We all know that before normally means "earlier in time", but I've been thinking about the opposite meanings of those expressions:
- The days before now (the past)
- The days before us (the future)
I'm aware that some other European languages have similar usages, too, so I would like to understand when and how such contrasting meanings developed in English.
Best Answer
The object of the sentence refers to very different perspectives. "now" is a reference to a time, whereas "us" refers to, well, people - as if we are standing here.
So things that are "before now" refers to things that happened before, meaning "prior to", the time "now".
Things that are "before us" refers to things that are (metaphorically) visible or placed before, meaning "in front of", us - and at least in most Western cultures, we think of ourselves as facing the future (as if we're walking forward in time, facing forward in time), so this is referring to the future.
Coincidentally, I remember reading about some cultures in whose languages the future is said to be "behind" them, and the past to be "in front" of them - they thought of themselves as walking backwards - perhaps because they could "see" the past (i.e. remember it) but could not "see" the future.