Where it sits in the week
The four turn in that order and begin again, so Eke comes round every four days. Each one belongs to a market, which is why a town has an Eke market or an Orie market, and why the days turn up in people's names.
The next five
- Mon21 Septin 2 days
- Fri25 Septin 6 days
- Tue29 Septin 10 days
- Sat3 Octin 14 days
- Wed7 Octin 18 days
These dates count back to 1 January 2026, which was Orie. Seven published Igbo calendars put that day there, among them a day-by-day table of 2000 to 2050 that was drawn up before 2009. A day traditionally turns at sundown rather than midnight, and some communities keep the cycle a step apart from this count. See where the count comes from.
How the name is written
The app writes it Eke. You may also see Ékè, with tone marks. The historian Elizabeth Isichei records the four days as answering to the four compass points, with Eke to the east.