The shortest day of the year how much. The shortest day of the year.

21 December 2017 - date (when, what date is the holiday)

December 21 or 22 is the shortest day of the year, followed by the longest night. But this if we are talking about the northern hemisphere, in which we live. For astronomers, this is the beginning of winter, although optimists, on the contrary, quite reasonably believe that from the day winter solstice Everyone is slowly but surely approaching summer. After all, from the next morning the day will begin to arrive a little bit.

The Chinese consider the winter solstice a happy time, because it represents the masculine power of nature and the beginning of a new annual cycle. And the ancient Slavs on this day celebrated their New Year and the Birthday of the Sun. The cake that was baked that day resembled the same Sun in shape. A huge fire was lit, the flame of which, flying up, called the sun to begin its work.

Winter solstice!
Rejoice, people, rather
The shortest day is over
tomorrow will be brighter!

And one minute, grain by grain,
spring will come,
The time of light will grow
Let's wake up easier!

So do it right
This day is the shortest!
And if you are cold, I advise
Drink a glass of vodka!

Winter solstice,
Here it is, the long-awaited one.
It's full of mystical magic
Here you need to complete the ritual.

Forgive and throw away today
You are a big negative shower.
Go towards only joy
For happiness, open your heart.

When winter covered with snow
And the day became very short,
Solstice winter day
Embrace those who are tired:

There is no night longer
Than on this wonderful, wonderful day,
Let everyone rest today
Who is too lazy to work!

This day is the shortest
With a very long night.
Soon the light will return
In the world of powers.

Let hopes bloom
Reborn to life
Let the snow of insults from the top
They leave without saying goodbye.

Let sadness go away
Along with the black night.
The road will be bright
And the soul is calm.

The shortest day of the year
Long night, full of expectation
A new sun is born
On the winter solstice.

I hasten to congratulate you
Meet the miracle of nature
With funny jokes, with a song
Swap day and night.

Life will go in a new circle,
Minutes adding a day
Joy, happiness, love
I wish you a holiday.

Winter solstice -
Summer meets winter
May it never end
The rapid schedule of the earth.

Happy holiday to you today
I want to wish you now
Warmth, kindness, understanding
Always keep in your heart.

Now we meet Karachun,
We celebrate the solstice
The day is surprisingly short
I wish you fabulous weather!

Let the shining snow sparkle
Frost falls again on the branches,
But the warmth does not leave
Blooms beautifully in my heart!

Today the day is equal to the night
More light will be
I want the solstice
It only brought you joy.

Let a new cycle open
A series of big victories
Even with this winter sun
Everyone will be warm.

Tonight is the night longer than a day,
Kolyada hurries to visit us,
You accept my congratulations
I wish that dreams come true!

I wish you snowy winters
Let the hopes come true
May happiness come to your house
And all bad things will go away!

Karachun crawls out of the hole
And diligently lengthens the night,
Storm bears rage again
Little kids are scared of them!

Know that this winter cold will pass,
In the spring the snow will turn into puddles,
The middle of winter has come
So there is a reason for fun!

Congratulations: 35 in verse.

As you know, the sun rises in winter and summer at different time, due to which the length of the day changes. Summer has the longest day, and it will be in 2017.

This phenomenon is called the summer solstice. This length daylight hours due to the fact that the sun rises as high as possible, due to which the dawn is very early, and the sunset is late.

the longest day and short night observed in the northern hemisphere, in the southern hemisphere, on the contrary, the day is short at this time.

The summer solstice does not occur on the same day, the date can shift, although it always happens in the second half of June. The onset of the longest day depends on the shift in the calendar, and whether it is a regular year or a leap year.

Thus, in 2017, the longest day will come on June 21st. The night will last approximately 6 hours, and daylight hours - 17.5 hours.

Signs and celebration of the solstice

At different peoples this day was sacred. The pagans considered the sun a deity and worshiped it. Warmth and harvest depend on the sun, which is why people honored it so much. During this period, nature flourished as much as possible and began to bring the first harvest.
In Rus', Ivan Kupala was celebrated at that time, but now, after a shift in calendars, it has been moved to July.

In a day summer solstice people performed various rituals that glorified the sun and contributed to the growth of crops.

Historians say that the solstice was known back in Ancient Egypt, even the pyramids were built in accordance with the location of the luminary. It is said that such a structure as Stonehenge is associated with the movement and definition of the sun. For the pagans, this holiday is no less important, they celebrate it to this day. Success in many areas of life, as well as health, depends on what rituals were performed on this day.

With the development of civilization, the sun ceased to be perceived as a deity; rather, it became the definition of the season. However, some peoples and individual religions still honor the longest day as the most important of the year. Some countries still celebrate this day, organizing colorful festivities with rituals of kindling a fire and bathing in water.

Celtic beliefs

The Celts had a holiday Lita - it was the middle of summer. At the festival in honor of this holiday, various rituals took place: divination, marriage, communication with spirits, and others. Houses were necessarily decorated, for which fragrant and medicinal herbs were used, White Lily. It was believed that the smell of spicy herbs drives away evil spirits. When evening came, bonfires were lit, processions with torches and jumps over the fire were organized. Coals from a fire lit for this holiday were kept to carry out various ceremonies. The name of the honeymoon is also associated with this period, because in June the first honey is collected. At this time, weddings were celebrated, after which replenishment in the family was expected.

Germanic and Scandinavian traditions

This day was also celebrated by the Scandinavian and German peoples. The holiday was called Midsummer Day, and it is similar to the traditions of Lita. People welcomed the Sun, blessed the future harvest and asked that it be plentiful. High fires were kindled, jumps over the fire were made, as well as rituals related to water. The holiday took place until dawn, going to bed that night was considered wrong.

Traditions of Ancient Rus' on the day of the solstice

Celebration of the longest day in Ancient Rus' was no less interesting. It started within a week. During these seven days, spirits were honored, ancestors were commemorated, and the ashes of dead warriors were scattered over the river. On the very day of the solstice, the Kupala holiday was celebrated, it meant the end of spring and the beginning of summer. The celebration rituals were in many ways similar to the traditions of previous peoples: bonfires were lit, through which they jumped, weaved wreaths and floated them on the water, performed ablutions, called on spirits and asked for a high harvest this year.

After the day of the solstice, the ancient Slavs celebrated the solstice and revered the god Perun, who was one of the most important gods among the Slavs.

Modern traditions

Now the longest day does not have the same meaning as it had for our ancestors, but in 2017 it can be celebrated as interesting holiday. Adherents of paganism conduct their own rites, glorifying nature, to this day, although such a scale as our ancestors did is no longer observed. Ordinary people also enjoy participating in interesting activities.

Twice a year the Sun passes the points of the ecliptic farthest from the celestial equator. With this position of the luminary relative to the Earth, the duration of the day reaches a maximum in summer, and a minimum in winter.

Solstice - what is it?

This astronomical period is called "solstice". The longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere usually falls on June 21st. In leap years, this date can be shifted by a day. Sometimes the solstice falls on June 20th. The shortest winter day, and therefore the longest night, can be observed each year on December 21 or 22.

It is the summer solstice that is considered the day when astronomical spring and summer begins. Winter, according to astronomers, also comes not on the first of December and not on the day of the first snow, but only after the winter solstice.

The longest and shortest days of the year in pagan cultures

Unusual astronomical phenomena have always seemed mysterious and significant to people. The appearance of comets, meteor showers, eclipses were too noticeable to exist "just like that." They had to have some secret meaning.

In the same way, our ancestors distinguished the days of the equinox, the shortest and longest day. There were only four such dates in a year, but each had a special sacred meaning. They served as a kind of milestones between the seasons - which means they also had special properties.

In the most dissimilar cultures, these days evoked the same associations. The day of the spring equinox necessarily turned out to be a holiday of rebirth, resurrection.

Echoes of these traditions are still visible - the symbol of spring Easter is the egg, the classic cosmogonic symbol of rebirth. Diametrically opposite in meaning was the day autumn equinox- the period of harvest, but also the time of withering of nature, death. At this time afterworld dangerously approaching the world of the living, and dark spirits come into the light. Autumn Halloween is an obvious confirmation of this. Pumpkins as a symbol of the harvest, the frightening content of the holiday as an echo pagan traditions that connected this date with the world of the dead.

Duality of summer and winter solstice

People who had no idea about astronomy knew perfectly well when the longest day and the shortest day of the year. The summer solstice is a celebration of the riot of life, its colorful, joyful flowering, a celebration of fertility. Therefore, the longest day of the year is a vital, joyful and carefree holiday. But the longest night of the winter solstice is a time that is amazing in its duality. These are the dark hours when last time dark autumn spirits are rampaging, but this is also the hope for their speedy departure, for the purification of the world. It is the dream of nature, deep as death.

The traditions of the Slavs, Gauls, Britons, ancient Greeks miraculously repeat each other. They are so imprinted in the memory of people that even some Christian holidays have a clear echo of paganism. There was a kind of overlay of traditions.

Summer solstice in Slavic culture

Although a logical question arises: why do the longest day of the year, and the shortest, and the days of the equinoxes fall on Christian holidays? More precisely, if we take into account the chronology, why do Christian holidays fall on these days? This is hardly a coincidence.

Even Christmas, which we now celebrate on January 7, according to the old style, was two weeks earlier. And what is the night before Christmas, everyone knows.

The longest day of the year is the feast of St. John the Baptist. But this is also the crystal pagan holiday of Ivan Kupala - with jumping over the fire, night games, fortune-telling, revelry evil spirits, that is, spirits, forces of nature. The very name of the holiday is a hybrid of Christianity and paganism. John the Baptist, conducting the rite of baptism in water, and Kupala, the personification of a pagan festival, is the same as, for example, Maslenitsa.

The Meaning of the Summer Solstice

This is a festival of grass, water and fire. A celebration of life, love and passion. The girls bathed naked in the dew, exchanged wreaths with the guys - a classic symbol of virginity and purity, jumped over the cleansing fire, holding hands. After all, it's not just entertainment. These are the echoes of the ancient marriage rituals. And joint wanderings through the night forest in search of a flower of a plant that is not capable of blooming ... This had a completely different meaning - and everyone understands what it is. The longest day of the year was devoted to fertility, and hence the conclusion of marriage alliances. These young people were not hunting for treasure at all. Just in the night forest is empty and dark. Although the flower itself endowed the lucky person who found it with extraordinary talents and good luck.

From the point of view of the ancient Slavs, this was not at all depraved or immoral. Marriage, concluded on such a day, was supposed to be successful and happy. Children conceived on Ivan Kupala will be born beautiful, strong, healthy. And the very fact of concluding an alliance on this very day, ritual passion in the night forest is a sacrifice, a dedication to Kupala, the great element of life.

Winter solstice

This aspect caused particular indignation of representatives of the church. The longest day of the year, dedicated to the great Christian martyr, was filled with not just pagan, but absolutely obscene meaning.

The longest night of the year is at Christmas. More precisely, it was before the change of the calendar. The night before Christmas was considered the time when the evil spirits were especially active. She rages and rages, special rituals are needed to protect herself from evil spirits. This has a completely innocent explanation - after all, Christ is about to be born, which means that the power of evil spirits on earth will come to an end. But there was another meaning to everything that was happening. world of the dead opened its doors on the day of the autumnal equinox, and all this time evil spirits were gaining strength. But the winter solstice completes this whirlwind. It's time for the spirits to return, so they rage on the last night, not wanting to accept defeat.

From this article, you will find out when the days of the summer and winter solstices, as well as the autumn and spring equinoxes, come.

The shortest and longest days throughout the year are called solstice days, which are summer and winter, and the time when days and nights are equal is equinoxes, spring and autumn. Learn more about these days.

When, in what month in winter, will daylight hours turn into profit and start growing?

The shortest day in winter winter solstice- We are on December 21 or 22. On one of these days, the smallest day of the year, in the northern hemisphere, in mid-latitudes, it lasts 5 hours and 53 minutes, then the day will increase and the night will decrease.

The closer to the Arctic Circle, the shorter the day. Beyond the line of the Arctic Circle, the sun may not appear at all at this time.

Attention. According to the old style, the winter solstice coincided with Christmas. In the old days, this time was very honored: they festively decorated their house, prepared kutya from wheat, and baked pies and gingerbread from the flour of the new harvest. By the New Year and Christmas holidays, they fed animals (pig, calf) in spring and summer to slaughter Christmas time and cook delicious meat dishes.

day at the equator all year round in magnitude the same as the night (12 hours).

As for the southern hemisphere, everything is different there: when we, in northern latitudes, the winter solstice, they have the summer solstice.

This is interesting. The first day of the winter solstice was established by Julius Caesar. This happened in 45 BC. Then that day was December 25th.

When, on what date, is the shortest day and longest night of the year, and how long does it last?

Longest day of the year ( summer solstice) occurs on June 20, but may be on June 21 or 22 (depending on the shift in the calendar associated with leap year). For Moscow, the length of the day is 17 hours 33 minutes, and then the days begin to be shorter and the nights longer.

How can the summer solstice be explained? This is the day when the sun at noon reaches highest point over the horizon. After this day, the sun begins to go down, and this continues until December 21 or 22.

In the old days, beliefs were associated with this day:

• At this time, healers collected medicinal herbs, since the largest beneficial features plants are showing up right now.
• On the night after the summer solstice, the girls told fortunes about the betrothed, he certainly showed up.
• From that day on, it was possible to swim in reservoirs, and earlier it was forbidden, since, according to legend, devils sat in the water. From that day on, they left for a short time, until the feast of Elijah (August 2).

Note. According to the old style, the summer solstice coincided with Ivanov's day.

By how much will daylight hours begin to increase after December 22?

December 21 or 22 is considered the shortest day, but in fact the next few days are of this duration, and only on December 24-25 the day is added.

At first, the addition of the day is imperceptible, since it increases by 1 minute, and then in the evening, and in the morning the sun rises even later, and then the increase in the day is noticeable, and on March 20-22, the day becomes the same size as the night, about 12 hours.

Interesting. But on other planets of our Universe, the length of the day for some planets is similar to the earth day, for others it is completely different. Day length on other planets(in Earth hours):

• Jupiter - 9 hours
• Saturn - close to 10 o'clock
• Uranus - close to 13 hours
• Neptune - close to 15 hours
• Mars - 24 hours 39 minutes
• Mercury - close to 60 of our days
• Venus - 243 our days

From what day do the days become longer than the nights?

After a day spring equinox, which occurs from March 20 to March 22 (each year differently, due to a leap day shift), the day becomes longer than the night.

For the Slavs, the feast of the Forty Saints is associated with the day of the vernal equinox.. On this day, birds (larks) were baked from pastry, and spring was called, and with it from distant lands, the first birds.

In many Asian countries (former Soviet republics V Central Asia, Afghanistan, Iran), the vernal equinox is the New Year.

In Russia (middle latitude), from the days of the equinox and solstice, among the people, it is customary to start Countdown And time of the year:

• Spring - from the 20th of March to the 20th of June
• Summer - from the 20th of June to the 20th of September
• Autumn - from the 20th of September to the 20th of December
• Winter - from the 20th of December to the 20th of March

When is the longest day and shortest night of the year, and how many days are there?

The longest day in 2017 was June 21st. For several days, the days were just as long (17 hours 33 minutes), and from June 24 the days began to decrease.

When, from what date in the summer, daylight hours will begin to decrease?

If we take data for Moscow, then the longest day was 17 hours 33 minutes.

For Moscow, the days will decrease in the following sequence:

• By the end of June, the day had decreased by 6 minutes, and became 17 hours 27 minutes
• For July - for 1 hour 24 minutes, the duration of the day is 16 hours 3 minutes
• For August - for 2 hours 8 minutes, the day lasts 13 hours 51 minutes
• Until the day of the equinox (September 24), the day will decrease by 1 hour 45 minutes, the duration of the day is 12 hours 2 minutes

When does the night get longer than the day?

Autumn equinox day comes from 21 to 23 September, when the day is the same length as the night, about 12 hours. After this day, the night begins to increase and the day to decrease.

After the day of the equinox, the length of the day decreases even more:

• At the end of September, the day lasts 11 hours and 35 minutes
• In October, the day will decrease by 2 hours 14 minutes, and at the end of the month it will be 9 hours 16 minutes
• In November, the day decreases not so intensively, by 1 hour 44 minutes, the length of the day is 7 hours 28 minutes
• Until the day of the winter solstice (December 21), the day will decrease by 28 minutes, the length of the day is 7 hours, the night is 17 hours

It is noteworthy that on days equal in duration to nights (autumn and spring equinox The sun rises exactly in the east and sets exactly in the west.

So, we found out when the longest and shortest day of the year.

Winter Solstice - December 22

What does this day mean?

This day has been very important since ancient times. Will there be a harvest? This was the main concern. It became clear that very day. If the trees were covered with frost on December 22, then people rejoiced, because the harvest would be rich. And this means that life will be satisfying and happy.

December 22 is the day on which Karachun, the deity of death, was especially revered during pagan times. It was it that commanded the winter element, sending blizzards, blizzards, and cold to the earth. It shortened the days, and the connecting rod bears, who could not sleep in winter, were its faithful servants. If they wanted to, then the winter became long and cold. But as soon as the bear rolls over in the den on the other side, then spring, then, is just around the corner. Our ancestors firmly believed that right now the great life mission of the Sun is being accomplished: a new one is being born to replace the old one, and three days before and after this important event are so energetically charged that even our own fate will turn around, changing in a different direction, and everything will start from scratch .

Traditions and customs of the winter solstice

To help the sun to gain strength, people kindled numerous bonfires. Red-hot wheels, resembling a luminary, were launched along the ground, helping him rise higher and higher in the sky. Be sure to bake a loaf - a prototype of the Sun. And in order to drive away the annoying icy winter, they sculpted snowmen, which meant the snowy season, and smashed them with snowballs.

The Slavs of the times of paganism celebrated the New Year exactly on the day of the solstice, knowing that at last the forces of light won, it came best time. This day in Rus' was given such importance that even the headman, responsible for the timely running of the clock, came to the tsar, carrying joyful news: the time has come when there will be more bright days. And indeed it was such good news that money was paid for it.

Other nations rejoiced at the solstice too. The Chinese were sure: now the male force of nature, which had been sleeping all winter, came to life, and ahead - an updated life path. Therefore, they tried to bring gifts to the god of the sky, on which the sun lives, and cooked porridge from rice and beans on December 22, asking ailments and evil spirits to bypass their homes.

In the UK, the longest night of the year was filled with dancing, fervent songs, and fun. People believed that many jokes good mood they will do everything to solve the problems. The Scots smeared the barrels with pitch, set fire to it and rolled it through towns and villages, calling it the solstice. Now this day is not given such importance, but the soul is already singing in anticipation of the coming spring.