Weekend

The weekend -- one or two days, typically Saturday and Sunday -- is a time during which most paid workers do not work. This is a time for leisure and recreation, or for religious activities. There is substantially less activity on many websites on weekends.

The notion of a weekly rest is ancient; Judeo-Christian religions celebrate a day of rest known as the Sabbath. The Jewish Sabbath is known as Shabbat, and is from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday; the Christian Sabbath is known as the Lord's Day, and is on Sunday; the Muslim Sabbath is on Friday.

"The Tyranny of Time: The clock as god" (http://www.humanscapeindia.org/hs1299/hs12997t.htm)

"People do dream of enjoying their work by doing it at a rhythm which suits them and varying their rhythm for different occupations. This notion of personal rhythm was what the Industrial Revolution attacked and tried to destroy. How that happened can be seen in the forgotten history of the weekend. The English word has been adopted by almost every language, but it represents a poisoned gift from the English to humanity."

This quote suggests that the modern weekend is a result of the Industrial Revolution and perhaps the need to give factory workers a rest. It also suggests that the English gave not only the word "weekend" to the rest of the world but also the concept. Both suggestions are obviously false, as religions had been observing the Sabbath in very much this sense for millennia.

Another article, When, How, and Why Was the Sabbath Changed from Saturday to Sunday? (http://www.tagnet.org/sthsda/ARTICLE09.htm), may be of interest in this connection.

See also Dirty weekend.