December is the twelfth and final month of the year in the Julian and

Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It was introduced in October 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian calendar. The principal change was to space leap years dif ...

s and is also the last of seven months to have a length of 31 days. Les Très Riches Heures du duc de Berry décembre

December got its name from the Latin word ''decem'' (meaning ten) because it was originally the tenth month of the year in the calendar of Romulus which began in March. The winter days following December were not included as part of any month. Later, the months of January and February were created out of the monthless period and added to the beginning of the calendar, but December retained its name. Macrobius, '' Saturnalia'', tr. Percival Vaughan Davies (New York: Columbia University Press, 1969), book I, chapters 12–13, pp. 89–95. In

Ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...

, as one of the four

Agonalia An Agonalia or Agonia was an obscure archaic religious observance celebrated in ancient Rome several times a year, in honor of various divinities. Its institution, like that of other religious rites and ceremonies, was attributed to Numa Pomp ...

, this day in honour of

Sol Indiges Sol is the personification of the Sun and a god in ancient Roman religion. It was long thought that Rome actually had two different, consecutive sun gods: The first, Sol Indiges ( la, the deified sun), was thought to have been unimportant, disap ...

was held on December 11, as was

Septimontium The Septimontium was a proto-urban festival celebrated in ancient Rome by ''montani'', residents of the seven ''(sept-)'' communities associated with the hills or peaks of Rome ''(montes)'': Oppius, Palatium, Velia, Fagutal, Cermalus, Caelius ...

. Dies natalis (birthday) was held at the temple of

Tellus Tellus is a Latin word meaning "Earth" and may refer to: * An alternative name for the planet Earth * Tellus of Athens, a citizen of ancient Athens who was thought to be the happiest of men * Tellus Mater or Terra Mater, the ancient Roman earth mo ...

on December 13, Consualia was held on December 15, Saturnalia was held December 17–23,

Opiconsivia The Opiconsivia (or Opeconsiva or Opalia) was an ancient Roman religious festival held August 25 in honor of Ops ("Plenty"), also known as Opis, a goddess of agricultural resources and wealth. The festival marked the end of harvest, with a mirro ...

was held on December 19,

Divalia The Divalia was a Roman festival held on December 21, in honour of the goddess Angerona In Roman religion, Angerona or Angeronia was an old Roman goddess, whose name and functions are variously explained. She is sometimes identified with the god ...

was held on December 21,

Larentalia The Roman festival of Larentalia was held on 23 December but was ordered to be observed twice a year by Augustus; by some supposed to be in honour of the Lares, a kind of domestic ''genii'', or divinities, worshipped in houses, and esteemed the gua ...

was held on December 23, and the dies natalis of

Sol Invictus Sol Invictus (, "Unconquered Sun"), sometimes simply known as Helios, was long considered to be the official sun god of the later Roman Empire. In recent years, however, the scholarly community has become divided on Sol between traditionalists ...

was held on December 25. These dates do not correspond to the modern Gregorian calendar. The

Anglo-Saxons The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

referred to December–January as

Ġēolamonaþ Ġēolamōnaþ or Ȝēolamōnaþ (modern English: ''Yule month'') was the Anglo-Saxon name for the month of both December and January. The Anglo-Saxon scholar Bede explains in his treatise '' De temporum ratione'' (The Reckoning of Time) that th ...

(modern English: "

Yule Yule, actually Yuletide ("Yule time") is a festival observed by the historical Germanic peoples, later undergoing Christianised reformulation resulting in the now better-known Christmastide. The earliest references to Yule are by way of indi ...

month"). The French Republican Calendar contained December within the months of

Frimaire Frimaire () was the third month in the French Republican Calendar. The month was named after the French word ''frimas'', which means ''frost''. Frimaire was the third month of the autumn quarter (''mois d'automne''). It started between 21 Novemb ...

and

Nivôse Nivôse (; also ''Nivose'') was the fourth month in the French Republican Calendar. The month was named after the Latin word ''nivosus'', which means ''snowy''. Nivôse was the first month of the winter quarter (''mois d'hiver''). It started b ...

Astronomy

Hans Bol - Adriaen Collaert - Emblemata evangelica - Erfgoedfonds Koning Boudewijnstichting - Fonds du Patrimoine Fondation Roi Baudouin - 12

December contains the

winter solstice The winter solstice, also called the hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's poles reaches its maximum tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern and Southern). For that hemisphere, the winter ...

in the Northern Hemisphere, the day with the fewest daylight hours, and the summer solstice in the Southern Hemisphere, the day with the most daylight hours (excluding polar regions in both cases). December in the Northern Hemisphere is the seasonal equivalent to

June June is the sixth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is the second of four months to have a length of 30 days, and the third of five months to have a length of less than 31 days. June contains the summer solstice in ...

in the Southern Hemisphere and vice versa. In the Northern hemisphere, the beginning of the astronomical

winter Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultur ...

is traditionally 21 December or the date of the solstice. Meteor showers occurring in December are the

Andromedids The Andromedids meteor shower is associated with Biela's Comet, the showers occurring as Earth passes through old streams left by the comet's tail. The comet was observed to have broken up by 1846; further drift of the pieces by 1852 suggested t ...

(September 25 – December 6, peaking around November 9), the Canis-Minorids (December 4 – December 15, peaking around December 10–11), the Coma Berenicids (December 12 to December 23, peaking around December 16), the Delta Cancrids (December 14 to February 14, the main shower from January 1 to January 24, peaking on January 17), the

Geminids The Geminids are a prolific meteor shower caused by the object 3200 Phaethon, which is thought to be a Palladian asteroid with a " rock comet" orbit. This would make the Geminids, together with the Quadrantids, the only major meteor showers ...

(December 13–14), the Monocerotids (December 7 to December 20, peaking on December 9. This shower can also start in November), the Phoenicids (November 29 to December 9, with a peak occurring around 5/6 December), the

Quadrantids The Quadrantids (QUA) are a meteor shower that peaks in early January and whose radiant (meteor shower), radiant lies in the constellation Boötes. The zenithal hourly rate (ZHR) of this shower can be as high as that of two other reliably rich met ...

(typically a January shower but can also start in December), the Sigma Hydrids (December 4–15), and the

Ursids The Ursid (URS) meteor activity begins annually around December 17 and runs for over a week, until the 25th or 26th. This meteor shower is named for its radiant point, which is located near the star Beta Ursae Minoris (Kochab) in the constellati ...

(December 17-to December 25/26, peaking around December 22).

Astrology

*The

zodiac The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north or south (as measured in celestial latitude) of the ecliptic, the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. The pat ...

signs for the month of December are Sagittarius (until December 21) and Capricorn (December 22 onwards).The Earth passes the junction of the signs at 10:02 UT/GMT December 21, 2020, and will pass it again at 15:59 UT/GMT December 21, 2021.. Signs in UT/GMT for 1950–2030.

December symbols

December's birth flower is the narcissus. Turquoise polie 1 (USA)

December's birthstones are the

turquoise Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrated phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula . It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone and ornamental stone for thousands of year ...

zircon Zircon () is a mineral belonging to the group of nesosilicates and is a source of the metal zirconium. Its chemical name is zirconium(IV) silicate, and its corresponding chemical formula is Zr SiO4. An empirical formula showing some of t ...

, and

tanzanite Tanzanite is the blue and violet variety of the mineral zoisite (a calcium aluminium hydroxyl sorosilicate), caused by small amounts of vanadium. Tanzanite belongs to the epidote mineral group. Tanzanite is only found in Simanjiro District of Ma ...

Observances

''This list does not necessarily imply either official status or general observance.''

Non-Gregorian observances: 2021 dates

(All Baháʼí, Islamic, and Jewish observances begin at the sundown prior to the date listed, and end at sundown of the date in question unless otherwise noted.) *

List of observances set by the Baháʼí calendar This table is determined by when the March Equinox falls. It fell on March 20 from 2018 to 2021 and will fall on March 21 in 2022–2023. All Baha'i observances begin at the sundown prior to the date listed, and end at sundown of the date in questi ...

* List of observances set by the Chinese calendar *

List of observances set by the Hebrew calendar All observances begin at sunset the day prior to the Gregorian date listed unless otherwise noted, and end on nightfall of the date in question, which is defined as the appearance of three stars in the sky. On leap years (which occur every 2– ...

List of observances set by the Islamic calendar All Islamic observances begin at the sundown prior to the date listed, and end at sundown of the date in question unless otherwise noted. Holidays for 1441 (2019-2020) {, class="wikitable" !width=20%, Date on Islamic Calendar !width=20%, Gre ...

List of observances set by the Solar Hijri calendar Dates in this table are determined by when the March Equinox falls. It will fall on March 20 from 2018-2023. {, class="wikitable" , - style="background:#efefef;" ! Holiday date !!Holiday name !! Description !!March equinox on March 19 !!March Eq ...

Month-long observances

*In Catholic tradition, December is the Month of the Advent of Christ. *National Egg Nog Month (United States) * National Impaired Driving Prevention Month (United States) *National Fruit Cake Month (United States) *National Pear Month (United States) * No Gender December (

International International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

)

Movable observances: 2021 dates

*See also

Movable Western Christian observances {{Use mdy dates, date=July 2017 This is a list of movable observances within Western Christianity. It includes secular observances which are calculated by religious observances. ''This list does not necessarily imply either official status nor gen ...

*See also

Movable Eastern Christian observances This is a chronological list of moveable Eastern Christian observances. Most of these are calculated by the date of Pascha. It includes secular observances which are calculated by religious observances. ''This list does not necessarily imply eithe ...

Tuesday immediately following fourth Thursday of November: November 30 *

Giving Tuesday GivingTuesday, often stylized as #GivingTuesday for the purposes of hashtag activism, is the Tuesday after Thanksgiving in the United States. It is touted as a "global generosity movement unleashing the power of people and organizations to transf ...

(

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

) (can sometimes fall in December) First Friday: December 3 * Farmer's Day (

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

) *

Gospel Day The following are public holidays in Kiribati. Dates refer to 2002. References Kiribati Holidays Law of Kiribati Kiribati Kiribati (), officially the Republic of Kiribati ( gil, ibaberikiKiribati),Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Intern ...

) First Sunday: December 5 * Good Neighborliness Day (

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...

) *

Sindhi Cultural Day Sindhi Cultural Day ( sd, سنڌي ثقافتي ڏھاڙو) is a popular Sindhi cultural festival. It is celebrated with traditional enthusiasm to highlight the centuries-old rich culture of Sindh. The day is celebrated each year in the firs ...

(

Sindhi diaspora The Sindhi diaspora mainly refers to the descendants of ethnic Sindhi people who emigrated from the historical Sind province of British India before the Independence of Pakistan, these people are not a part of Pakistani diaspora as they emigrat ...

) Second Monday: December 13 * Green Monday *

National Tree Planting Day (Malawi) Arbor Day (or Arbour in some countries) is a secular day of observance in which individuals and groups are encouraged to plant trees. Today, many countries observe such a holiday. Though usually observed in the spring, the date varies, dependi ...

December 15, unless the date falls on a Sunday, then December 16: December 15 * Koninkrijksdag (

Kingdom of the Netherlands , national_anthem = ) , image_map = Kingdom of the Netherlands (orthographic projection).svg , map_width = 250px , image_map2 = File:KonDerNed-10-10-10.png , map_caption2 = Map of the four constituent countries shown to scale , capital = ...

)

Winter Solstice The winter solstice, also called the hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's poles reaches its maximum tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern and Southern). For that hemisphere, the winter ...

: December 21 *

Blue Christmas (holiday) Blue Christmas (also called the Longest Night) in the Western Christian tradition, is a day in the Advent season marking the longest night of the year. On this day, some churches in Western Christian denominations hold a church service that honou ...

Brumalia The Brumalia ( la, Brumalia ) were a winter solstice festival celebrated in the eastern part of the Roman Empire. In Rome there had been the minor holiday of Bruma on November 24, which turned into large scale end of the year festivities in Const ...

(

) *

Dongzhi Festival The Dongzhi Festival or Winter Solstice Festival () is one of the most important Chinese festivals celebrated by the Mainland Chinese, Hong Kong Chinese, Taiwan, Japanese, Vietnamese, Koreans and other East Asian-related people during the Don ...

(

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

) * Global Orgasm * Korochun ( Slavic) *

Midsummer Midsummer is a celebration of the season of summer usually held at a date around the summer solstice. It has pagan pre-Christian roots in Europe. The undivided Christian Church designated June 24 as the feast day of the early Christian martyr ...

in the Southern Hemisphere. (

Contemporary Paganism Modern paganism, also known as contemporary paganism and neopaganism, is a term for a religion or family of religions influenced by the various historical pre-Christian beliefs of pre-modern peoples in Europe and adjacent areas of North Afric ...

) * Sanghamitta Day (

Theravada Buddhism ''Theravāda'' () ( si, ථේරවාදය, my, ထေရဝါဒ, th, เถรวาท, km, ថេរវាទ, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...

) * Shalako ( Zuni) * Yaldā (

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

) *

in the Northern Hemisphere (

) * Ziemassvētki ( Latvia) December 22, unless that date is a Sunday, in which case it's moved to the 23rd: December 22 *

Forefathers' Day Forefathers' Day is a holiday celebrated in Plymouth, Massachusetts, on December 22. It is a commemoration of the landing of the Pilgrim Fathers in Plymouth, Massachusetts, on December 21, 1620. It was introduced in Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 176 ...

( Plymouth, Massachusetts) December 26, unless that day is a Sunday, in which case the 27th: December 27 * Boxing Day (

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the ...

) ** Day of Good Will (

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

and

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

) **

Family Day Family Day is a public holiday in the countries of Angola, Israel, South Africa, Uruguay, Vanuatu, and Vietnam; in the Australian Capital Territory; in the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, Saskatchewan and soon New Brunswic ...

(

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...

) ** Thanksgiving (Solomon Islands) **Start of Boxing Week

Fixed observances

*November 25 – December 10: 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence *

December 1 Events Pre-1600 * 800 – A council is convened in the Vatican, at which Charlemagne is to judge the accusations against Pope Leo III. *1420 – Henry V of England enters Paris alongside his father-in-law King Charles VI of France. * ...

** Battle of the Sinop Day (

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

) ** Bifocals at the Monitor Day (

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