From June 22, every day is on the decline - nights are getting longer and days are shorter. The maximum when we observe the longest night and the shortest day is reached on December 22. It is from this date that the period begins when the day begins to increase and the night shortens.
Longest night
If you want to sleep, then the most successful for you will be December 22. Astronomers have noticed that the longest night is observed on this day in the Northern Hemisphere. And on the next day, when the day begins to increase, the light time will become more and more.
December 22, the sun rises above the horizon to the lowest height. There is a fairly simple scientific explanation for this. The Earth’s orbit is ellipsoidal. The earth at this time is at the farthest point in the orbit. Therefore, the Sun in the Northern Hemisphere in December rises above the horizon to a minimum height, and the peak of this minimum falls on December 22.
Exact date or not?
It is considered to be the date when the day begins to increase, December 22. All calendars mark it as Winter Solstice. But to be absolutely accurate and to take into account all the modern research of astronomers and physicists, we will have to state such a fact. The position of the sun for several days before the solstice and after does not completely change its tilt. And only 2-3 days after the solstice, we can state that the time has come when daylight begins to add.
So if you follow scientific research, the answer to the question of when the day will begin to increase will be like this - December 24-25. It is from this period of the night that they become a little shorter, and the daylight hours become longer and longer. But at the household level, information was firmly entrenched that the time when daylight hours began to increase was on December 22.
Such inaccuracy is forgiven by scientists. Indeed, sometimes folk signs based on centuries-old observations are much more tenacious than recent modern studies.
Gold for important news
The Slavs not only marked December 22 as the date when the day begins to increase in winter, but also carefully watched what the weather was like during these days, how the birds and animals behaved.
It is on December 22 that the proverb "The sun is for the summer, winter for the frost" is attributed. If frost fell on the trees that day, it was considered a good omen. Means to be a rich grain harvest.
Interestingly, in the sixteenth century in Russia, the ringing headman of the Moscow Cathedral went to the Tsar with "important" information. He reported that the Sun would burn brighter, that nights would now be shorter, and days would be longer. In general, he did not allow the king to forget the date when the day was being added. The importance of such a report can be judged by the fact that the king always awarded the headman a gold coin. After all, the news was joyful - winter is on the wane. And although cold January snowfalls and severe February frosts awaited the inhabitants of Russia, the very fact that day prevails over night was optimistic.
Glory to the coming spring
Why in ancient times was such attention given to the Winter Solstice? After all, modern people remember him very rarely, and even more so do not mark the date when daylight hours begin to increase. Unless in the news they mention a short line, that’s all. But our ancestors, whose life depended entirely on the Sun and heat, celebrated this date widely and massively.
Huge bonfires were made in the streets, both adults and children jumped over them. The girls were dancing, and the guys competed who would show strength and ingenuity. In ancient Russia, the shortest day of the year was celebrated joyfully and loudly. But Europe did not lag behind.
Sun wheel on antiquities
In Europe, immediately after the Winter Solstice, pagan holidays started, which lasted exactly 12 days, according to the number of months. People had fun, visited, praised nature and rejoiced at the beginning of a new life.
There was an interesting custom in Scotland. An ordinary barrel was smeared with melted resin, then it was set on fire and rolled down the street. It was the so-called solar wheel, or otherwise - the solstice. The burning wheel resembled the Sun, it seemed to people that they could control the heavenly body. Such a solstice was done both in ancient Russia and in other European countries.
It is interesting that archaeologists find the image of the sun wheel in various countries: in India and Mexico, in Egypt and Gaul, in Scandinavia and Western Europe. Such cave paintings are also abundant in Buddhist monasteries. By the way, the Buddha, after all, is also called the “King of the Wheels” among other names. I really wanted the ancient people to control the sun.
