Yes, winter solstice was yesterday but in case you haven’t noticed, I’ve generally been posting on Tues, Thurs, and Saturday mornings. It may be a day late but I’ve always found history involving the winter and summer Solstice really interesting. The winter solstice is the shortest day and therefore the longest night of the year. It occurs when one of the Earth’s poles has its maximum tilt away from the Sun. The solstice marks the start of astronomical winter and after it the days start to become just a little bit longer and the nights just a smidge shorter. In the Northern Hemisphere, it generally takes place between December 20 and 23 but that is depending on the year. The opposite is true in the Southern Hemisphere where the shortest day arrive sometime in June.
The winter solstice has been observed since as early as 10,200 BC. That means people in as early as the Neolithic period—the last part of the Stone Age – observed the solstice. Pretty cool, right? There are even specific monuments (Neolithic) that are specifically dedicated to observing the solstice. Places like, Newgrange in Ireland and Maeshowe in Scotland are aligned with the sunrise on the winter solstice. Light and fire are traditional symbols of celebrations held on the darkest day of the year and archeologists think that these monuments may have been used to performs rituals to capture the sun.
Stonehenge is another prime example, but it is oriented toward the winter solstice sunset. Stonehenge is an ancient prehistoric site that has been a place of celebration at the time of winter solstice for thousands of years. It is believed that the yearly cycle of solstice is what inspired the Neolithic people to construct Stonehenge, which is a monument aligned to the movements of the sun. Studying the passage of time was very important to most ancient cultures.
For the people of Stonehenge sunlight was crucial – it helped their crops grow, provided them with sight, and kept them warm. It’s easy to see why they were desperate for the sun to come back. You can, in fact, still attend Winter Solstice celebrations at Stonehenge, which is something I would absolutely love to do some day! Admission is free and you can find out more information here.It’s actually today this year!
But the winter solstice wasn’t only celebrated in what is the United Kingdom today. The Ancient Romans held a lot celebrations around the time of the winter solstice including, Saturnalia. This was a celebration (holiday) that honored Saturn, the god of agriculture. It was a weeklong celebration that was held on the days leading up to the winter solstice. Saturnalia flipped Roman society on it’s head because it was an uncharacteristically hedonistic time. A time when food and drink were excessively enjoyed and slaves would become masters. Essentially peasants were in command of the city and Business and everything was closed so that everyone could join in the fun.
Sol Invictus ( or the “The Unconquered Sun”) was originally a Syrian deity, who was adopted as the preeminent Roman god. Sol Invictus was brought to the Romans by Emperor Aurelian and became the official sun god. In the later Roman Empire he was the patron of soldiers and his birthday was celebrated on December 25. As celebrations of Saturnalia died away, this evolved to become the predominant winter festival; the date was eventually co-opted by Christians as the faith spread.
Of course, the Norsemen of Scandinavia celebrated Yule from the winter solstice all the way through January. This is where the tradition of the Yule Log began when fathers and sons, in recognition of the return of the sun, would bring home large logs. They would set the log on the fire and people would feast until the log burned out, which could take up to 12 days. The Norse believed that each spark from the fire represented a new livestock animal that would be born during the coming year.
St. Lucia’s Day is also a Scandinavian winter solstice festival of lights. It is now meant to honor St. Lucia, a Christian martyr. However, it has been integrated into earlier Norse solstice traditions. Examples include lighting fires to ward off spirits during the longest night and girls dressing in white gowns, red sashes and wearing wreaths of candles on their heads to honor St. Lucia.
As you can see the winter solstice has been celebrated by many different cultures through out history. I hope to one day make it to Stonehenge to see that celebration and would love to be chosen to attend Newgrange’s celebration. You see, all access to the chamber is decided by lottery. However, everyone else is welcome to come and stand on the outside of the monument. But wouldn’t it be amazing to be inside?
I hope everyone is having a great holiday season!
Resources
“Winter Solstice.” History.com, A&E Networks: 2017. https://www.history.com/topics/natural-disasters-and-environment/winter-solstice
