Hello! Palme School here! Have you ever wondered where the day of the winter solstice came from? And also why December 21 is the shortest day of the year? If you want to find out, read our article.
What's the point of the winter solstice
For centuries, people have followed the movement of the sun and tried to identify the relationship between the change of seasons and the position of the luminaries in the sky. And already in antiquity, they calculated that there is one day of the year, when the length of the daylight hours is the shortest. And there is also another day when the sun is longest in the sky and sets for a short period of time.
These two dates were called the day of the summer solstice and the day of the winter solstice. From them is counting the length of the daylight hours either on the increase or on the decrease. And, the dates can change by 1-2 days, depending on the year. In 2024, the day of the winter solstice fell on December 21. But the date, as we have already mentioned, can change, and fall on December 22 or 23. Accordingly, on this day, the sun appeared in the sky for only a few hours, and the longest night of the year came.
The significance of the winter solstice in antiquity
Back in pagan times, when the main occupations of people were hunting and farming, it was important for people to anticipate in advance what would be a harvest. Because that's what it's gonna take depended them life. As soon as people got it, that в period winter solstices begins new of the sun's rotation, they began to greet with a special reverence this day. Usually в day winter solstices our ancestors conducted various rituals и rites.
Surely you're familiar with the word "caroling"? Where did it come from? Back in pagan times, the Slavs had the god Kolyada. The celebration in his honor fell just on the winter solstice. It's known, that wo time Kolyady Slavs noted victory lights over darkness, а also bribed their gods и spirits. By the way, tradition carol on Christmas у Christians remained precisely с those pagan times.
Together с the morethe northern neighbors of the Slavs - the Celts - had similar pagan holiday Yule. Like Kolyada, it also marked the return of light to the earth suns и commencement new period of the year. Noteworthy, that ancestors modern Swedes also caroled в this day, as и them eastern neighbors.
Folk omens on the day of the winter solstice
In fact, even in ancient times people realized that their lives depended on astronomical dates. And they learned to interpret omens and weather phenomena for the future. For example, the weather on the day of the winter solstice, determined the fate of the future harvest. Here are some of the folk lore on this day:
- if the trees are covered in frost, it means a rich harvest;
- If it is warm on this day - expect a good litter of cattle;
- if the night is a clear starry night, also expect a good harvest;
- If pets on this day behave calmly, the year will be prosperous;
- if the winds blow on this day, you can rejoice in the harvest in the fall.
Old rituals on the day of the winter solstice
And if you're interested in reading more about the symbols of the New Year, go to our article. In it, we talked about American and European traditions, as well as Russian New Year symbols.
