The observance of Groundhog Day in the United States first occurred in German communities in Pennsylvania, according to known records. The earliest mention of Groundhog Day is an entry on February 2, 1840, in the diary of James L. Morris of Morgantown, in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, according to the book on the subject by Don Yoder. This was a Where does the phrase ‘Groundhog Day’ come from? In 1993, the film Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray popularised the use of the term ‘groundhog day’ to mean something that is endlessly repeated.It also popularised the event itself: after the film came out, the crowd at Gobbler’s Knob grew from around 2,000 annual attendees to a staggering 40,000, which is nearly 8 times the population of Punxsutawney. The first official Groundhog Day celebration took place on February 2, 1887, in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. The annual ritual has roots in pre-Christian traditions and was brought to the U.S. by Most of us know the tradition: on February 2, our old friend the groundhog will emerge from hibernation, come out of his den, and predict whether winter will deliver more cold weather this year. If the groundhog sees his shadow, the story goes, cold weather will persist another few weeks. If not, warm weather is around the corner. If you like the folklore of holidays, you may be interested to Groundhog Day, in the United States and Canada, day (February 2) on which the emergence of the groundhog from its burrow is said to foretell the weather for the following six weeks. In the United States the most popular event occurs in Pennsylvania and centers on a groundhog designated Punxsutawney Phil. The Groundhog Day tradition dates back to Germany where a badger was used to determine the coming of spring. DamianKuzdak/Getty Images Places like Missouri, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin have These people brought the Lichtmess tradition with them and the badger was replaced by the groundhog. Research by Don Yoder, whose 2003 book Groundhog Day is a thorough history of the tradition, indicates that the term “Groundhog Day” was first seen in print in Pennsylvania in 1840. In 1887, a group of men in the Borough of Punxsutawney In other (paradoxical) words, a sunny warmer day, a day in which a groundhog (or anyone else) might be reasonably expected to cast a shadow, meant winter would come roaring back, but bad weather “Last Tuesday, the 2nd, was Candlemas day, the day on which, according to the Germans, the Groundhog peeps out of his winter quarters and if he sees his shadow he pops back for another six weeks To provide a smidge more detail, the movie Groundhog Day is about a man reliving the same day over and over and over. Every time he wakes up it's Groundhog Day again, and people always say the same things and do the same things over and over, and he's the only one who is aware of the infinite repetition and who is capable of doing things differently. Groundhog Club handler A.J. Dereume holds Punxsutawney Phil during the 138th celebration of Groundhog Day on Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Barry Reeger) Here's when Groundhog Day began: The first mention of Groundhog Day came in 1886 in Punxsutawney. Over the years, several other locations have begun using their own groundhog, including General While Groundhog Day isn't a federal holiday in the United States, the traditional observance celebrates the triumph of spring over winter. Groundhog Day is celebrated every year on Feb. 2. This The Groundhog Day celebration at Gobbler's Knob started in 1887. Aside from a 10-year gap, records for each prognostication have been meticulously kept. Groundhog Day festivities will begin early on February 2. Punxsutawney Phil is expected to reveal his winter prediction around sunrise. The events of the day last throughout the afternoon The observance of Groundhog Day in the United States first occurred in German communities in Pennsylvania, according to known records. The earliest mention of Groundhog Day is an entry on February 2, 1840, in the diary of James L. Morris of Morgantown, in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, according to the book on the subject by Don Yoder. This was a The groundhog is known as Punxsutawney Phil, because the town where the Groundhog Day tradition originated is called Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. A big celebration is still held in the town to this PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. – Sunday marks the day the U.S. turns to a groundhog to learn if winter will tighten its grip on the country or if spring will arrive soon. That’s right, it’s Groundhog Day. However, Phil’s winter prognostications have only been right about 39% of the time, according to He issued this proclamation on, appropriately enough, Groundhog Day, February 2nd. Punxsutawney Phil's fame began to spread, and newspapers from around the globe began to report Punxsutawney Phil's Groundhog Day predictions. Today, over 20,000 fans come to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania on Groundhog Day.
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