Everybody knows that February 2 is groundhog day, but not everyone knows that groundhog day began as a Christain Holy Day. According to Western religious tradition, Groundhog Day, which is more formally known as Candlemas Day, is the Feast of the Purification of Mary. According to Jewish law a new mother is "unclean" for 14 days after a child is born. Mary, the mother of Jesus presented herslf to the Priest to be purified on Candlemas. In the Eastern Church, Candlemas is the celebration of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple. The word Candlemas means "the blessing of candles" but this practice did not enter the ceremony until sometime in the eleventh century. The celebration of Candlemas in Europe was combined with pagan candlelight ceremonies that were intended to invegorate the fields before planting.
According to the Dutch Folklore Center, Franklin and Marshall College, the earliest reference to groundhog day as it is recognized today is February 4, 1841. A storekeeper at Morgantown, Pennsylvania wrote; Last Tuesday, the 2ndinst., 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 nap, but if the day be cloudy he remains out, as the weather is to be moderate.
Punxsutawnet Phil is probably the most famous of all groundhogs. He lives in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania where he is greeted every year with pomp and circumstance as the town awaits his weather prediction. According to the president of the Punxsutawnet Groundhog Club, Punxsutawnet Phil has never been wrong in his predictions. Other less known weather prognosticators are Pothole Pete in New York and Chipper in Brookfield Illinois.
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