Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday (also known as Great and Holy Thursday, Holy and Great Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Sheer Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries, among other names) is the day during Holy Week that commemorates the Washing of the Feet (Maundy) and Last Supper of Jesus Christ with the Apostles, as described in the canonical gospels.
It is the fifth day of Holy Week, preceded by Holy Wednesday and followed by Good Friday. "Maundy" comes from the Latin word mandatum, or commandment, reflecting Jesus' words "I give you a new commandment."
The day comes always between March 19 and April 22, inclusive, and will vary according to whether the Gregorian calendar or the Julian calendar is used. Eastern churches generally use the Julian system.
Use of the names "Maundy Thursday", "Holy Thursday", and others is not evenly distributed. The generally accepted name for the day varies according to geographical area and religious affiliation. Thus, although in England "Maundy Thursday" is the normal term, the term "Holy Thursday" is more commonly used in Ireland, Scotland, Canada and the United States, and is the official name used by the Catholic Church in English.
The Book of Common Prayer of the Church of England, which is the mother Church of the Anglican Communion, uses the name "Maundy Thursday" for this observance. The corresponding publication of the US Episcopal Church, which is another province of the Anglican Communion, also refers to the Thursday before Easter as "Maundy Thursday". Throughout the Anglican Communion, the term "Holy Thursday" is a synonym for Ascension Day.
The Roman Rite of the Catholic Church uses the name "Holy Thursday" in its modern English-language liturgical books. The Latin books use the name Feria quinta in Cena Domini ("Thursday of the Supper of the Lord"; the medieval spelling Cœna was used in place of Cena in documents predating the 1955 decree Maxima redemptionis), along with Maundy Thursday as the English name, as given in The Saint Andrew Daily Missal.