For most of us, the Summer Solstice – the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere — is just another day. We don’t really notice that the day is, in fact, roughly 3 seconds longer than the day before.
For the record, those along the parallel of, say, New York City enjoy a 15-hour-and-five-minute day on June 21st, with twilight officially ending at 9:04 p.m. Much better than the abbreviated 9-hour-and-15-minute day we suffer through in December on the Winter Solstice.
Although most of us don’t celebrate those extra couple of seconds of daylight, there have been plenty of celebrations and festivities to mark the Summer Solstice over the centuries, some of which carry over today. Here are a few interesting ones we wanted to share:
The ancient Greeks held several festivities marking what was their first day of the year as well as the one-month prelude to the start of the Olympic Games. Their Kronia celebration allowed slaves – on this one day each year – to participate in the festivities as equals with their masters.
Ancient Romans celebrated the Vestalia festival, which paid tribute to Vesta, the goddess of the hearth. Only on the Summer Solstice could married women enter the sacred temple of the vestal virgins and receive a blessing.
The ancient Chinese participated in a Summer Solstice ceremony honoring the earth, femininity and the force known as yin. Yin’s opposite force – yang, devoted to heaven and masculinity – was naturally celebrated at the opposite end of the calendar during the Winter Solstice.
Many Germanic, Slavic and Celtic pagans welcomed summer with bonfires, a tradition that is still enjoyed in Germany, Austria, Estonia and other countries. It was believed that the crops would grow as high as couples were able to jump across the fires. It was also hoped to boost the sun’s energy so it would remain strong and ensure a good harvest during the growing season.
Other cultures used water instead of fire in their Summer Solstice ceremonies. In ancient Sweden, a Midsummer Tree was erected and decorated in each town. Local villagers would dance around the tree, similar to the Maypole tradition of Britain. Women and young girls would customarily bathe in the local river as part of a ritual intended to bring rain for the crops.
Vikings used the Summer Solstice as a time to gather together in part to resolve disputes and discuss legal matters. They would also visit wells thought to have healing powers and build huge bonfires. In Iceland today, similar “Viking” Summer Solstice celebrations are still popular among both residents and tourists.
The ruins of Mayan and Aztec civilizations indicate they gave great significance to the Summer and Winter Solstices. Temples, public buildings and other structures were often precisely aligned with the shadows cast on those specific days.
Ancient Britons tie the Summer Solstice to the “wedding of Heaven and Earth,” which resulted in the modern-day belief that June is a “lucky” month for weddings. They also believed that the first (or only) Full Moon in June, the “Honey” Moon, is the best time to harvest honey from bee hives. Mead made from fermented honey was part of wedding ceremonies performed on the Summer Solstice, a tradition which continues today.
More famously, England’s ancient Stonehenge structure has long been connected to the Summer Solstice. Imitating centuries of tradition, many people today still gather at the site to observe the sun rise over the “sun-stone” through an avenue that might have been used as a procession route on the longest and shortest days of the year.
On this Summer Solstice, even if you don’t build a bonfire, bathe in the river or receive a blessing in a sacred temple, we hope you at least use your extra three seconds of daylight to remember our ancestors and the role they played in shaping the diverse cultural traditions we enjoy today.
Other names associated with the Summer Solstice: Adonia, St. John’s Feast Day, Jāņi, Liða, Midsommar, Ivan Kupala Day, Juhannus, Mittumaari, Alban Hefin, Gŵyl Ganol yr Haf, Sankthans, Jaanipäev, Keskikesä, Rasos
View cool photos of Summer Solstice celebrations here.
(Sources: history.com, scientificamerican.com, huffingtonpost.com, and examiner.com)