Law, their Scarlet Robes:
- January 25. (Conversion of Saint Paul.)
- February 2. (Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary.)
- February 24. (Saint Matthias.)
- Ash Wednesday. (Movable.)
- March 25. (Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.)
- April 25. (Saint Mark.)
- May 1. (Saint Philip and Saint James.)
- Ascension Day. (Holy Thursday.) (Movable.)
- May 6. (The King's Accession.)
- May 26. (The Queen's Birthday.)
- June 3. (The King's Birthday.)
- June 11. (Saint Barnabas.)
- June 22. (The King's Coronation.)
- June 23. (Prince of Wales's Birthday.)
- June 24. (Saint John the Baptist.)
- June 29. Saint Peter.
- Celebration of His Majesty's Birthday. (Movable.)
- June 25. (Saint James.)
- October 18. (Saint Luke.)
- October 28. (Saint Simon and Saint Jude.)
- November 1. (All Saints.)
- November 9. (Lord Mayor's Day.)
- November 30. (Saint Andrew.)
- December 1. (Birthday of Queen Alexandra.)
- December 21. (Saint Thomas.)
See also
edit- Red envelope - giving a gift in a red envelope, associated with certain dates or events in East Asian cultures
References
edit- ↑ "Fasti Antiates". penelope.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
- ↑ "Red letter day idiom origin". Retrieved 2018-07-25.
- 1 2 Cross, F. L.; Livingstone, E. A. (2005). The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. Oxford University Press. p. 1382. ISBN 978-0-19-280290-3.
- ↑ "Rubric". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 2024-05-22.
- ↑ Hole, Charles (1887). A Manual of the Book of Common Prayer. Hodder and Stoughton. pp. 42–43.
- ↑ Stephens, W.R.W. (1901). The English Church: From the Norman Conquest to the Accession of Edward I. Macmillan. p. 251.
- ↑ "High Court Judges, Court Dress". Courts and Tribunals Judiciary. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
On Red Letter days (which include the Sovereign's birthday and certain saints' days) all High Court judges wear a scarlet robe.
- ↑ "Days". Cambridge University Heraldic and Genealogical Society. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
- ↑ Cambridge Pocket Diary. Cambridge University Press.
- ↑ Dress and Insignia Worn at His Majesty's Court. London: Harrison and Sons Ltd. 1921. Retrieved 16 April 2020.