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| February | |
|---|---|
| Name | February |
| Days | 28–29 |
| Quarter | Q1 |
| Season north | Winter |
| Season south | Summer |
February is the second month of the Gregorian and Julian calendars, traditionally the shortest month with 28 days in common years and 29 in leap years. It is associated with observances such as Valentine's Day, Lent, and national commemorations in countries including United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and Japan. The month has roots in ancient Roman reform and the work of figures like Numa Pompilius and later reforms by Julius Caesar and Pope Gregory XIII.
The name derives from the Latin term februarius, tied to the Roman purification festival of Februa and sacrificial rites linked to the priestly college of the Pontifex Maximus. Early Roman calendars attributed reform to Numa Pompilius and storied lawgivers like Romulus, while subsequent calendar adjustments involved Julius Caesar and the introduction of the Julian calendar. Scholarly debate records contributions from Roman institutions such as the Pontifex and chronicles like those of Marcus Terentius Varro and historians including Livy.
In the Julian calendar, February had 28 days with a leap day every fourth year established by Julius Caesar; the Gregorian calendar refined leap-year rules under Pope Gregory XIII to omit three leap days every 400 years, affecting alignment with the tropical year. Civil reckoning in nations such as France, Russia, and Great Britain changed when those states adopted the Gregorian calendar in different centuries. Several calendar proposals, including the World Calendar and the International Fixed Calendar, sought to standardize month lengths, with critics referencing reform advocates like George Eastman and commissions convened in the 20th century.
February hosts religious and civic observances: Carnival culminations before Ash Wednesday and Lent in Christian traditions, national commemorations like Presidents' Day in the United States and National Foundation Day in Japan. Secular and cultural observances include Black History Month in the United States and Canada, and festivals such as Imbolc in Celtic traditions observed by groups referencing Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism. Political events historically staged in February have involved actors such as Napoleon in the French Consulate era and diplomatic meetings like the Yalta Conference (held in February 1945).
February appears in works by authors including William Shakespeare, whose plays reference seasonal motifs, and poets such as John Keats and Emily Dickinson, who used winter imagery tied to New England. Visual artists like Caspar David Friedrich and writers involved with Romanticism treated the month’s austerity in landscape and verse. February-themed entries occur in periodicals such as The Times and literary journals like The New Yorker, while composers including Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Gustav Mahler incorporated seasonal affect into musical cycles.
In the Northern Hemisphere, February is often among the coldest months, influencing weather systems tracked by agencies such as National Weather Service and Met Office; it is associated with phenomena like mid-winter storms studied by researchers at institutions including NOAA and European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts. In the Southern Hemisphere, February corresponds to late summer conditions with heat events recorded by bodies such as Bureau of Meteorology (Australia) and Meteo France. Agricultural calendars in regions from Punjab to Andalusia reference February for planting cycles, while historians of climate cite datasets compiled by Hadley Centre and palaeoclimatologists like Frederick Vine.
February has been the birth month of figures such as Abraham Lincoln (birth anniversary observed in February in the United States), Galileo Galilei (baptism recorded), Charles Darwin (anniversaries noted), and artists including Ralph Waldo Emerson and Friedrich Nietzsche. Deaths recorded in February include leaders like George Washington (commemorations), scientists such as Marie Curie, and cultural figures like Stendhal. Biographers and encyclopedists reference archival collections at institutions like the Library of Congress and the British Library for primary sources on these individuals.
February often features astronomical events: meteor showers such as the Phi Phoenicids (periodic observations), conjunctions tracked by observatories like Palomar Observatory and missions coordinated by NASA, and lunar phases used to set movable feasts including Easter via computus tradition developed by medieval scholars such as Dionysius Exiguus. Cultural festivals with celestial ties include Chinese New Year (date varies, celebrated with references to the Lunar calendar) and regional observances aligned with full moons noted by astronomers from Royal Observatory, Greenwich and contemporary programs at European Southern Observatory.
Category:Months