Groundhog's Day
Date When Celebrated:
February 2 each year
Groundhog Day is celebrated in
the U.S. each year on February 2. On this day in mid-winter, the groundhog
awakens from a long winter's nap, and goes outside of his den to see if he sees
his shadow. This tradition is big, on an otherwise cold and dreary mid-winter's
day.
According to legend, if the
groundhog sees his shadow (a sunny morning), there will be six more weeks of
winter. He then returns to his den and goes back to sleep. If however, he does
not see his shadow (cloudy days), he plays around outside of his hole for a
while. If he does not see his shadow, spring is just around the corner. The
Groundhog's Day tradition travelled long ways. It comes from German roots. In the early 1800's, German immigrants to
America, brought the tradition of predicting winter weather on February 2. In
their native Germany, they used Hedgehogs to predict weather. As they settled
in the hills of Pennsylvania, they began the tradition, using the Groundhog to
predict the arrival of Spring. The tradition is based upon Candlemas, the day
that is the midpoint between Winter and Spring. A famous Candlemas poems goes:
If Candlemas be fair and bright, Winter has another flight. If Candlemas brings
clouds and rain, Winter will not come again.
Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania
is the site of the annual Groundhog event. Our little rodent friend (yes,
Groundhogs are classified as rodents) is called Punxsutawney Phil. He has been
making this annual winter prediction since 1887. There are a few other
"predictors" around the country, but they all pale in comparison to
Phil's ability to predict the remainder of winter. For the Record Phil sees his shadow about 9
out of 10 times
Other Prognosticators:
Punxsutawney Phil is not the only one to come out on February 2 to make a
prediction on when winter will be over. He is by far the best known. Others
include: Buckeye Chuck in Ohio. General Beauregard Lee in Georgia
Did You Know? The town of
Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania holds a Ground Hog Festival every year. But, it
isn't on Ground Hog's Day on February 2. This week long festival held at the
end of June, when the weather is much more pleasant to enjoy an outdoor event.
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