Ever wondered why 29 days passed in February every four years as a kid? I don’t think there was a kid who didn’t ask this question and believe me each of them received a different answer ranging from myth to tradition to facts that science provides to the reason to determine a leap day February every four years.
Normally there are twenty-eight days in February, but every four years instead of the normal twenty-eight days we have twenty-nine days, the extra day is a so-called leap day, which makes every year with an extra day in February a leap year.
Now back to the question, why is there an extra day every four years in February? What are the mythological, traditional and scientific explanations for the extra day that occurs every four years? Here’s everything you need to know – the myths, traditions and facts.
The origin of the leap year
The origin and concept of the leap year dates back to the first century when the first Roman Emperor Julius Caesar and his astronomers discovered that the Roman calendar of 355 days was no longer consistent with the seasons.
After table calculations and deliberations, Caesar and Sosigenes (astronomer) came up with a solution – a 365-day calendar, adding an extra day to the last month of the year, which at that time was February. This calendar became the so-called Julian calendar.
The team of astronomers also discovered that the 11-day Julian calendar was no longer correct and to correct this they initiated a new order that was intended to prevent the calendar from evolving on its own over time. With the new order, the term leap year was coined and a new rule was introduced stating that a leap year must be divisible by 100 and 400, i.e. any year that is divisible by 100 and not 400 is not a leap year, so the year 1600 and 2000 were leap years, 1700, 1800 and 1900 were not. This calendar modification by Pope Gregory XII. And his team of astronomers created the Gregorian calendar, which is still used today.
The Gregorian calendar was an improvement on the Julian calendar, but that doesn’t mean it’s perfect, as it also has its own imperfections. This is the fact that it brings the calendar very close to the solar year. According to scientists, it will take about 3,000 years for the difference to add up and fix the error.
Leap Day Explained – The Facts
In the Gregorian calendar, which we still use to this day, there are 365 days in the year, except for the leap year, which occurs every four years and has 366 days instead of the normal 365 days in the second year. In a leap year, the month of February is extended by one day, so that there are twenty-nine days instead of twenty-eight, and the additional day added to the month of February is called a leap day.
And the leap day occurs in years that are divisible by four, except for years divisible by 100 but not by 400 as explained above. In other words, every year that coincides with February 29 is a leap year, and every February 29 is a leap day.
Now for the scientific explanation of why the jump tag occurs. The Gregorian calendar has 365 days in a year, it actually takes 365 days and 6 hours to move around the sun (complete rotation) so every four years there is one extra day (24 hours) as a result of the extra six hours and to this an additional calendar day must be added to align the calendar with the apparent position of the sun.
In short, a leap year makes up for the six hours accumulated over a four-year period. Without the extra 24 hours (per day), the seasons would become unbalanced in years to come, leading to confusion about weather, ecology, or daylight hours.
The leap day / year – traditions and superstitions
One of the many traditions of Leap Day is the fact that women were allowed to propose to a man on this day. There are two stories about when this tradition started and how it started.
The first version dates back to 5th-century Ireland when St Bridget reportedly complained to St Patrick that single women had to wait forever for applicants.
Also read about: Santa Claus and Coke: The origin story of the jolly Santa Claus
To solve this problem, St. Patrick gave women theright to ask the question on a leap day, and St. Bridget was the first to propose to St. Patrick, who rejected her proposal and ended it with a kiss and a silk dress blow softened.
The second version says that the tradition began in Scotland when Queen Margaret issued a decree in 1288 that on February 29 a woman could propose to any man of her choice. Should the man refuse the proposal, he would have to pay a fine in the form of a kiss, a silk dress, a pair of gloves, or a pound fine. The gloves were meant to hide the embarrassment of not having an engagement ring.
In ancient times, the leap year was considered a not so good year, so couples in ancient Greece avoided getting married in a leap year as it was considered a sign of bad luck.
There is a saying in ancient Italy that goes “Anno bisesto, anno funesto” meaning “leap year, year of fate”, during the leap year women were considered unpredictable and several Italian proverbs warned against planning important life events in a leap year.
Russians believe that the leap year brings more unusual weather patterns and that more deaths are recorded in a leap year. They even tell a farming folklore that beans and peas planted in a leap year “grow the wrong way.”
Ever heard the old Scottish proverb, “Leap year was never a good sheep year?”