Septuagesima

Septuagesima
Illustration of the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard for Septuagesima
Liturgical colorViolet
SignificancePreparation for Lent
DateThird Sunday before Ash Wednesday (63 calendar days before Easter Sunday)
2023 dateFebruary 5
2024 dateJanuary 28
2025 dateFebruary 16
2026 dateFebruary 1
Related toPre-Lent

Septuagesima (/ˌsɛptjuəˈɛsɪmə/) is the ninth Sunday before Easter, the third before Ash Wednesday. The term is sometimes applied to the seventy days starting on Septuagesima Sunday and ending on the Saturday after Easter. Alternatively, the term is sometimes applied also to the period sometimes called pre-Lent that begins on this day and ends on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday, when Lent begins.

The other two Sundays in this period of the liturgical year are called Sexagesima and Quinquagesima, the latter sometimes also called Shrove Sunday. The earliest date on which Septuagesima Sunday can occur is January 18 (Easter falling on March 22 in a common year) and the latest is February 22 (Easter falling on April 25 in a leap year).