Summer – no season lends itself for fests like this. Fest is actually an English Germanism. And the German word Fest (the noun, not the adjective with an entirely different meaning) is actually a borrowed word from Latin festum. How is that?! Well, remember Roman emperor Julius Cesar and all that? He had his military expand the Roman Empire everywhere that troops could march. What was then tribal land and would only much later become Germany, was quickly invaded, the borders fortified, and Roman architecture began to establish palaces, baths, and whatnot. Once the Romans were settled and behind safe walls, you can be sure they had a lot of festa (plural of festum), and the tribes around, probably doing trade and everything else that happened when two peoples live side by side in relative peace, snatched up one or the other term and incorporated it in their language.
When Brittanica was left by the Romans, the people there had incorporated Latin terms into their different languages as well. The borrowed word feast, though, centers on the culinary aspect of an occasion that might have been accompanied by entertainment; but not necessarily so. The German term Fest signifies the occasion and the overall picture. To be honest, Scandinavian languages use the same term, and therefore, the term Fest might be attributed simply to the use of Germanic languages in general. I haven’t found a source of when the German term established itself in the English language. My guess is that, as abbreviations are common in any language, the English words festivity or festival (also derived from Latin) were less comfortable and longer to pronounce than the shorter term Fest. In other words, whenever Germanic peoples intermingled (and the British are a Germanic people, by the way) … You get the picture.
Only last weekend, the Lakewood Summerfest was celebrated while I had a table at the Gig Harbor Summer Art Festival’s Literary Corner. Apart from summerfests, American culture has embraced beerfests and Oktoberfests. Eatonville’s Northwest Trek is expecting visitors for their Slug Fest this weekend. There will be a Blastfest in Seattle coming up – one celebrating Afrobeats. A Craft Beer & Wine Fest will be celebrated in Vancouver at the end of this month. The Washington State Garlic Fest is coming up in Chehalis in August. In short, the term Fest is as common as that of Festival.
A German Fest can be as small as a private party and as huge as the Munich Oktoberfest. It can celebrate the butchering of livestock as much as an entire season, such as a spring fest. Custom tells you whether to even dress up for the occasion.
Just for the fun of it, there is one term that has quite the double entendre if you are not sure whether it is used as a noun or as an adjective. Whereas Winterfest (Germans pronounce it ‘vintah-fest) in Seattle is a festive occasion celebrating the cold season, as a German adjective winterfest (not spelled with a capital “w”) simply means that something is winterproof. Less celebratory and very down-to-earth. On the other hand, you want everything winterfest to celebrate a lighthearted Winterfest, don’t you? And how do I end up with such a thought in the middle of summer? Ah, that’s writers for you!
And then we have the pleasure of Susanne’s verbalfests.
You made me augh, Ray! Thank you!
Oops, had meant “laugh” – not that articulate before finishing my coffee, obviously 😉