What are some Leap Year superstitions from around the world?

Happy Leap Year!

Every four years, an additional day is added to the calendar at the end of February, which is the shortest month of the year.

Different countries have developed superstitions and traditions surrounding the holiday to celebrate this peculiar feature of the Gregorian Calendar. The prevalence of the Gregorian calendar, the successor of the Julian calendar, in Europe and then the world has only been a recent adoption. It was only throughout the 20th century that nations in other parts of the World adopted the Gregorian calendar as European empires spread. Thus, the existence of Asian superstitions for a European calendar, for example, do not exist.

The English have crafted the perfect cocktail for those looking to celebrate with a drink. Devised by bartender Harry Craddock to celebrate Leap Day, he whipped up a drink sure to have you feeling something consisting of gin, sweet vermouth, lemon juice, and Grand Marnier.

Power to the ladies

In Ireland, where traditionally men have been the ones to pop the question, women can propose. The practice is tied to Irish folklore and important Catholic figures, St. Patrick and St Brigid. St. Brigid, the patron saint of Ireland, asked St Patrick to give the power to women whose male companions had not yet asked them to marry. Permission was granted so long as the proposal fell on the 29th of February.

This tradition was spread to Scotland by Irish monks, and once it arrived, additional details were added to the lore. In Scotland, women who choose to propose to their beloved are required to do so while wearing a red petticoat. For the man, it can be a dangerous day as rejecting the proposal made by women on Leap Day means handing over some cash, or according to Euro News, “the gift of a silk dress.”

A gift of gloves in Denmark

In Denmark, a gift must also be given to women who are refused on Leap Day. However, unlike the compensation required in Ireland and Scotland, a man must hand over twelve gloves. These gloves are meant to protect the woman’s dignity as she can hide the fact that she is not wearing an engagement ring.

Bad luck in Greece

Unlike Ireland, in Greece, getting married during a Leap Year is considered very bad luck and could end with the premature death of your betrothed or divorce. Additionally, divorcing during a Leap Year could saddle the members of the couple with a lifetime of discontent.