Winter Solstice marks the shortest day in the northern hemisphere. On this day, the Sun is directly over Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere. Here are seven amazing facts about Winter Solstice:
The word ‘solstice’ has been derived from Latin and means ‘Sun stands still’.
Many Christmas traditions have roots in Pagan celebration of winter solstice. For example, Scandinavians burnt a juul (yule) log to honour the god Thor.
Primary axis of Stonehenge is oriented to setting Sun on Winter Solstice day.
For ancient Romans, Winter Solstice represented a time to worship Saturn, the god of agriculture.
Though winter is symbolised by Winter Solstice, coldest days of the season often come afterwards.
Dong Zhi means ‘winter arrives’. Families gather together on this day and celebrate the past year.
Since the solstice has to do with a planet’s tilt and orbit around the Sun, every planet in the solar system has its own Winter Solstice.