Hooaeg

Hooaeg is an Estonian noun meaning season, referring to a recurring period within a year that is defined by characteristic weather, daylight, and typical activities. The term is used in meteorology, agriculture, commerce, culture, and sports to denote a distinct phase when conditions or demand follow a regular pattern. While Estonian also divides the year into four main calendar seasons—kevad (spring), suvi (summer), sügis (autumn), and talv (winter)—hooaaeg emphasizes the functional aspects of a period, such as when a particular activity peaks.

In common usage, hooaeg is often combined with other words to specify the type of season. Examples include turismihooaeg (the tourism season), spordihooaeg or sporthooaeg (the sports season), jaekaubandushooaeg or jaekaubandushooaeg (the retail season), and jõuluhooaeg (the Christmas season). These compounds highlight periods of heightened activity, demand, or favorable conditions for a given domain. Some forms may appear with slight orthographic variation, but the meaning remains the same: a defined interval within the year associated with specific characteristics.

Hooaeg is contrasted with general time concepts such as aeg (time) and periood (period) in everyday language. It is widely used in planning, reporting, and media to communicate about predictable, cyclical patterns, as well as in discussions of how seasons and their associated activities shift with climate and social trends.

See also: Estonian seasons, climate and weather, agriculture, sports seasons.