Vernal equinox: when it occurs and how it is celebrated around the world

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Every year in March, the day of the vernal equinox comes, the time when the length of day and night is approximately the same, and also the beginning of astronomical spring. In 2023, the date falls on March 20. “UP. Life” asked scientists why and when the vernal equinox occurs every year, what natural phenomena are associated with it and how this event is celebrated in different cultures of the world. What happens during the vernal equinox The term itself comes from the Latin word “equinoxium”, which means “the equality between day and night”, CNN explains. This is the moment of the calendar year when the Northern and Southern hemispheres have approximately the same length of day and night, according to National Geographic. Photo: Konstanttin/Depositphotos “On the equinox itself, there is a little more daylight than darkness – exactly how much depends on where you are on the planet,” CNN points out. The farther from the equator, the longer the duration of the daylight part of the day. As scientists explain, the almost equal duration of day and night hours is explained by the fact that the beginning of the day is determined by the appearance of the edge of the solar disk above the horizon, and not its center. As a result of the significant angular diameter of the apparent dimensions of the Sun and refraction (the imaginary displacement of the celestial body, which occurs due to the refraction of rays, light in the Earth’s atmosphere), the length of the day will be several minutes longer than 12 hours, even at the equinox. The duration of the night is, accordingly, shorter. This refraction of light rays “causes the sun to appear above the horizon when its position is below it.” There is a spring (March) and autumn (September) equinox, National Geographic explains. As scientists note, these days the Sun is at its zenith at the equator, where its rays fall on the Earth’s surface at a right angle. To the north and south of it, the ray falls at equally smaller angles. Therefore, on the entire globe, except for the poles, the day is equal to the night and lasts 12 hours. Only twice a year, during the autumn and spring equinoxes, does the sun rise in the east and set in the west. Only on these days, if you stand on the equator, you can see how it passes directly overhead. As Ivan Kryachko, head of the Laboratory for Methodological Support of Astronomical Education and Science (MIZON-A) of the Main Astronomical Observatory of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Ivan Kryachko, added, the day of the spring equinox for astronomers begins, which is called astronomical spring. This period lasts until the summer solstice, i.e. June 21. A complete list of spring and autumn equinox dates until 2025 can be found on the website of the US Naval Observatory. How the equinoxes are celebrated in different cultures of the world The equinoxes are considered historical markers of seasonal changes, as well as a time of rebirth and renewal, according to National Geographic. In this connection, many nations celebrated the March equinox as the first day of the new year. For example, the ancient Babylonian calendar began with the first full moon after it. The vernal equinox is a national holiday in some countries, for example, in Japan. On this day, Jews celebrate Pesach, that is, the central Jewish holiday, when they commemorate the people’s exodus from Egypt. It begins on the night of the full moon after the March equinox. In China on this day, a game where you have to hold an egg vertically is popular. The custom dates back thousands of years. According to legend, people who succeed in this will be successful, writes Visitbeijing. Photo by Vasilek/Depositphotos The date of Easter is also calculated by the vernal equinox. What traditions did Ukrainians follow on the spring equinox? Anastasia Kolodyuk, Deputy Director General of the National Museum of Folk Architecture and Life of Ukraine, said that the calendar of our ancestors, who were, in particular, farmers, was somewhat different from the modern one. “For them, the so-called New Year began in the spring. And they celebrated the New Year with the March equinox, because Ukrainians tied everything to the movement of the sun,” says the scientist. According to her, with the advent of Christianity, the calendar began to “move”. There was a period when the New Year began to be celebrated in September, and then it was already postponed to January 1. However, some of the rites associated with it were left. A vivid evidence of this, says Kolodyuk, are the words of the legendary Shchedrik Mykola Leontovych, where “a swallow flew in.” “There is such a vision that this is connected precisely with the postponement of the New Year celebration, which used to take place during the vernal equinox, that is, at the beginning of spring, when migratory birds really returned from warmer regions,” says the researcher. Nowadays, according to Anastasia Kolodyuk, the holiday of the Forty Holy Martyrs (March 22) often falls on the vernal equinox, so some traditions could be closely intertwined, transforming from pagan to Christian. “Due to the fact that the Forty Holy Martyrs were celebrated these days, there are references to the fact that our ancestors baked 40 larks at that time. These are birds from the dough, which were conventionally tied into a knot, eyes were made, sometimes from black pepper, and wings, after all, it was important that they fly,” Anastasiya Kolodyuk emphasizes. A so-called rolling pin was also made from a small piece of dough. They tied it in a knot, spread out the ends, like a comb and tail, and baked. This tradition was recorded by folklore collectors in the villages. People believed that in this way they were honoring and calling for the return of spring. Also, rites with a lark, as children’s entertainment, were recorded by ethnographers of the 19th century Mykhailo Maksymovych, Mykola Markevich and Pavlo Chubynskyi. Baked birds were stuck on sticks and distributed to children. The latter ran with them through the village, periodically standing on elevations – hillocks, benches – so that the “birds” were closer to the sky. “With them, they called spring: “Aha spring, aha beautiful… Come, come spring…” – says the scientist and adds that after this “ritual” the children ate cookies. Ukrainians believed that the lark brings spring on its wings, because arrives the earliest. Ukrainians regarded the return of this bird as the awakening of nature after winter. “I cannot claim that it was on this day that our ancestors sang the famous song “Oh, you lark, early bird”, and many now associate it with the spring equinox , because that’s when they were baked and called spring with their help. I would say more about the fact that on this day various freckles were sung,” Anastasiya Kolodyuk emphasizes. According to the scientist, if you observe the transformation of Ukrainian traditions, most researchers agree that this period should have a large number of customs and ceremonies, and they record a more local connection to the vernal equinox. For example, in Polissia they sang the invocation vernal song: “Agu vesna, agu krasna”. In the Poltava region there were completely different songs: “Vesnyanochko-vesnyanochko, where did you winter?”. The call of spring, according to the scientist , has already been expressed in a different way. What were the omens for the equinox? “Regarding folk omens for the spring equinox, there are facts in research that our ancestors followed natural phenomena, because they lived close to nature,” says a research associate. If in that day the temperature was negative, then it was believed that there would be no more frost this year. And vice versa – if it is positive, then there may be frost. According to the researcher, our ancestors counted the thaws on the river, eri or other body of water. They believed that if you count to 100, then in the spring you will not know grief. “During this period, the snow and ice began to melt, which meant that spring was already beginning to come,” says Anastasia Kolodiychuk. On the spring equinox, our ancestors could observe the same customs as on any other holiday. When it was impossible, for example, to spin, wash, in short, it was difficult to work physically. Read also: How to get the body in order in the spring period. 7 tips to improve your well-being

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