cycle of the sun
Preserved but no longer current.
A period of twenty-eight years, at the expiration of which time the Sunday letters recur and proceed in the same order as they did twenty-eight years previously. In other words, the days of the month fall again on the same days of the week.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “cycle of the sun” mean?
A period of twenty-eight years, at the expiration of which time the Sunday letters recur and proceed in the same order as they did twenty-eight years previously. In other words, the days of the month fall again on the same days of the week.
Is “cycle of the sun” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.