Reading old books reminds us of the forgotten names of certain parts of the day and night. Forgotten today, they once had a great meaning in explaining in which period of the day something happened. This is discussed in the book Serbian folk customs from the section of Boljevac, 1925, authored by Savati Grbić.
Depending on the time of year, the day is sometimes longer and sometimes shorter. The people believe that the longest days are from Vidov-dan to Petrov-dan, and that the nights are then the shortest. As we have seen, the nights are the longest in Mratinci, when the days are the shortest.
People count the day from dawn to dusk, no matter how long it is.
People divide day and night like this:
- Apparently. - Midnight is the time around midnight, roughly between twelve and one o'clock in the morning.
- The first roosters. - It is the time after midnight, when the first roosters crow. People think that it is one hour after midnight. As soon as the first roosters crow, the people say that midnight has passed, and then those who have to go on a journey or to finish some urgent work get up.
- Dawn. - As soon as the morning star appears in the sky, the people say that it is dawn. From dawn to dawn, people count as having two hours.
- Dawn. - The time when dawn breaks in the east is called dawn. There is a whole hour from dawn to sunrise. At that time it is the coldest. Peasants usually get up at dawn.
- Small lunch. - The small lunch is around eight o'clock in the morning.
- Big lunch or Midday. - Big lunch, lunch, dinner or snack falls around one o'clock in the afternoon. ("The sun is noon and the girls are hungry", it is said as a proverb, because lunch is eaten at noon).
- Ashandija or (rarely) Zaranci. - When the sun approaches the bathroom by two pinna¹), then it is said that it is Asr. It is calculated that up to three hours pass from Asr to sunset.
- Eve. - One hour before dark is called eve.
- Sun bath. - When the sun starts to set, until it disappears, while the redness in the sky lasts, it is said that the sun has set.
- The evening. - When the sun sets and the redness in the sky disappears, it is said that evening has come. There is half an hour between sunset and evening. In the evening, the people do not light the fire from the house, so that the children do not cry at night.
- Dinner. - At two o'clock after evening comes dinner. At that time, dinner is usually served, and after dinner, one goes to sleep.
- Big dinner. - The big dinner falls around ten o'clock. After the big dinner comes the deaf age.
- Deaf age. - When everything is quiet in the field, the people say that the deaf age has come. According to folk accounts, the deaf age is from ten o'clock until the first roosters crow. The people say that during the deaf age you should never leave home, nor travel at that time, because at that time the wicked rule.
Source: Serbian folk customs from the region of Boljevac, 1925, Savatije Grbić
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