December is the 12th month of the Julian and Gregorian calendars. The name December means 10th month as it was the 10th month of the year according to the ancient Roman calendar that began in March.
Other Names for the Month
Anglo Saxon – Yule monath or Winter monath
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December Correspondences
The birth flower for December is either the Holly or the Poinsettia.
The birthstone for December is either blue topaz, turquoise, zircon or tanzanite.
December Folklore
Weather
Much rain in October, much wind in December
Green on winter’s solstice, white on spring’s equinox
A green December fills the graveyard
Romance
Marry on December 3rd, for all the grief you’ve ever heard.
The December Sky
In December, those in the Northern Hemisphere get the best view of Orion’s constellation.
The new moon in December will be either in the sign of Sagittarius or Capricorn.
The full moon in December is called the Full Cold Moon or the Long Night’s Moon. If the full moon falls in the first half of the month, while the Sun is in Sagittarius, the full moon will be in Gemini. If the full moon falls in the latter part of the month when the Sun is in Capricorn, the full moon will be in Cancer.
Feast Days in December
The Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere and the Summer Solstice in the Southern Hemisphere occurs sometime between December 20th and 23rd.
- Saint Nicholas’ Day – December 6
- Egil Skallagrimsson’s Day – December 9
- Human Rights Day – December 10
- Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe – December 12
- Saint Lucia’s Day – December 13
- Festivus – December 23
- HumanLight – December 23
- Yule – December 21
- Christmas – December 25
- Boxing Day – December 26
- Kwanzaa – December 26 – January 1
- Dies Natalis Solis Invicti – December 25
- Brumalia
- Saturnalia – December 17
- Mōdraniht
- Holy Innocents Day – December 28
- New Year’s Eve – December 31
