Labour Day

Labour
 
Do the words labour and work mean the same thing? Or something different? Generally speaking, work is ‘what’ gets done and labour is ‘how’ work gets done.
 
Labour has its origins in Latin labor (toil, exertion; hardship, pain, fatigue; a work, a product of labor). Before that, the origin of the word is uncertain. The word labour comes to English around 1300 meaning a task or project, and later meaning exertions of the body; trouble, difficulty, hardship. In brief, labour means the physical and mental energy required to do a task.
 
Labour, as the physical exertions of childbirth, is from the 1590s. Labour, meaning a body of labourers considered as a class, is from 1839.
 
The verb ‘to labour’, from the late 14th century, meant to perform manual or physical work; work hard; keep busy; take pains, strive, endeavor; also, to copulate! (It’s a tough job but someone has to do it). The verb ‘to labour’ comes from Old French laborer and Latin laborare (to work, endeavor, talk pains, exert oneself; produce by toil; suffer, be afflicted; be in distress or difficulty).
 
Labourer (manual worker, often unskilled) is from the mid-14th century. Laborer meaning a member of the working class, the lowest social rank, is from around 1400.
 
Day
 
In Old English daeg meant the period during which the sun was above the horizon. Only later did a day mean a 24-hour period. Old English daeg is one of many words meaning day that come from Proto-Germanic dages (day); for example, Old Saxon, Middle Dutch, Dutch dag, Old Frisian dei, Old High German tag, German Tag, and Old Norse dagr. These words have their origin in one or both of two Proto-Indo-European roots—agh (a day) and dhegh (to burn).
 
Labour Day
 
Labor Day was first marked in 1882 in New York City. Labour Day was recognized as a statutory holiday in Canada in 1894.
 
Enjoy the long weekend!
 
Reference: Online Etymological Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com/
​