An even year oddly enough
THIS year sees another leap year, an occurrence which happens every four years whereby the year has an additional day and lasts 366 days as opposed to the normal 365. This occurs so as to keep the calendar year synchronised with the astronomical or seasonal year.
Seasonal years do not repeat in a whole number of days, and therefore a calendar which has the same number of days every year would drift over time in relation to actual event it was supposed to mark. A leap year (or intercalary or bissextile year) is known as karkausvuosi in Finland.
In the Gregorian calendar, the current standard calendar in most of the world, February in a leap year has 29 days instead of the usual 28. A person born on 29 February is often known as a ‘leaper’ or ‘leapling’ and generally celebrates their non-leap year birthdays on 28 February or 1 March – the latter being more common as it is the day after 28 February.
In many countries there is a tradition that women may propose marriage to men on a leap year. Supposedly Mary Queen of Scots decreed in 1288 that refusal to accept this proposal would result in a fine and in Finland a man who refused the proposal should buy the woman the fabric for a dress.
DAVE DUNNE
HELSINKI TIMES
