February is the second month of the year according to the Gregorian calendar, which is used in almost all the world today. It is also the shortest month. According to legend, the first calendar of the ancient Romans had only 10 months. Roman tradition said that in about 700 B.C., the ruler Numa Pompilius added January and February. February became the last month of the Roman year. The month takes its name from the Latin word februare, meaning to purify. The Romans purified themselves in February to prepare for festivals at the start of the new year. Later, the Romans moved the beginning of the year from March to January, making February the second month.
In Numa’s calendar, the year was 355 days long. February usually had 28 days. Every other year, an extra month called Mercedinus was supposed to be added between February 23 and 24 to keep the months aligned with the solar year, and the last few days of February were attached to that month. Nevertheless, the months and the seasons eventually became out of step. In 46 B.C., Rome adopted a new calendar with a 365-day year. A single extra day was to be added to February every four years. Today, February still has 28 days in standard years and 29 in the longer leap year that occurs every fourth year.
In the United States, February is designated as Black History Month, a time to honor the accomplishments of African Americans and their contributions to society. Washington’s Birthday, celebrated on the third Monday in February, is a U.S. federal holiday that honors George Washington, the first president of the United States. However, many people call the holiday Presidents’ Day, especially honoring Abraham Lincoln (born on February 12) and George Washington (born on February 22).
Candlemas is a Christian festival celebrated on February 2. The holiday’s name comes from a traditional custom of blessing candles in church and distributing the candles to worshippers. February 2 is recognized in a more whimsical fashion in the United States as Groundhog Day. On this day, everyone listens for reports of Punxsutawney Phil, the nation’s “official” groundhog. According to tradition, if the groundhog sees his shadow on the morning of February 2, he will be frightened back into his burrow and six more weeks of winter can be expected. If he does not see his shadow, spring will arrive early that year.
In Japan, people celebrate a holiday called Setsubun on February 3 or 4. According to the lunar calendar used in the past, this date marks the changing of the seasons and the end of winter. Another holiday in Japan is National Foundation Day, celebrated on February 11. According to tradition, Jimmu founded the imperial dynasty and the empire of Japan on that day in 660 B.C.
People in most Western countries celebrate Valentine’s Day on February 14. The custom of exchanging greetings on this day goes back hundreds of years.
February 21 is Shaheed Dibash (Martyrs’ Day) in Bangladesh. On this day, people remember those who died during demonstrations that called for the Bengali language to have equal status with the Urdu language in 1952, when Bangladesh was still part of Pakistan.
The flowers associated with February are the primrose and the violet. The amethyst is the birthstone for February.
