Groundhog Day 2023 Punxsutawney
Below you can find dates of Groundhog Day 2023 and Groundhog Day 2024. In the table you can check how many days you have been on holiday, which week is the holiday and which day of the month. Show
Groundhog DayGroundhog Day is a holiday celebrated in the United States and Canada on February 2. According to folklore, if groundhog Punxsutawney Phil comes out of his stump on the stage at Gobbler’s Knob and can see its shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter. If it cannot see its shadow, spring is around the corner. Although Groundhog Day is not a public holiday, it is a popular observance in many parts of the United States. Some states have their own groundhogs by following the same rituel, the official groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, lives at Gobbler’s Knob near Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. The town has attracted thousands of visitors over the years to experience various Groundhog Day events and activities on February 2. Groundhog Day is part of the ancient Candlemas Day tradition, where history has been celebrated in winter and celebrating the mummies to be distributed. The candles represented how long and cold the winter would be. The Germans extended this concept by choosing another animal, hedgehog, to predict the weather. Once they came to America, German settlers in Pennsylvania continued the tradition, although they exchanged the hedgehogs to groundhogs, as these animals are plenty in the Keystone State. In 1887, the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club announced that Phil, the Punxsutawney groundhog, was America's single true weather forecaster. Groundhog Day BackgroundPunxsutawney held its first Groundhog Day in the United States in the 1800s. The first official observance to Gobbler's Knob was made on February 2, 1887. It is said that Punxsutawney Phil (the groundhog) was named after King Phillip. He was called Br'er Groundhog prior to being known as Phil. In Europe many years ago, people watched for other hibernating animals, including badgers, bears, and hedgehogs, as signs of winter's end. Germans who immigrated to Pennsylvania in the mid-1800s began keeping observe the groundhog. The widespread population of rodents has become useful for this particular superstition. Punxsutawney Phil lives in a climate-controlled habitat neighboring the Punxsutawney Library. A local celebrity, he gained national fame in the 1993 movie Groundhog Day. The weather-watching rodent's predictions are recorded in the Congressional Records of the National Archive. Phil has seen his shadow about 85% of the time so far. Canada has the same tradition, as well. Canada's Groundhog Day observes their own predictions of an albino groundhog named Wiarton Willie. Although Punxsutawney Phil is the most famous one, some other US cities have their own special groundhogs. For example, New York City's official groundhog is called "Pothole Pete." Groundhog Day CelebrationsIn the 1880s some friends in Punxsutawney, Penn., went into the woods on Candlemas Day to look for groundhogs. This outing became a tradition, and a local newspaper editor nicknamed the seekers "the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club." Starting in 1887 the search became an official event centered on a groundhog called Punxsutawney Phil. This ceremony still takes place every year. Club members, news reporters, locals, and visitors meet at Gobbler’s Knob on February 2 each year to await Phil’s appearance and his weather prediction. The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club plays an important role in organizing Groundhog Day. Pennsylvania’s governor also attends Groundhog Day ceremonies. Many weather researchers try to explain the groundhog’s accuracy in predicting the weather and collect the “data”. Groundhog Day is an observance but it is not a public holiday in the United States. However, areas around parks and some streets may be busy or congested in towns, such as Punxsutawney, where Groundhog Day events are getting more popular each year. You may look for local festivities happening in your city in the Groundhog Day. Some cities in North America have their own Groundhog Day celebrations. Depending on the town, they have a parade, festival, or some live shows celebrating Groundhog Day. Contact your city government to find out about Groundhog Day festivities for times and locations to attend them. If you want to experience something new in the Groundhog Day, you can check out a groundhog lodge festival. Groundhog lodges are clubs in Pennsylvania that preserve German immigrant culture. Dozens of groundhog lodges celebrate Groundhog Day with food, games, and songs. You may look for a lodge festival closest to you, and join in on their celebrations. Besides watching Phil leave his burrow, Punxsutawney also hosts an entire weekend of festivities. In the morning, town locals gather together for an annual breakfast. A celebration tent in the center of town organizes fun activities, like a cornhole tournament and top hat decorating contest. Then, in the evening, you can join the Groundhog Ball at the local country club. Groundhog Day Customs and TraditionsObserving Punxsutawney Phil emerging from his burrow is often broadcasted on TV. Punxsutawney has observed the holiday officially since 1886. This most famous groundhog actually lives at Gobbler’s Knob, a park just outside of Punxsutawney. In Quarryville, PA, citizens at the Slumbering Lodge combine Groundhog Day festivities with Fersommling, an event that includes food, drinks and speeches. Only the Pennsylvania Dutch dialect can be spoken, and speakers of any other language are fined. This celebration includes Punxsutawney’s rival, Octoraro Orphie, whose followers claim is more reliable and also less concerned with fame. Merges with German or Dutch culture. Many Groundhog Day celebrations are centered on a celebration of German or Dutch culture, since the day’s origins come from German folklore. Although the groundhog’s prediction is not necessarily taken seriously, still approximately 40,000 people attend the Groundhog Day celebration in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania each February 2nd. Reading up on Groundhog Day history would be a good idea for celebration this magical day. Whether you research alone or with friends, learn about the origins of Groundhog Day. In German culture, people believed that hedgehogs could predict winter if it saw its shadow. When some Germans came to Pennsylvania, they brought this tradition with them but switched it from hedgehogs to groundhogs. The first recognized Groundhog Day celebration was February 2, 1887, when the town of Punxsutawney dubbed their groundhog Phil America's weather-forecasting animal. Going on a nature walk is another suggestion to do for celebration Groundhog Day. If groundhogs are native to your environment, go on a hike or trail walk and look for groundhogs. Go with a group and make a game out of who can spot the most groundhogs. If you can't see any, enjoy the fresh air and see if there really will be six more weeks of winter. If groundhogs aren't native to your area, you may visit your local zoo too see them. Groundhog Day Facts
Groundhog Day Symbols
Check out the Groundhog Day in the following years.
What did the groundhog say 2023?Groundhog Day for the year 2023 is celebrated/ observed on Thursday, February 2nd. Groundhog Day is observed February 2 every year.
How old is the current Punxsutawney Phil 2022?HOW OLD IS PHIL? According to Groundhog Club members, there has only been one Phil — and he has been predicting since 1887. That makes him 135 years old!
How often is Punxsutawney Phil's prediction correct?Records kept by the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club show Phil has predicted 105 continued winters and only 20 early springs. According to the Stormfax Almanac, that works out to a 39% accuracy rate for Phil. In the near term, the groundhog's accuracy rate is slightly better.
What was Punxsutawney Phil 2022 prediction?Groundhog Day 2022: Punxsutawney Phil predicts 6 more weeks of winter as massive storm threatens wide swath of U.S. Pennsylvania's most famous groundhog emerged from his burrow on a cold Wednesday morning and saw his shadow, declaring there would be six more weeks of winter.
|