Feb 28, 2020
Image: Woman capturing man with butterfly-net - wikipedia.com
This year is a Leap Year and as such has a few traditions associated with it. Here, from wikipedia.com, are a few you ladies might want to study!
Folk Traditions
In Ireland and Britain, it is a tradition that women may propose marriage only in leap years. While it has been claimed that the tradition was initiated by Saint Patrick or Brigid of Kildare in 5th century Ireland, this is dubious, as the tradition has not been attested before the 19th century. Supposedly, a 1288 law by Queen Margaret of Scotland (then age five and living in Norway), required that fines be levied if a marriage proposal was refused by the man; compensation was deemed to be a pair of leather gloves, a single rose, £1 and a kiss. In some places the tradition was tightened to restricting female proposals to the modern leap day, February 29, or to the medieval (bissextile) leap day, February 24.
According to Felten: "A play from the turn of the 17th century, 'The Maydes Metamorphosis,' has it that 'this is leape year/women wear breeches.' A few hundred years later, breeches wouldn't do at all: Women looking to take advantage of their opportunity to pitch woo were expected to wear a scarlet petticoat — fair warning, if you will."
In Finland, the tradition is that if a man refuses a woman's proposal on leap day, he should buy her the fabrics for a skirt.
In France, since 1980, a satirical newspaper entitled La Bougie du Sapeur is published only on leap year, on February 29.
In Greece, marriage in a leap year is considered unlucky. One in five engaged couples in Greece will plan to avoid getting married in a leap year.
In February 1988 the town of Anthony in Texas, declared itself "leap year capital of the world", and an international leapling birthday club was started.
Bachelor's Day Traditions
Bachelor's Day is an Irish tradition on Leap Day allowing women to initiate dances and propose marriage. If the proposal was refused the man was expected to buy the woman a silk gown or, by the mid-20th century, a fur coat. The tradition is supposed to originate from a deal that Saint Bridget struck with Saint Patrick.
In the United Kingdom, a woman was allowed to propose marriage on Leap Day and if refused the man was obliged to buy her new gloves on Easter Day. In some areas a woman could propose for the entire leap year.
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