Month of February: Birthdays, Historical Events and Holidays
February in History
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About the Month of February
February is the 2nd month of the year and has 28 or 29 days. The 29th day is every 4 years during leap year.
Season (Northern Hemisphere): Winter
Holidays
Chinese New Year
National Freedom Day
Groundhog Day
Valentine's Day
President's Day
Mardi Gras
Ash Wednesday
Black History Month
American Heart Month
Chocolate Lover's Month
National Bird Feeding Month
National Dental Month
Symbols of February:
- Birthstone: Amethyst
- Flower: Primrose
- Zodiac signs: Aquarius and Pisces
History:
February was added to the Roman calendar in 713 BC. The length of the month changed over time and, at one time, it had as few as 23 days. When Julius Caesar remade the Roman calendar, the month was assigned 28 days during normal years and 29 days during leap years which occurred every four years.
February in Other Languages
- Chinese (Mandarin) - eryue
- Danish - februar
- French - fevrier
- Italian - febbraio
- Latin - Februarius
- Spanish - febrero
Historical Names:
- Roman: Februarius
- Saxon: Sol-monath
- Germanic: Hornung
Interesting Facts about February
- It is the shortest month of the year.
- The Welsh call February "y mis bach" which means "little month".
- It is the third month of winter.
- In the Southern Hemisphere February is a summer month the equivalent of August.
- The month is named for the Latin word februum which means purification.
- Together with January, it was the last of the months added to the Roman calendar.
- The largest American sporting event of the year, the Super Bowl, is held in February.
- The Saxon term for the month, Sol-monath, means "cake month". This is because they offered cakes to the gods during this month.
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