Thirty days hath September,
April, June, and November.
All the rest have thirty-one,
Except the second month alone.
To it we twenty-eight assign,
Till leap year makes it twenty-nine.

The old rhyme we learned in kindergarten still applies, but why do we need an extra day – Leap Day – every four years?

In school, we learn it takes the Earth 365 days to complete its revolution around the sun, but the number is actually 365.242199 (or 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds). The modern Gregorian calendar allows for only 365 days per year. Those extra hours, minutes, and seconds add up. If we didn’t add a Leap Day every four years, our calendar would eventually be out of sync with the seasons. Can you imagine celebrating Christmas in the summer’s heat, or Independence Day when it’s snowing?!

Now we’re clear on the “why,” here are Five Cool Facts About Leap Day/Leap Year:

1. Who invented Leap Day/Leap Year? Julius Caesar. In the Julian calendar introduced in 45 BCE, he calculated a leap year in every year divisible by four, which provided too many leap years! This was corrected in the Gregorian calendar in 1582, which has three criteria for a leap year: the year must be divisible by four; if the year is evenly divisible by 100, it is not a leap year; unless it is also evenly divisible by 400.
2. Traditionally, on Leap Day, a woman can propose marriage to a man (instead of the other way around). It’s also known as “Bachelor’s Day” in some countries, and Sadie Hawkins’ Day in the U.S. – on February 29th, if a man refuses a woman’s marriage proposal, he”s supposed to pay a penalty.
3. Three hundred years ago, Leap Day wasn’t considered a “true day” and no official business transactions were done on February 29th.
4. One baby in 1500 is born on Leap Day in the U.S. “Leaplings,” as they’re known, usually celebrate their birthdays on February 28th or March 1st in the absence of a Leap Year.
5. In 1712, Sweden created a double Leap Day (February 29th and 30th) as a means of correcting their calendar – the country still used the Julian calendar until 1753, when the Gregorian was adopted. And when the Soviet Union created an official revolutionary calendar in 1929, every month had 30 days – including February – but it didn’t catch on and the experiment ended in 1931.

Have a special “Leapling” in your life and want to celebrate this once-in-every-four-years event? Greeting Card Universe offers unique, custom Leap Year Birthday cards for you to send your best wishes and a smile!

SPECIAL OFFER – Save an extra 15% on  your order, use code 2012FEB15 at checkout!

What Are People Saying About Greeting Card Universe?
“Extremely pleased with the cards….the printing in the receiver’s language was really beautiful…A zillion times better than trying to find a card (any card) in another language for the occasion you want….I received the cards so fast that I could not believe it….it took all of 3 days….never had such excellent service….thank you and I will definitely get more cards from you and will spread the word…by the way the card you see is for an Aunt that lives in Rome, Italy and turns 93 years young….” Anna Marie, February 16, 2012