The_Guardian_-_2016-12-29

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Environment
Weatherwatch
In weather folklore, the annual forecasts come
in rhymes
The 12 days of Christmas are said to set the pattern for weather for the whole of the coming year
The Norwegian Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square, London. Photograph: Paul
Brown/REX/Shutterstock
Weather folklore often coincides with significant dates on our calendar: saint’s days and quarter days
are associated with many sayings, including, of course, St Swithun’s day.
So it’s not surprising that the 12 days from Christmas Day to Epiphany, on 6 January, are said to set
the pattern for the weather for the next year, while thunder is supposed to mean heavy snowfalls for
the rest of the winter.
Wind at Christmas is said to be a sign of a fine year’s weather ahead; though should it be windy on
Boxing Day then the grape harvest will, apparently, be a bad one. Heavy rain at this time of year is
also supposed to mean a damp twelve months to come.
Much of this supposed wisdom comes from the various almanacs and calendars that were popular
during the early modern period. One of these, the Shepherd’s Kalendar pays special attention to the
weather on the feast of the Holy Innocents, otherwise known as Childermas, and marked by the
Western Christian churches on 28 December, and by the Eastern Orthodox churches on 29 December.
Again, wet and windy weather predicts scarcity while fair, fine weather means plenty.
But the last word must go to this rhyme for the last day of the year:
If New Year’s Eve night wind blow south
It betokeneth warmth and growth;