By Lisa E. Kirkwood
With more daylight than in any other time of year, long vacations, and a wide array of observances of the sun and nature, social celebrations, music or art festivals, and other events, summer is the peak season of countless outdoor activities, even in regions with colder climates.
People usually start their fun routines as early as May Day, depending on geographical locations and available sunshine and warmth, with favorite pastimes such as fishing, swimming, hiking, biking, climbing and more, individually or in groups, way before the summer solstice when hot weather truly allows for enhanced personal and family recreation outside of home.
The summer solstice occurs when one of Earth’s poles has its maximum tilt toward the Sun which reaches its highest position in the sky. This happens twice yearly, once in each of the northern and southern hemispheres. Although the summer solstice has the longest day and shortest night annually for that hemisphere, the dates of earliest sunrise and latest sunset vary by a few days. This is because Earth orbits the Sun in an ellipse, and its orbital speed varies slightly during the year.
The summer solstice has been culturally important since pre-recorded history. In Europe, especially, as well as parts of the Middle East, Asia and the Americas, many ancient monuments are aligned with the sunrise or sunset on the summer solstice.
In the Roman empire, the traditional date of the summer solstice was June 24, and considered the middle of summer. On that day, in the ancient city of Rome, people celebrated Fors Fortuna, a goddess associated with luck, fortune, and destiny. At such a time, the veil between the world of the living and of the dead was believed to be thin. Men and women would adorn themselves with garlands, eat, drink, and party until dawn.
In newer religious observances, whether Druidic, Christian, or neopagan, the significance and exact celebration date of the summer solstice has varied, but most cultures recognize the event in some way with holidays, festivals, and rituals centered on nature and fertility.
Traditionally, in many European countries, the time around the summer solstice is called ‘midsummer’, but in some traditions or calendars it is seen as summer’s beginning.
In Sweden, midsummer is one of the year’s major holidays when the country closes down as much as during Christmas. It is widely celebrated with outdoor gatherings that include bonfires and feasting, more of a friendly occasion than a family reunion.
Bonfires are very common in Finland, where many people like to spend their midsummer in the countryside, not in cities and towns. Raising and dancing around a maypole is an activity that attracts families, friends, and neighbors. Fun fact: in northern countries, the maypole is often raised in June, because the cold climate makes it difficult to find the necessary greens and flowers in May, like in southern regions with warmer weather.
Throughout Europe, midsummer is a very special occasion, celebrated with greenery placed over gates and doors, houses and barns, which is thought to bring good fortune and health to people and livestock. This tradition of decorating one’s household with green leaves, twigs, and branches continues, though not so many people observe it like they used to.
In folk magic, midsummer was a very powerful night and the time for specific rituals, mainly for young maidens seeking suitors. Spirit lights were believed to appear at midsummer nights, marking a treasure spot to seekers of the mythical “fern in bloom” or finders of the “fern seed”.
In the old days, maidens would use special charms and bend over a well, unclothed, in order to see their future husband’s reflection. In another ongoing tradition, an unmarried woman collects seven different flowers and places them under her pillow to dream of the man she’d marry.
In my native country, Romania, the midsummer celebrations are named Drăgaica or Sînziene. Drăgaica is celebrated by a dance performed by a group of young girls, and one of them is chosen as the Drăgaica. She is dressed as a bride, with a wheat wreath, while the other girls, also clad in white, wear a veil with bedstraw flowers. Midsummer fairs are held in many Romanian villages and communities.
There are lots of superstitions related to this day, particularly those involving marriage or death. The term Sînziene originates in the Latin “Sancta Diana”, a goddess of fertility and nature, and customs of midsummer are mainly romantic in nature, involving young girls and their wedding prospects.
In Russia, many rites of this holiday relate to water, fertility, and self-purification. The girls, for example, would float their flower garlands on the water of rivers and tell their fortunes from their movement. Lads and girls jump over the flames of bonfires. Nude bathing is likewise practiced. Also, in Saint Petersburg the White Nights Festival that takes place from late May to early July, is also predominantly connected with water.
This is an annual summer celebration when the sun sets very late and rises early, leading to a period of long twilight. It’s a time of various cultural events, carnivals, and fireworks, with a magical and mystical atmosphere, when the city is vibrant and bustling with activity throughout the night, and even museums are open.
The Yakut people of the Sakha Republic celebrate a solstitial ceremony, Yhyakh, involving tethering a horse to a pole and circle dancing around it. Betting on reindeer or horse racing would often take place afterwards. The traditions are derived from Tengriism, the ancient sun religion of the region which has since been driven out by the Russian Empire, Russian Orthodox Church, and finally the Communist Party. Nowadays, old traditions have been encouraged, they have re-emerged and been revived, adding to them some modern connotations.
Although Midsummer Day was originally celebrated throughout European countries, its observance also extended to the Americas in the post-colonial era, and now it’s a worldwide event, becoming part of our rich and ever-expanding global cultural heritage.
