Groundhog Day is an American tradition that supposedly predicts when spring will arrive. According to legend, the groundhog, also called the woodchuck, awakens from its winter sleep on February 2 and emerges from its burrow. If the sun is shining that day and the groundhog sees its shadow, it will be scared back into its den, and there will be six more weeks of winter. But if it is cloudy and the groundhog does not see its shadow, it will come out, and spring will arrive soon.
For hundreds of years, European farmers had similar traditions that involved bears, badgers, and other animals. Germans who settled in Pennsylvania brought the custom to America. The groundhog, which is plentiful in the Eastern and Midwestern United States, became linked with the custom. Today, Groundhog Day is treated largely as a joke. But the custom is partly based on ancient and traditional weather signs. People have long looked to the awakening of hibernating animals as one of the first signs of spring.
