Ohjelma:
15.30 katsomme Kaisan Kamarin pihalla, näkeekö murmeli varjonsa vai ei n. 15.40 siirrymme sisätiloihin kaffikupposen ääreen pohtimaan ja keskustelemaan tuloksesta, miten kauan se talvi vielä jatkuu.. ja tietenkin vähän kätköilystäkin
Tietoa Murmelinpäivästä hieman suomeksi, enemmän englanniksi Wikipediasta.
Groundhog Day (Murmelinpäivä) on Yhdysvalloissa ja Kanadassa vietettävä juhlapäivä.
Juhlan tarkoituksena on joka vuoden 2. helmikuuta ennustaa, kuinka kauan talvi kestää. Tämän selvittämiseksi ajetaan metsämurmeli (engl. groundhog) pesästään. Mikäli sää on pilvinen, eikä murmelin varjoa näy, ennustetaan talven loppuvan pian. Mikäli sää on aurinkoinen ja murmelin varjo näkyy, kestää talvi vielä vähintään kuusi viikkoa.
Muualla maailmassa juhla on tullut tunnetuksi Päiväni murmelina -elokuvasta, jonka pääosassa on Bill Murray. Elokuvan trailerin pätkä tästä linkistä: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSVeDx9fk60
Groundhog Day (Canadian French: Jour de la Marmotte; Pennsylvania German: Grundsaudaag, Murmeltiertag) is a traditional holiday celebrated on February 2. According to folklore, if it is cloudy when a groundhog emerges from its burrow on this day, then the spring season will arrive early, some time before the vernal equinox; if it is sunny, the groundhog will supposedly see its shadow and retreat back into its den, and winter weather will persist for six more weeks.
Modern customs of the holiday involve early morning celebrations to watch the groundhog emerging from its burrow.
In southeastern Pennsylvania, Groundhog Lodges (Grundsow Lodges) celebrate the holiday with fersommlinge, social events in which food is served, speeches are made, and one or more g'spiel (plays or skits) are performed for entertainment. The Pennsylvania German dialect is the only language spoken at the event, and those who speak English pay a penalty, usually in the form of a nickel, dime, or quarter per word spoken, with the money put into a bowl in the center of the table.
Groundhog Day was adopted in the U.S. in 1887. Clymer H. Freas was the editor of the local paper Punxsutawney Spirit at the time, and he began promoting the town’s groundhog as the official "Groundhog Day meteorologist".]
The largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, with Punxsutawney Phil. Groundhog Day, already a widely recognized and popular tradition,[5] received widespread attention as a result of the 1993 film Groundhog Day.[6]
History
The celebration began as a Pennsylvania German custom in southeastern and central Pennsylvania in the 18th and 19th centuries. It has its origins in ancient European weather lore, in which a badger or a sacred bear is the prognosticator, as opposed to a groundhog. It also bears similarities to the Pagan festival of Imbolc (the seasonal turning point of the Celtic calendar, which is celebrated on February 2 and also involves weather prognostication), and to St. Swithun's Day on July 15.
Historical origins
The groundhog (Marmota monax) is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels.
Banner of Grundsow Lodsh Nummer Sivva (Groundhog Lodge Number Seven), of Pennsburg, Pennsylvania.
The first documented American reference to Groundhog Day can be found in a diary entry,[9] dated February 4, 1841, by Morgantown, Pennsylvania, storekeeper James Morris:
Last Tuesday, the 2nd, was Candlemas day, the day on which, according to the Germans,[10] the Groundhog peeps out of his winter quarters and if he sees his shadow he pops back for another six weeks nap, but if the day be cloudy he remains out, as the weather is to be moderate.
From England, the poem:
If Candlemas be fair and bright,
Winter has another flight.
If Candlemas brings clouds and rain,
Winter will not come again.
From Scotland, the poem:
If Candlemas Day is bright and clear,
There'll be two winters in the year.
From Germany, the poem:
For as the sun shines on Candlemas Day,
So far will the snow swirl until May.
For as the snow blows on Candlemas Day,
So far will the sun shine before May.