August has arrived. If you’re in Europe, it’s likely you’re taking an extended holiday. If you’re anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere, you might just be trying to stay cool.
August is the eighth month of the Gregorian calendar, and the sixth month of the Roman calendar. Its original name was Sextilus, Latin for “sixth month.” It contains 31 days, and its abbreviation is Aug.
In 8 BCE, the month was named in honor of Augustus Caesar, the first Roman emperor.
The emperor was a man of many names. He was born Gaius Octavius, the grandnephew of Julius Caesar. He took the extended name Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus in 44 after Caesar’s assassination. Though in English texts, he was often referred to simply as Octavian. Then in 31, he defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra to gain control over the empire. Finally in 27, when he was named emperor, he was given the honorary title Augustus.
When we describe something as august, we are saying it is majestic and inspires reverence or admiration. The word can also take the form of an adverb (augustly) and a noun (augustness). August also relates to augury, the act of divination (telling the future), particularly by the behaviour of birds and animals and the examination of their entrails and other parts. Augurs were the official Roman soothsayers, whose job was not to tell the future so much as to determine if the Roman gods approved of a planned course of action.
August is cause for great celebration in Korea, India, Pakistan, and Indonesia. It is the month when all four countries became independent.
And here’s a usage not heard often: an auguste (or august) is a “type of circus clown who usually wears battered ordinary clothes and is habitually maladroit or unlucky.”
May your August be filled with favorable omens and devoid of unlucky circus clowns.
There are good omens in that the grammar has much improved but we have to say that there are some silly mistakes.
1.Though in English texts, he was simply referred to simply as Octavian. Got something wrong there.
2. Second to last sentence started with a capital ‘And’. The word ‘and’ is a conjunction which joins two part sentences together and can never start a sentence. In simple terms there is a cat, there is also a dog, or to the point:- the cat and the dog.
Unlucky circus clown at work again.
Hey, I was born in August
Sorry mate, but no-one likes a smart a$$ and you just sound like an idiot
Oh, and you need a full stop at the end of your passage, loser.
Modern English allows us to start with an ‘And’ the conjunction. There is no wrong to start with an ‘And’, the only thing we should consider is, the sentence which starts with an ‘And’ should be linked to the previous sentence’s meaning.
Like: We do not give milk to dogs. And dogs need lot of water in summer.
The article about August is, exactly the same I learned in my school.
Thanks…
Hey Shaun, speek for yourself loser. Where’s the full stop after your first reply?
Modern English allows us to start with an ‘And’ the conjunction. The sentence which starts with an ‘and’ should be the continuation of the previous one.
We do not give milk to a dog. And Dogs need lots of water in summer to consume.
Thanks for an article about August, that I learned in my school.
Sniggers at “speek”.
“When we describe someone thing as august, we are saying it is majestic and inspires reverence or admiration. ”
Is the above quote a correct sentence? What is “someone thing”? I am learning English and I am now confused.
I was born August 01, that’s why this article caught my attention.
Thanks for your attention.
Singapore gained independence on 9 Aug too! And so did Malaysia (on 31 Aug)! Please include it in! Cheers to August!
I like buttered biscuits!
Why is it I get this strange desire to eat dog food at this time of the year? Maybe it’s because of the summer Dog Days when Canis Major is seasonally brightest. Why some posters are using the dog in their examples seems coincidental; but, yet, however, the use of ‘And’ is not unusual, and perhaps, it should be classified as an emphatic conjunctive when used at the start of a sentence. That type of use of ‘and’ is very common to journalists, though it defies common use as to grammar. Ergo, be not an grammatical ogre.
hey guys, when you think about it, grammar shouldnt be a subjekt used to put peple down on – its not worth the bad feelings. wot do you think tictactoe?
My dad was a teacher of history and my mother a teacher of literature. Dad was big into Rome, so I ended up with the august middle name Octavius.
Alan, the sentence probably didn’t need the dependent clause. “In English texts he was simply refered to as Octavian.”
grammar is grammar and cannot be adulterated to cover up a persons lack of education or inadequate ability. There is no modern grammar which allows the use of ‘and’, a conjunction, to be used at the beginning of a sentence.
How often do we see people referred to as ‘that’ when they mean ‘who’. Horses are a ‘that’ but people are a ‘who’
If you have the education and you know this stuff it is not boastful or ’smartass’ to draw attention to the fact. Nice to know that some people actually read these diatribes.
Interesting article, though this sentence ‘Though in English texts, he was often referred to simply as Octavian.’ makes it looks like he was called Octavian in *contemporary* texts, when English did not even exist yet. ‘is referred to’ should be clearer.
Yeah cool. who cares anyway?
Beans and cornbread, I just love me some beans and cornbread.
And I love collard greens.
woa i see u as a very good english student but u where not there when they tought that one, i mean dependent clause
I LOVE CHEEZZZZZZZZZZEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Joanne, I sincerely hope that the grammar and spelling mistakes you just made were part of some ironic joke, either that or I hope that you are too young to hold accountable.
Wow, that’s pretty cool SL. I didn’t realize so many Asian nations celebrate their independence in august. Good fact to know.
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i just LOVED the ending xD quite funneh
and Hugo’s comment is the best
Good, informative article there.
To add my two tiny coins’ worth of opinion to the and-debate; ‘though’ and ‘and’ are indeed conjunctions, but there’s no reason why they can’t start a sentence in English. Many of us were taught in school never to start a sentence with a conjunction, but sometimes it’s better style to start a sentence with ‘and’, or ‘but’. If it reads better, don’t be afraid to do it. There’s nothing incorrect with starting a sentence with ‘and,’ just like there’s nothing wrong with using a preposition to end a sentence with 
[...] believe we invested in “AUGUST” when we saw it on August first. — We included it in “INSOLATE” — where the [...]
Hey Alan, you obviously aren’t well read. It has become pretty common, since the Enlightenment, to start a sentence with an And.
You stuffed shirt.
Hugo and I both like buttered biscuits, we are soul mates. Leo’s rock and Virgos are okay too, I guess. And the 22nd is the best day in August, it is the last day of Leo though. 
@Alan: Many classic and contemporary authors begin sentences with “And.” Though formally, we say never begin a sentence with a conjunction, we certainly see the practice in several works. SWE prevents it, but modern usage allows for it, given the appropriate circumstances. When we want to emphasize a point and it is in addition to a previous statement, we allow for the sentence to begin with a conjunction because it conveniently does this very thing.
But modern usage is usually at odds with standard writing conventions. Therefore, we should always practice the writing conventions accepted by the community in which we are writing. And that’s all I have to say about that.
And can very well start a sentence you pompous fool. Go back to your hippie hole in Britain and keep ruining these articles with your friendly buffoons.
Why can’t you guys all just appreciate this article instead of attacking it like a polotician?
Polotician??????
Responding to Alan and to Maya-each are responders in this ongoing ‘conversation’:
Alan, I’ve taught college English and Folklore (now am retired), and I encourage writers to begin sentences with And …/But… when those words serve purpose of linking ideas or emphasizing. And sometimes the ‘and’ just facilitates the flow of thoughts as did Emily Dickinson’s use of the dash. But I warned writers about the over-use of ‘there is’ and ‘there are’ as a form of wordiness called ‘delay of subject’. “There is…” is never the subject of the sentence, so using those words just adds superfluous weight but no substance. And once one ‘there is…’ is used, more examples of wordiness are also thrown in. Check your first blog and see how often you used (and overused) it. To fix, simply be aware and delete. And then begin your sentences with your real subject!
About use of ‘who’ and ‘that’: ManUNkind tends to refer only to other human animals as WHO and to refer to all other animals (and plants) as THAT. Calling attention to this limited discrepancy, a blogger ‘corrected’ by referring to a horse (his example) as THAT. I disagree and refer to other animals and to most trees and other plants too as WHO.
This is not so much a matter of correct grammar as it is a moral/ethical mind set which comes from an Albert Schweitzer(ian) Reverence for Life.
If we respect life in all of its forms, we would preserve, not destroy our fragile planet and the companion lives who share this earth and air.
Maya: I think the use of ’someone thing’ was meant as ’some (one)thing’; or eliminate the ONE entirely. Don’t let such a small instance confuse or discourage you; ’studying’ English through the use of computer can be so useful, and sites like Dictionary.com are good choices, but the care in language and the thoughtfulness of responses in blogs seem more distractions and irrelevancies; certainly in this example generated by ‘August’ the conversation deteriorated significantly!
Jamaica gained independence August 6, 1962.
It’s beyond me that dictionary.com doesn’t offer spell check for the comment box. And yes, “spell check” can be written as two separate words. So back up off it. Please.
Re: Alan Turner:
You should check your own grammar, and comma use before clicking submit. Your post was riddled with mistakes, so drop your stone, and step away.
Though it may not always be correct to start a sentence with “and”, there may be instances in which it is okay. And the same goes with “though”.
Grammar is grammar. If it is not right, then it is wrong!
I like hot, buttered crumpets for breakfast on Sundays. But I do not like a smarty.
Why is efry1 so worried about there grammar’s and grampa’s – they’ll live. i agree wif joanne – if u need 2 fight, why don’t u fight about sumfink worthwhile
@The guy who asks alot of questions
sorry – i jus wasnt concentrating on my good grammmar. no joke, jus me when im blogging. that ok????
‘And’ is used at beginning of a sentence to denote the passage of time as being a tad tedious eg . ‘ And as the weeks flowed by August yielded to September and winter frosts prepared for their return to punish the fields and byways……’ But Emma continued to gaze out of the window dreaming about cabbage and grits and hot apple crumble.
INDIA (15-8-1947)MALAYSIA,SINGAPORE ,SOUTH KOREA GOT INDEPENDENCE ONLY IN AUGUST
According to Hindi calendar, the month of August brings a lot of rituals in which ladies in particular participate with gaiety and devotion. They wear green bangles. This month is also called shravan, which is shortened to suhavan (pleasant). Mehndi paste is applied on the palms for well being of husband. Religious fervor is at a high pitch when devotees of Lord Shiva throng the temples in tens of thousands to offer the holy water of the Ganges. There is a worship of the snake god on the day called nagpanchmi. Then there is a festival of rakshabandhan when sisters tie a decorated thread (rakhi) on the wrist of brothers, as a mark of bond of love and respect between brother and sister.
we are saying it is majestic and inspires reverence or admiration. The word can also take the form of an adverb (augustly) and a noun (augustness). August also relates to augury, the act of divination (telling the future), particularly by the behaviour of birds and animals and the examination of their entrails and other parts. Augurs were the official Roman soothsayers, whose job was not to tell the future so much as to determine if the Roman gods approved of a planned course of action.
wow… boring blog aye!
For a country full of people who have poor grammar skills and in general care very little about spelling correctly, it’s fascinating to see this entire post turned off-topic into a discussion on grammar instead of the meaning of August! Proofreading is a lost art–many printed newspapers & even fewer online papers do it.
read this grammar book and then shut up (please!). we should all use the same rules if we’re going to start criticizing each other!
“Eats,Shoots and Leaves” by Lynne Truss
[...] recap the gate. – Dictcom presented no word of the day yet today but the HOT WORD seems to be “AUGUST” named for “AUGUSTUS CAESAR” though with very little “EFFORT” or [...]