Thursday, December 4, 2014

What is the “Long Nights Moon”?


4 December 2014


The Short Answer (TSA)


            To the Native American population of North America, “moons” were periods of time consisting of about 30 days.  Actually, from the standpoint of the sky-watcher on earth, the average period from New Moon to New Moon is about 29.6 days.

            But these periods of time, “moons,’ got their names based on the month in which the full moon happened.  So the “Long Nights Moon,” as a moon-month, began with the New Moon on November 22nd.  But the Full “Long Nights Moon” will be seen on Saturday, December 6th.  Because the Full Moon of the period falls in December, what the Native Americans would have called the “Long Nights Moon” began on 22nd of November and will end on the 21st of December. 

            The early European settlers in North America already had a calendar.  Basically, it was the same calendar we have today, though less accurately calculated (it had a tendency to “lose time” and fall behind like a bad watch).  But, fast or slow, the settlers stuck to their calendar. 

            What they called the “Long Nights Moon” was just the full moon.  They probably borrowed the name from the Native Americans.  When the first European settlers became permanent residents and farmers, the Farmers Almanac picked up these early names as the names of the full moons.  You can find these names there, today. 


            We might guess that there wasn’t a lot to do during the deep winter in the northern part of North America.  Maybe this contributed to the, relatively, lack-luster names given to the winter moons.  While other full moons boasted rather exciting or interesting names like “Wolf” or “Strawberry,” the December full moon was just given the dreary name, “Long Nights.”   

            Why long nights?  

            The weather becomes cold and nights become longer and longer.  The longest night of the year happens on the Winter Solstice, the day when sun’s rays are weakest in the Northern Hemisphere.  This usually happens around December 21-23 of each year.  After that, with each passing day, the nights become shorter and days become longer.  At least, the days become longer until the Summer Solstice, in June, when, after the longest day of year, the yearly cycle begins, again.

Mark Grossmann of Hazelwood, Missouri & Belleville, Illinois










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