[Sca-cooks] Ember Day

[Sandra Kisner]

>>"Ember day: A day reserved for prayer and fasting by some Christian
>>churches, observed on the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday after the first
>>Sunday of Lent, after Whitsunday, after September 14, and after December
>>13." -- American Heritage Dictionary
>
>I wonder why they're called Ember days, and if it has anything to do
>with keeping fires lit but banked, in which case certain types of
>foods might be indicated as a good idea. Could this be evidence of a
>religious restriction helping to define a cooking style, as with Cholent?
>
>Adamantius

     Actually (according to Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary), it's ME from OE ymbrendaeg, from ymbrene = circuit, anniversary + daeg = day.  (I added the =)  What anniversary they mean, I don't know.  I would assume it would have to do with the liturgical year, meaning these were the annual observances of something. Lent and Whitsun I can see.  What is September 14?  A particular saint's day?  December 13 is too late to be the beginning of Advent.

Sandra Kisner
sjk3 at cornell.edu