Python strftime directive %a
Abbreviated weekday name in the current locale.
Example (from datetime(2026, 6, 18, 13, 45, 30))
Thu
Output depends on the active locale. This page shows the C/English value; switch locales in the tester to see others.
In Python
from datetime import datetime
dt = datetime(2026, 6, 18, 13, 45, 30)
dt.strftime("%a")
# => "Thu"
Parsing with strptime
Parses an abbreviated weekday name (locale-dependent). See strptime.dev for the parsing side.