Summer solstice#Cultural aspects

{{Infobox holiday

| holiday_name = Summer solstice

| image = Summer Solstice Sunrise over Stonehenge 2005.jpg

| caption = Sunrise at Stonehenge in England during the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere

| observedby = Various cultures

| date = June 20, June 21, or June 22
(Northern Hemisphere)

and December 20, December 21, December 22, or December 23
(Southern Hemisphere)

| type = Cultural, astronomical

| significance = Beginning of lengthening nights and shortening days

| nickname = Midsummer; the Longest Day; the Shortest Night; Estival solstice

| duration = 1 day

}}

File:Himawari-8 Summer Solstice Midnight 2017.jpg

The summer solstice or estival solstice{{efn-lr|Also aestival solstice in British English. From Latin aestīvus, 'summer'.}} occurs when one of Earth's poles has its maximum tilt toward the Sun. It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern and Southern). The summer solstice is the day with the longest period of daylight and shortest night of the year in that hemisphere, when the sun is at its highest position in the sky. At either pole there is continuous daylight at the time of its summer solstice. The opposite event is the winter solstice.

The summer solstice occurs during the hemisphere's summer. In the Northern Hemisphere, this is the June solstice (20, 21 or 22 June) and in the Southern Hemisphere, this is the December solstice (20, 21, 22 or 23 of December). Since prehistory, the summer solstice has been a significant time of year in many cultures, and has been marked by festivals and rituals. Traditionally, in temperate regions (especially Europe), the summer solstice is seen as the middle of summer and referred to as midsummer; although today in some countries and calendars it is seen as the beginning of summer.

On the summer solstice, Earth's maximum axial tilt toward the Sun is 23.44°. Likewise, the Sun's declination from the celestial equator is 23.44°. In areas outside the tropics, the sun reaches its highest elevation angle at solar noon on the summer solstice.

File:north season.jpg for the Northern Hemisphere. Front right: summer solstice for the Southern Hemisphere.]]

Although the summer solstice is the longest day of the year for that hemisphere, the dates of earliest sunrise and latest sunset vary by a few days.{{Cite web |url=http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/rs_solstices.php |title=US Naval Observatory: Sunrise and Sunset Times Near the Solstices |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170618025538/http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/rs_solstices.php |archive-date=18 June 2017 |access-date=21 June 2017}} This is because Earth orbits the Sun in an ellipse, and its orbital speed varies slightly during the year.{{Cite web |url=http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/rs_solstices.php#long |title=The Long Story (USNO explanation) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170618025538/http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/rs_solstices.php#long |archive-date=18 June 2017 |access-date=21 June 2017}}

Culture

File:Summer solstice celebration - geograph.org.uk - 2534983.jpg in England]]

There is evidence that the summer solstice has been culturally important since the Neolithic era. Many ancient monuments in Europe especially, as well as parts of the Middle East, Asia and the Americas, are aligned with the sunrise or sunset on the summer solstice (see archaeoastronomy).{{cite book |editor1-last=Papadopoulos |editor1-first=Costas |editor2-last=Moyes |editor2-first=Holley |title=The Oxford Handbook of Light in Archaeology |date=2021 |publisher=Oxford University Press}}{{cite book |last1=Kelley |first1=David |last2=Milone |first2=Eugene |title=Exploring Ancient Skies: An Encyclopedic Survey of Archaeoastronomy |date=2005 |publisher=Springer Publishing}} The significance of the summer solstice has varied among cultures, but most recognize the event in some way with holidays, festivals, and rituals around that time with themes of fertility.{{Cite web |url=http://www.religioustolerance.org/summer_solstice.htm |title=Summer solstice celebrations of Christianity, Judaism, Neopaganism, etc |publisher=Religioustolerance.org |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628182003/http://www.religioustolerance.org/summer_solstice.htm |archive-date=2011-06-28 |access-date=2011-06-20}} In the Roman Empire, the traditional date of the summer solstice was 24 June.{{cite book |last1=O'Neill |first1=William Matthew |title=Time and the Calendars |date=1976 |publisher=Manchester University Press |page=85}} In Germanic-speaking cultures, the time around the summer solstice is called 'midsummer'. Traditionally in northern Europe midsummer was reckoned as the night of 23–24 June, with summer beginning on May Day.{{OEtymD|midsummer|accessdate=2023-06-22}} The summer solstice continues to be seen as the middle of summer in many European cultures, but in some cultures or calendars it is seen as summer's beginning.{{Cite web |url=http://weather.about.com/od/climatechange/fl/Astronomical-vs-Meteorological-Seasons.htm |title=The Astronomical vs. Meteorological Seasons |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161114165316/http://weather.about.com/od/climatechange/fl/Astronomical-vs-Meteorological-Seasons.htm |archive-date=2016-11-14 |access-date=2016-11-13}} In Sweden, midsummer is one of the year's major holidays when the country closes down as much as during Christmas.

= Observances =

;Traditional festivals

;Modern observances

Day of Private Reflection (Northern Ireland)
Fête de la Musique, also known as World Music Day
Fremont Solstice Parade (Fremont, Seattle, Washington, United States)
International Yoga Day
National Indigenous Peoples Day (Canada)
Santa Barbara Summer Solstice Parade (Santa Barbara, California, United States)

= In folk music =

"Oh at Ivan, oh at Kupala" (Ukr. Ой на Івана, ой на Купала) - Ukrainian folk song.
"Kupalinka" - (Belar. Купалінка) - Belarusian folk song
"There is a lake behind the hill" (Lith. Už kalnelio ežerėlis) - Lithuanian folk song.

Length of the day on northern summer solstice

The length of day increases from the equator towards the North Pole in the Northern Hemisphere in June (around the summer solstice there), but decreases towards the South Pole in the Southern Hemisphere at the time of the southern winter solstice.

Notes

References

External links

[https://www.SummerSolstice.uk SummerSolstice.uk - Summer Solstice Dates, Information & Community.]
[http://www.neoprogrammics.com/sun/Northern_Summer_Dates_and_Times.html NeoProgrammics - Table of Northern/Southern Solstice Dates/Times From 1600–2400]

Category:December observances

Category:June observances

Category:International observances

solstice

de:Sonnenwende#Sommersonnenwende