August is a noun and defined as the eighth month of the Gregorian calendar. First used around the mid-1600s, August is one of the many words in the English language that has its roots in Latin.
Today, the most widely used calendar is the Gregorian calendar. Introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582, the Gregorian calendar can be traced back to the Roman calendar, which consisted of 10 months and a dead period during winter. The original 10 months were Martius, Aprilis, Maius, Junius, Quintilis, Sextilis, September, October, November, and December. Before the addition of January and February to the standard 12-month calendar, August was the sixth month and was referred to as Sextilis. However, the month Sextilus was renamed in honor of the first Roman emperor Caesar Augustus in 8 BC. According to historians, the Roman senate chose to rename the month Sextilus to August because this month included several of Caesar Augustus’s great victories including his triumph in Egypt.
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Sources
“August.” Merriam-Webster.com
https://www.almanac.com/content/how-did-months-get-their-names
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