70 Things You Didn't Know About February

70 Things You Didn't Know About February - February Facts

In Welsh, February is sometimes known as “y mis bach” which means “little month.”
It’s also the only month that can go without having a full moon.
Black History Month has been celebrated for over 40 years in the month of February.
February and January were the last months added to the Roman numeral calendar.
The odds of being born on Feb. 29 are about 1 in 1,461. If you’re born on a leap day, you’re typically known as a “leaper” or “leapling.” And depending on where you live, Feb. 28 or March 1 is considered your birthday in non-leap years.
We misspelled “February” in item No. 7. Did you catch it?
Valentine’s Day did not start on a romantic note. According to historians, the day now synonymous with “love” probably began as a pagan fertility festival in ancient Rome. We’ll leave it at that, because some of the other details are disturbing.
Read on to find out some historical events which occurred in February, as well as how to came to be the shortest month of the year.
February fluctuates between having 28 and 29 days per year. The 29th day only occurs every 4 years during leap years.
The length of February was finalized when Julius Caesar remade the Roman calendar and assigned the month 28 days and 29 days. In 713 B.C., February was officially added to the Roman calendar.
If you were born in February, your birthstone is an amethyst and your flower is a primrose.
The western zodiac signs in February are Aquarius which is until February 19th, and Pisces, which is until February 20th.
It’s the month for a lot of other causes, too. February also marks American Heart Month, along with some other “months” you might not recognize: Canned Food Month, Grapefruit Month, Hot Breakfast Month, and our favorite, Return Shopping Carts to the Supermarket Month.
February got its start as a spring-cleaning festival. Well, kind of. It’s named after one: “Februa” was an early Roman festival and cleansing ritual held on Feb. 15.
It’s the only month that can pass without having a full moon. That doesn’t mean February never has a full moon—it usually does, as a matter of fact. The last time it didn’t was 1999. The next time it won’t have a full moon? 2037!
February is mostly recognized for Valentine’s Day, flowers, and depending on where you are, being incredibly cold!
Oddly enough, even though it’s just another month, there’s a lot of history behind this month of romance and love!
Groundhog Day—Feb. 2—is based on a German superstition. In Germany, though, it’s not a groundhog that forecasts either an early spring or a longer winter: It’s a badger.
Febuary is the only month that gets longer every four years. Sure, everybody knows about leap years, and most know why we have them. But did you know that every so often, we need a “leap second,” too? This is typically added to Coordinated Universal Time in June or December, because of irregularities in our planet’s rotation.
And maybe it’s more commercial than romantic now, anyway. It’s estimated that Americans spend more than $18 billion on gifts, chocolate and more for Valentine’s Day.
Valentine’s Day isn’t just about humans, either. Almost 9 million people in the U.S. buy their dogs gifts or cards for Valentine’s Day.
The first Sunday in February is Super Bowl Sunday (at least for the foreseeable future). It wasn’t always that way—until 2001, the game was played in January. But we’d say that’s a pretty good way to kick off a month.
Over time, the length of February kept changing. At one point, it had as little as 23 days.
In the Northern Hemisphere, February is the third month of winter. Meanwhile, in the Southern Hemisphere, February is the last month of summer. Between the North and South Hemispheres, February is the equivalent of August.
The name of February comes from the Latin word “februum” which means purification.
February was named after a purification ritual which was like an early Roman spring cleaning festival.
The Saxons called February “Sol-monath” which means “cake month” because they would offer cakes to the gods during February.
Of all the words you can misspell, February is one of the most misspelled words in the English language. Even the White House has misprinted the word “February” before in a press release!
February is the only month where it’s possible to go the entire time without having a full moon.
February has been Black History Month for over 40 years.
The odds of being born on February 29th are about 1 in 1,461. Those born on a leap day can be called a “leaper” or “leapling.”
February, March, and November always start on the same day of the week unless it is a leap year.
It was in February 1964 when The Beatles made their first American television appearance on the “Ed Sullivan Show.” Over 73 million Americans watched!
There are many U.S. states that entered the Union during the month of February. These include Massachusetts, Oregon, Arizona, and Mississippi, which were readmitted.
Sadly, on February 1, 2003, the Space Shuttle “Columbia” broke apart in flight, which killed all seven crew members. The accident was believed to be a result of damage that occurred during lift-off. The tragedy occurred only 16 minutes before the shuttle was scheduled to land.
On February 2, 1848, U.S. and Mexico signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo which ended their war. The U.S. paid Mexico $15 million in exchange for California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, and Texas.
This month is also about purification. It’s a month to prepare for spring: bringing the promise of longer days in the Northern hemisphere.
February is the only month of the year to have only 28 days (with the exception of leap years of course).
February (do you see that extra “r”?) is one of the most frequently misspelled words in the English language. In 2015, even the White House press office got it wrong—several times over the course of the month.
For more than 40 years, February has been Black History Month. The precursor to Black History Month, however, is a lot older. Black leaders in 1926 dedicated the second week in February to the recognizing the history of African-Americans—a week chosen to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln (Feb. 12) and Frederick Douglass (Feb. 14).
Speaking of that, February is National Snack Food Month as well. Way before the Super Bowl took over the first weekend of February, the month was pretty slow for snack sales—and National Snack Food Month was born. We’re guessing sales are up a little bit now.
The sneaky “r” is often overlooked in the spelling of February making it one of the most frequently misspelled words in the English language. Apparently, in 2015 even officials in the White House misspelled it several times on multiple daily and press schedules.
Derived from a Latin term februuum, meaning purification, the word February traces its roots back to a Roman purification ritual that was similar to today’s practice of spring cleaning/organizing.
February is the only month that can go by without a full moon. The last time there was no full moon in the month was 1999, and the next time will be in 2037!
February is a special month. It's the shortest of all the months in the calendar, and features an extra day (February 29th) every four years (known as the leap year).
Until the concept of a leap year was established, the number of days in February was subject to change every year. Talk about confusing!
In Old English, February was known as Solmonath, meaning "mud month," and and in Polish (where winters may be harsher than in England) it is known as luty, meaning the month of hard ice or frost.
If you were born in February, your birthstone is the amethyst. An amethyst is a beautiful deep purple stone, which is said to promote clear-headedness and cleverness. It also symbolizes sincerity and wisdom.
Scientist Charles Darwin, who specialized in the natural sciences and is credited with contributing greatly to the theory of evolution, was born on February 12th, 1809, and lived until 1882. He is known as being one of the most influential scientists of all time.
If you were born on February 29th, consider yourself lucky: there is only a 1 in 1,461 chance of that happening. People born on February 29th are called “leapers” or “leaplings”.
Some famous birthdays in February: civil rights activist Rosa Parks, Jamaican reggae artist Bob Marley and scientist Charles Darwin.
February is named for the Latin term februum, which refers to purification. Historically, mid-February was the time for Februa, a Roman purification ritual very similar to today's practice of spring cleaning.
Much like January, which was added later than the other months to the Roman calendar, February wasn't considered part of the calendar year until around 713 BC.
Born in February and wondering about your zodiac sign? If you were born on February 18th or before, you're an Aquarius, and you are likely to be inventive, clever, and original. If you were born in February but after the 18th, you are a Pisces, and are probably dreamy, emotional, and sometimes over-sensitive.
Rosa Parks, the American civil rights activist known for protesting against giving up her seat on the bus to a white passenger, was born on February 4th, 1913. Her birthday is commemorated as Rosa Parks Day in California and Missouri. She died in 2005, at the ripe old age of 92.
Bob Marley, much loved reggae musician, was born in Jamaica on February 6th, 1945. He tragically died of cancer in 1981, at the young age of 36.

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