Why is CET called MET?

Dik.Winter at cwi.nl Dik.Winter at cwi.nl
Tue Jun 18 00:23:49 UTC 1996


 > The time zone in which Germany is located is called by a German
 > law "Mitteleuropaeische Zeit (MET)" in winter and "Mitteleuropaeische
MEZ
 > Sommerzeit (MESZ)" in summer. Do you have any formal reference why
 > "Central European Time" is any more correct than "Middle European
 > Time"?

Of course not, but MET is perfect Dutch (Midden Europesche Tijd).  So
there is a very good reason to use this abbreviation ;-).

 > I can quote the German "Zeitgesetz" for MET, what can you quote for CET?

MEZ I think.  And in French it is HEC.  But I think there may be an English
reference to CET from the period that the British were on CET.

These discussions are a bit bogus in my opinion, there is already a
de-facto standard to call it MET, so why change.  In the same spirit
we could question the addition "DST".  The term "Daylight Saving Time"
is (as far as I know) truly US.  Here it is called "Summer Time" in
all languages that I know.

dik
--
dik t. winter, cwi, kruislaan 413, 1098 sj  amsterdam, nederland, +31205924098
home: bovenover 215, 1025 jn  amsterdam, nederland; http://www.cwi.nl/~dik/



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