I love leap years. I love the fact that theres a whole extra day in the month. This morning on the radio they were talking about leap year facts, so I thought I'd look some up and lay them on ya. . .
1. It was the ancient Egyptians who first figured out that the solar year and the man-made calendar year didn't always match up. That's because it actually takes the Earth a little longer than a year to travel around the Sun — 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds, to be exact. Therefore, as the hours accumulated over the centures, an extra day was occasionally added to the calendar, and over time the practice became more or less official.
2. The Romans first designated February 29 as leap day, but a more precise formula (still in use today) was adopted in the 16th century when the Gregorian calendar fine-tuned the calculations to include a leap day in years only divisible by four - 2012, 2016, 2020, 2024, etc. Another stipulation ruled that no year divisible by 100 would have a leap year, except if it was divisible by 400. Thus, 1900 was not a leap year ... but 2000 was! Go figure.
3. Celebrity leap year babies: Antonio Sabato Jr. and rapper Ja Rule.
4. According to astrologers, those born under the sign of Pisces on February 29 have unusual talents and personalities reflecting their special status.
5. Most have to wait every four years to "officially" observe their birthdays, but leap year babies typically choose either February 28 or March 1 to celebrate in years that aren't leap years.
6. 56 countries will observe Rare Disease Day on February 29, 2012 calling for more research into ailments that have no known cure.
7. International women's football meets to compete on February 29, 2012 in the annual kick-off to the Algarve Cup in southern Portugal.
8. While leap day helped official timekeepers, it also resulted in social customs turned upside down when February 29 became a "no man's land" without legal jurisdiction. As the story goes, the tradition of women romantically pursuing men in leap years began in 5th century Ireland, when St. Bridget complained to St. Patrick about the fair sex having to wait for men to propose. Patrick finally relented and set February 29 aside as the day set aside allowing women the right to ask for a man's hand in marriage. The tradition continued in Scotland, when Queen Margaret declared in 1288 that on February 29 a woman had the right to pop the question to any man she fancied. Menfolk who refused were faced with a fine in the form of a kiss, a silk dress, or a pair of gloves given to the rejected lady fair.
9. The day also plays a pivotal role in the fictional The Pirates of Penzance, the most famous Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera that was translated to Broadway and the silver screen. In the story, the hero Frederic realizes his apprenticeship binds him until his 21st birthday, but since his birthday falls on February 29, it means that technically he is only a young lad - and won't reach his 21st birthday until he is in his eighties!
10. A leap year poem:
Thirty days hath September,
April, June and November;
All the rest have thirty-one
Save February, she alone
Hath eight days and a score
Til leap year gives her one day more.
11. Sweden (and Finland) had a "double" leap year in 1712, because two days were added to February. That year there was a date February 30, 1712. This was done because the leap year in 1700 was dropped, and Sweden's calendar was not synchronized with any other calendar. By adding an extra day in 1712, they were back on the Julian calendar.
12. In ancient times, it was very usual to have lunar (moon) calendars, with 12 and/or 13 months every year. To align the calendar with the seasons the 13th month was inserted as a "leap month" every 2-3 years.
13. Your chances of being born on a leap day are approximately 1 in 1500. There are about 4 million people in the world who were born on Leap Day.
14. It takes 3300 years for the calendar year and the solar year to become "off" from each other, and then it's only by a day.
15. Leap Day is also St Oswald’s Day, named after an archbishop of York who died on February 29, 992. The memorial is celebrated on February 29 during Leap Years and on February 28 during common years.
16. Leap years are also the years that the Olympics are held. The 2012 Olympics are in August in London.
17. There is a Greek superstition that claims couples have bad luck if they marry during a leap year. Apparently one in five engaged couples in Greece will avoid planning their wedding during a leap year. In Scotland, it used to be considered unlucky for someone to be born on Leap Day, just like Friday the 13th is considered an unlucky day by many.
18. Anthony, Texas is the self proclaimed leap year capital of the world. Every year this little town that sits on the border of New Mexico holds a festival and leap year birthday celebrations complete with a carnival and hot air balloon rides. People come from all over the world to celebrate their special birthday in style.
19. People born on leap days are called 'leaplings'.
20. Leap year babies born in the year 1884 did not celebrate a single birthday on their actual birth date throughout entire teen age years.February 29th fell on the year they turned 12 and then not again until they turned 20.
21. A leap year also also known as an intercalary or bissextile year. A year that is not a leap year is called a common year.
1. It was the ancient Egyptians who first figured out that the solar year and the man-made calendar year didn't always match up. That's because it actually takes the Earth a little longer than a year to travel around the Sun — 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds, to be exact. Therefore, as the hours accumulated over the centures, an extra day was occasionally added to the calendar, and over time the practice became more or less official.
2. The Romans first designated February 29 as leap day, but a more precise formula (still in use today) was adopted in the 16th century when the Gregorian calendar fine-tuned the calculations to include a leap day in years only divisible by four - 2012, 2016, 2020, 2024, etc. Another stipulation ruled that no year divisible by 100 would have a leap year, except if it was divisible by 400. Thus, 1900 was not a leap year ... but 2000 was! Go figure.
3. Celebrity leap year babies: Antonio Sabato Jr. and rapper Ja Rule.
4. According to astrologers, those born under the sign of Pisces on February 29 have unusual talents and personalities reflecting their special status.
5. Most have to wait every four years to "officially" observe their birthdays, but leap year babies typically choose either February 28 or March 1 to celebrate in years that aren't leap years.
6. 56 countries will observe Rare Disease Day on February 29, 2012 calling for more research into ailments that have no known cure.
7. International women's football meets to compete on February 29, 2012 in the annual kick-off to the Algarve Cup in southern Portugal.
8. While leap day helped official timekeepers, it also resulted in social customs turned upside down when February 29 became a "no man's land" without legal jurisdiction. As the story goes, the tradition of women romantically pursuing men in leap years began in 5th century Ireland, when St. Bridget complained to St. Patrick about the fair sex having to wait for men to propose. Patrick finally relented and set February 29 aside as the day set aside allowing women the right to ask for a man's hand in marriage. The tradition continued in Scotland, when Queen Margaret declared in 1288 that on February 29 a woman had the right to pop the question to any man she fancied. Menfolk who refused were faced with a fine in the form of a kiss, a silk dress, or a pair of gloves given to the rejected lady fair.
9. The day also plays a pivotal role in the fictional The Pirates of Penzance, the most famous Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera that was translated to Broadway and the silver screen. In the story, the hero Frederic realizes his apprenticeship binds him until his 21st birthday, but since his birthday falls on February 29, it means that technically he is only a young lad - and won't reach his 21st birthday until he is in his eighties!
10. A leap year poem:
Thirty days hath September,
April, June and November;
All the rest have thirty-one
Save February, she alone
Hath eight days and a score
Til leap year gives her one day more.
11. Sweden (and Finland) had a "double" leap year in 1712, because two days were added to February. That year there was a date February 30, 1712. This was done because the leap year in 1700 was dropped, and Sweden's calendar was not synchronized with any other calendar. By adding an extra day in 1712, they were back on the Julian calendar.
12. In ancient times, it was very usual to have lunar (moon) calendars, with 12 and/or 13 months every year. To align the calendar with the seasons the 13th month was inserted as a "leap month" every 2-3 years.
13. Your chances of being born on a leap day are approximately 1 in 1500. There are about 4 million people in the world who were born on Leap Day.
14. It takes 3300 years for the calendar year and the solar year to become "off" from each other, and then it's only by a day.
15. Leap Day is also St Oswald’s Day, named after an archbishop of York who died on February 29, 992. The memorial is celebrated on February 29 during Leap Years and on February 28 during common years.
16. Leap years are also the years that the Olympics are held. The 2012 Olympics are in August in London.
17. There is a Greek superstition that claims couples have bad luck if they marry during a leap year. Apparently one in five engaged couples in Greece will avoid planning their wedding during a leap year. In Scotland, it used to be considered unlucky for someone to be born on Leap Day, just like Friday the 13th is considered an unlucky day by many.
18. Anthony, Texas is the self proclaimed leap year capital of the world. Every year this little town that sits on the border of New Mexico holds a festival and leap year birthday celebrations complete with a carnival and hot air balloon rides. People come from all over the world to celebrate their special birthday in style.
19. People born on leap days are called 'leaplings'.
20. Leap year babies born in the year 1884 did not celebrate a single birthday on their actual birth date throughout entire teen age years.February 29th fell on the year they turned 12 and then not again until they turned 20.
21. A leap year also also known as an intercalary or bissextile year. A year that is not a leap year is called a common year.
cool facts!
ReplyDelete