366 DEEG AM JOER! (Let’s leap ..)

Thirty days hath September,
April, June, and November;
February has twenty-eight alone,
All the rest have thirty-one,
Excepting leap year, that's the time
When February's days are twenty-nine

(Mother Goose Nursery Rhyme)

2012 is a Leap Year/Bissextile year (Schaltjoer). A leap year consists of 366 days whereas common years have 365 days.

Earth orbits the sun every 365.2422 days (solar year). Leap years are needed to keep our Gregorian (civil) calendar in alignment with the Earth’s revolutions around the sun. Every four years 1 day is added, February 29, called leap day or intercalary day with one exception: century years are not leap years unless they can be evenly divided by 400.

The Egyptians first began using a calendar with a leap year during the Ptolemaic Dynasty (330-30 BC). Later, the Romans adopted this solution for their (Julian) calendar however the practice was inconsistent. It was not until 1582 when Pope Gregory introduced the Gregorian calendar that intercalary years became official.

Leap day traditions are a mix of folklore, myths and superstitions. Most seem to center around the custom that this was the one day when women were allowed to propose marriage to men without social restrictions. Legend dates this back to 5th Century Ireland when St. Brigid complained to St. Patrick about women having to wait for so long for a man to propose. In 1288 Queen Mary of Scotland (allegedly) passed a law to allow women to propose to men, and if the proposal was rejected, a fine was incurred. By the late 1800s into the early 1900s, Leap Year themed parties, teas and dances and the sending of humorous postcards were amusing ways to celebrate the day.

In Luxembourg we have a somewhat similar tradition with “Bretzel Sonndeg” (Pretzel Sunday) which takes place on the fourth Sunday of Lent. Boyfriends offer their beloved a pretzel (dough pre-cooked in boiling water and knotted in a unique shape) and the girls will return the favor on Easter with a colored or a chocolate egg (more on "Bretzel Sonndeg" later). In a Leap Year, the roles are reversed.

As I mentioned in my previous post, during a Leap Year a Stréihfrächen (straw woman) is burnt in Remich on Ash Wednesday instead of a Stréihmännchen (straw man).

People born on February 29 are called “leaplings” or “leapers”. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Everybody should enjoy this extra day and ladies, look before you leap! 

STREIHMAENCHEN/STREIHFRAECHEN VERBRENNUNG AN BUERGBRENNEN! (Burn Baby Burn)

Buergbrennen 2012 - Picture courtesy www.wort.lu 

As tradition has it, a straw man complete with suit and hat (Stréihmännchen) is burned every Ash Wednesday in Remich, a small city on the Moselle river. This year, a leap year, a straw woman (Stréihfrächen) was paraded around town, set on fire and thrown in the river. This symbolizes the end of Carnival and the burning away of all sins.

Last Sunday, the first Sunday of Lent, torch-lit parades were held and public bonfires were kindled in many parts of Luxembourg where giant crosses and remains of Christmas trees were immolated.

These Lenten fires combine Christian and pagan traditions and go back to rituals which were intended to chase away winter and welcome spring, ensuring the fertility of fields and livestock. 

Both events are fun and entertaining. Food stands offer local fare and drinks

Picture courtesy leeandhermuse.blogspot.com

In the US we have Hoodie-Hoo Day. This little known holiday is celebrated in the Northern Hemisphere on February 20. People go out at noon, some wearing funny and unusual hats, wave their hands over their heads and chant “Hoodie-Hoo". It is a day to chase away winter and usher in spring. According to myth, the Hoodie-Hoo is a spirit who lives in the forest. With some urging on or about Feb. 20, it awakes, emerges from the wilderness and chases winter into seclusion.