Watch Day & Month Wheel Translation Guide

Complete reference for calendar watch abbreviations in 10+ languages — English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Catalan, Japanese, Chinese, Arabic, and Farsi.

As collectors and dealers in vintage watches, we frequently encounter watches with foreign day or month wheels. This is especially common on chronograph watches powered by movements like the Valjoux 72C, Venus 200, Lemania 5100, and Valjoux 7750/7751 — as well as on Rolex Day-Date President watches. This guide gives you everything you need to identify the language of your watch’s day or month wheel instantly.

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🔍 How to Identify Your Watch’s Language

The fastest way to identify which language day wheel is installed in your watch is to advance the date to Thursday. Each of the six major European languages has a completely unique abbreviation for Thursday, making it the perfect identifier:

• THU — English (Thursday)
• JEU — French (Jeudi)
• DOM — German (Donnerstag) — note: DOM is also Sunday in Italian/Portuguese/Spanish, so check another day to confirm
• GIO — Italian (Giovedì)
• QUI — Portuguese (Quinta-feira)
• JUE — Spanish (Jueves)

Rolex President Day-Date ref. 1803 with Spanish day wheel showing Jueves (Thursday) — browse our Rolex collection.

🗓️ Days of the Week — Abbreviation Table

The table below shows the 3-letter abbreviations used on watch day wheels for the 6 major European languages. Most watches use a 3-letter abbreviation to save space on the dial.

↑ Thursday row highlighted — the easiest row to use for language identification. Portuguese Friday = SEX (Sexta-feira).

Bucherer Patravi Annual Calendar Chronograph with Big Date and Power Reserve — an example of a modern calendar complication watch.

🔵 Full Day Wheel Table — Rolex President & Day-Date Style

Some watches — most notably the Rolex Day-Date (President) and its Tudor Prince variants — display the full day name rather than a 3-letter abbreviation. You may also see full day wheels on Mido, Seiko, Bucherer, Breitling, Tissot, and Hamilton models.

Rolex Day-Date President with English day wheel — the most common configuration in the US market.

📅 Months of the Year — Abbreviation Table

Triple date watches — such as those powered by the Valjoux 72C — display the month as well as the day and date. The table below shows the 3–4 letter month abbreviations used on watch month wheels.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Control Calendar with Day, Date & MoonPhase — an example of a full calendar complication with day wheel.

🌐 Days by Language — Full Reference List

Below is the complete day abbreviation reference for each language, including the full day name for context.

Vintage Zodiac Triple Date Chronograph with Valjoux 72C — an example of a triple date watch with a foreign day wheel.

Rolex Day-Date ref. 18238 with Catalan day wheel showing Dimarts (Tuesday) — a rare and collectible configuration.

📅 Months by Language — Full Reference List

Vintage 1947 Heuer 2558 18K gold triple date chronograph with Valjoux 72C — day wheel set to SAB (Portuguese for Saturday). Also known as Pre-Carrera watches.

🌏 Japanese, Chinese, Arabic & Farsi Day Wheels

Some watch movements — particularly Japanese movements like the NH36 and Swiss movements like the ETA 2836-2 — offer non-Latin day wheel options. These are less common in the vintage market but increasingly seen in modern and NOS (new old stock) pieces.

Japanese Day Wheel (NH36)

The NH36 movement (used in Seiko and many microbrands) typically offers a two-language day wheel with English on one side and Japanese on the other. Saturday and Sunday are often printed in red to indicate the weekend. English is usually the first option in the two-position day wheel.

NH36 movement with Japanese/English dual day wheel — SAT and SUN highlighted in red.

Chinese Day Wheel (ETA 2836-2)

The ETA 2836-2 movement was produced with Chinese day wheel variants for the Asian market. Chinese day names use characters rather than Latin abbreviations.

ETA 2836-2 movement with Chinese day wheel — produced for the Asian market.

Arabic Day Wheel

Arabic day wheels use right-to-left script and are found on watches produced for Middle Eastern markets. The NH36 movement was also produced with Arabic day wheel variants.

NH36 movement with Arabic day wheel.

Arabic & Farsi Rolex Dials

Rolex produced special-order dials with Arabic and Farsi numerals and day wheels for the Middle Eastern market. These are among the most collectible Rolex variants and command significant premiums.

Arabic & Farsi Rolex Datejust dial — special-order Middle Eastern market variant. Highly collectible.

Soviet Watch Cyrillic Day Wheels

Soviet-era watches produced for the domestic USSR market — including Vostok, Raketa, Pobeda, and Poljot — often featured Cyrillic day wheels. These are increasingly collectible and the abbreviations differ from modern Russian standards.

Soviet Cyrillic 2-letter day abbreviations — standard on Vostok, Raketa, Pobeda, and Poljot watches.

⌚ Watches Known for Foreign Day & Month Wheels

Foreign language day and month wheels are most commonly found on the following watches and movements:

• Rolex Day-Date (President) — produced with full day wheels in dozens of languages including English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Arabic, Farsi, Hebrew, and more. The language of the day wheel is a key factor in value and collectibility.
• Tudor Prince Day-Date — Tudor’s version of the President, also produced with multi-language day wheels.
• Valjoux 72C Triple Date Chronographs — including Heuer, Breitling, Movado, and others. Day and month wheels in French, Spanish, Portuguese, and German are common.
• Valjoux 7750/7751 — the 7751 adds a full calendar with month wheel. Common in IWC, Breitling, and Ebel watches.
• Lemania 5100 — military and sport chronographs with day wheels in various languages.
• ETA 2836-2 / 2834-2 — widely used Swiss movement with day wheel options in English/French, English/German, English/Spanish, English/Japanese, and English/Chinese.
• Seiko NH36 — Japanese/English dual day wheel, standard in modern Seiko automatics.
• Mido, Tissot, Hamilton — various models with full day wheels in European languages.

🔧 Can You Change the Day or Month Wheel?

Yes — in most cases, day and month wheels can be replaced by a qualified watchmaker. Here’s what you need to know:

• Sourcing the wheel — NOS (new old stock) day and month wheels are available for most common movements (ETA, Valjoux, NH36). Vintage-specific wheels for movements like the Valjoux 72C are harder to find but not impossible.
• Patina matching — if your watch has an aged dial with patina, a new NOS wheel will look noticeably brighter and may not match. Consider whether originality or language preference matters more to you.
• Originality vs. preference — at Experts Watches, we keep our watches original and appreciate the character of foreign day wheels. A Spanish or Portuguese wheel on a vintage Heuer or Rolex is part of its story.
• Service opportunity — if you’re having the movement serviced, that’s the ideal time to swap the day or month wheel.

If you have a watch that needs service or a day/month wheel replacement, contact our team — we’re happy to advise.

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❓ Frequently Asked Questions — Watch Day & Month Wheels

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