The origin of both terms is the Hebrew "Shabbat", also rendered "Shabbas". The Hebrew means "he rested", referring to God resting on the seventh day after his six days of labor on Creation.
"Sabbat" is taken directly from the French, which descends from the Hebrew through Greek and then Latin.
Functionally, the observations are as different as one would imagine. The Hebrew Shabbat is a weekly observance of enforced rest and worship of the one God. The Pagan Sabbat is one of four or eight (depending on the traditions followed) observations over the course of the year tied to the lunar and solar cycles (four each) related to several deities and natural occurrences.
Return to FunTrivia
"Ask FunTrivia" strives to offer the best answers possible to trivia questions. We ask our submitters to thoroughly research questions and provide sources where possible. Feel free to post corrections or additions. This is server B184.