Evening

Evening is the period of time from the end of the afternoon to the beginning of night.[1][2] Exact time when evening begins and ends (as with night) depends on location and varies throughout the year. Its earliest part of a short period is evening twilight.

For other uses, see Evening (disambiguation).
Dusk in Delhi, India.
Evening in Parambikkulam, Kerala, India
View on the bay of Naples, overlooking Mount Vesuvius at 7:30 p.m. local solar/standard time

The word 'evening' may be casually used to include the last waning afternoon shortly before sunset.[3][4] There can be no precise definition in terms of clock time, but it is casually considered to start as early as 5 p.m. by some, or at 6 p.m. by the Oxford English Dictionary, and to last until night or bedtime.[1][2]

Etymology

The word is derived from the Old English ǣfnung, meaning 'the coming of evening, sunset, time around sunset', which originated from 'æfnian' meaning 'become evening, grow toward evening'. The Old English, 'æfnian' originated from 'æfen' (eve), which meant 'the time between sunset and darkness', and was synonymous with even (Old English æfen) which meant the end of the day. The use of evening dates from the mid 15th century.[5]

Cultural significance

Some languages that use the time of day in greeting have a special greeting for the evening, such as the English "good evening".

Typically people do not leave somebody and say "good evening". Even if it isn't night yet when one greets someone, they can greet them with "good evening" and when they leave, they say "good night", rather than saying "good evening" as a farewell, despite that it may still be evening.

Many people greet someone with the shortened "evening" rather than "good evening". Social and family activities are often held during this time, such as supper or more formal social gatherings and entertainment, such as parties, in particular, dance parties.

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References
  1. "Definition of evening in English". Collins. Collins. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  2. "evening - Definition of evening in English by Oxford Dictionaries". Oxford Dictionaries - English.
  3. "evening - Dictionary Definition".
  4. "Sunrise and sunset times in London". www.timeanddate.com.
  5. "even - Origin and meaning of even by Online Etymology Dictionary". www.etymonline.com.
  • Quotations related to Evening at Wikiquote
  • Media related to Evening at Wikimedia Commons

See also


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