The second month of the year is the shortest one, but it’s chock full of events besides Valentine’s Day. Here’s some interest things we discovered about the month we thought we’d share.
1. February is one of the most frequently misspelled words in the English language.
2. February is American Heart Month, Black History Month, Canned Food Month, Grapefruit Month, Hot Breakfast Month, Return Shopping Carts to the Supermarket Month. and our favorite” National Snack Food month.
3. February got its start as a spring-cleaning festival. Well, kind of. It’s named after one: “Februa” was an early Roman festival and cleansing ritual held on Feb. 15.
4. February doesn’t always have a full moon. The last time it didn’t was 1999. The next time it won’t will be 2037!
5. Groundhog Day originated in Germany. Oddly enough there it’s not a groundhog that forecasts either an early spring or a longer winter: It’s a badger.
6. The odds of being born on Feb. 29 are about 1 in 1,461.
7. Valentine’s Day did not start on a romantic note. According to historians, the day now synonymous with “love” probably began as a pagan fertility festival in ancient Rome. We’ll leave it at that, because some of the other details are disturbing. Another thing: Millions of people in the U.S. buy their dogs gifts or cards for Valentine’s Day.
8. The first Sunday in February is Super Bowl Sunday but it wasn’t always that way—until 2001, the game was played in January. But we’d say that’s a pretty good way to kick off a month.
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