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Winter solstice is sneaking up on us just as quickly as stuffed turkeys and Christmas trees. This year’s solstice will take place on Thursday, Dec. 21.
The astronomical phenomenon is caused by the tilt of the earth on its axis and its orbit around the sun, with winter solstice occurring on the day that we are furthest from the sun
It symbolizes the first day of winter and is the shortest day and the longest night of the year (in the Northern Hemisphere). Since ancient times it’s been celebrated as a holiday and has helped shape many cultural traditions.
Here are 6 little-known facts about winter solstice:
Winter solstice traces back to ancient history.
Ancient humans noticed the shortening of the days and were terrified that one day there would be no more daylight left. With time, people realized that after this day each year, the sun began moving towards them, again. They began to observe the day in various ways and created traditions to entice the sun to come back, known as solstice celebrations. Some of those traditions included offering gifts of imitation fruit (symbols of fertility) and the lighting of yule logs, a special log that is burned through the night of the winter solstice to help bring light to the darkest night of the year and to help reignite the sun.
It’s no coincidence Christmas Day coincides with the winter solstice
In modern times, Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on Christmas Day. Many believe that celebrating the birth of Jesus was set to sync with the December solstice because from that point on, the days begin to have more daylight in the Northern Hemisphere. However, according to historian David Gwynn, Christmas was set on Dec. 25 to offset pagan celebrations of Sol Invictus (the unconquered sun), a Roman holiday.
Another connection to Christmas is the term Yule, derived from the Norse word jól, which refers to the pre-Christian winter solstice festival.
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