Etimologie - Etymologies #8

Festa = Feast



c.1200, from O.Fr. feste "festival, feast," from V.L. *festa (fem. sing.), from L. festa "holidays, feasts," from neut. pl. of festus "festive, joyful, merry," related to feriæ "holiday" and fanum "temple." The spelling -ea- was used in M.E. to represent the sound we mis-call "long e." The verb first attested c.1300.