Learn How Leap Years Keep Our Calendar Accurate
Are you ready for 2028? It is a Leap Year! Let us explain why we have Leap Years and some fun facts and folklore about Leap Years and leaplings.
What Is a Leap Year?
Simply put, a leap year is a year with an extra day—February 29—added nearly every 4 years to the calendar year.
Why Are Leap Years Necessary?
Adding an extra day every 4 years keeps our calendar aligned correctly with the astronomical seasons—since a year according to the Gregorian calendar (365 days) and a year according to Earth’s orbit around the Sun (approximately 365.25 days) are not the same length of time. Without this extra day, our calendar and the seasons would gradually get out of sync. (Keep reading for a longer explanation.)
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Because of this extra day, a leap year has 366 days instead of 365. Additionally, a leap year does not begin and end on the same day of the week as a non–leap year does.
How Do You Know If It’s a Leap Year?
Generally, a leap year happens every 4 years, which, thankfully, is a relatively simple pattern to remember. However, there is a little more to it than that.
Here are the rules of leap years:
- A year may be a leap year if it is evenly divisible by 4.
- Years divisible by 100 (century years such as 1900 or 2000) cannot be leap years unless they are also divisible by 400. (For this reason, the years 1700, 1800, and 1900 were not leap years, but the years 1600 and 2000 were.)
If a year satisfies both of the above rules, it is a leap year.
When Is the Next Leap Year? When is the Next Leap Day?
| Leap Year | Leap Day |
|---|---|
| 2028 | Tuesday, February 29 |
| 2032 | Sunday, February 29 |
| 2036 | Friday, February 29 |
| 2040 | Wednesday, February 29 |
Why Do We Need Leap Years?
The short explanation for why we need leap years is that our calendar needs to stay aligned with the astronomical seasons.
One orbit of Earth around the Sun takes approximately 365.25 days—a little more than our Gregorian calendar’s nice, round number of 365. Because the calendar does not account for the extra quarter of a day that the Earth requires to complete its orbit around the Sun, it doesn’t completely align with the solar year.
Because of this .25 difference, our calendar gradually gets out of sync with the seasons. Adding an extra day, aka a “leap day,” to the calendar every 4 years brings the calendar in line and, therefore, realigns it with the seasons.
Without leap days, the calendar would be off by 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 45 seconds more each year.
After 100 years, the seasons would be off by 25 days! Eventually, the months we call February and March would feel like summer in the Northern Hemisphere.
The extra leap day adjusts this drift, but it’s not a perfect match: Adding a leap day every four years overcompensates by a few extra seconds each leap year, adding up to about three extra days every 10,000 years.
What Is a Leap Day? And a Leapling?
A “leap day” is the extra day in the leap year: February 29. A “leapling” is a person born on a leap day. Leap Day is the rarest birthday in the Gregorian calendar.
Are there any leap-day babies out there? Do you celebrate on the 28th of February or the 1st of March—or every 4 years (just kidding)? We suggest that all leaplings get two free slices of cake on non-Leap Years. And that you go all out on the Leap Years!
Leap Year Facts and Folklore
- Ages ago, Leap Day was known as “Ladies Day” or “Ladies’ Privilege,” as it was the one day when women were free to propose to men. Today, Sadie Hawkins Day sometimes applies to Feb 29 (leap day), based on this older tradition.
- According to folklore, the weather always changes on Friday in a leap year.
- “Leap year was ne’er a good sheep year” (old proverb)
Are Leap Years Bad Luck?
Many feel that to be born on Leap Day, thereby becoming a “leapling,” is a sign of good luck.
In some cultures, getting married during a leap year is considered bad luck.
We don’t know of any evidence supporting that marriage theory, but we do know that during leap years:
- Rome burned (64),
- and the Titanic sank (1912).
Also, in leap years:
- The Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, Massachusetts (1620),
- Benjamin Franklin proved that lightning is electricity (1752),
- and gold was discovered in California (1848).
Do you have any leap year memories? Are you a Leapling yourself? Please share in the comments below!
Catherine Boeckmann
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Is there a way to hide or remove the "Add new comment" link? I've searched around and can't seem to find a good solution for this. I've tried adding some PHP code into the template file for my theme, but that didn't work.
I'm a leapling, iv officially had 9 real birthdays, my 8 year old nephew can't get his head round us being the same age this year, cos I'm a grown up (supposedly), I celebrate 1st of March when there are no 29ths. My parents were told we couldn't celebrate the 28th as I wasn't around on that day.
I'd like to leap out of 2020 with no recollection of this year!
When cell phones were just starting to become common place in the 90's I signed up for a new cell plan with a one year contract. The sales lady told me that because it was a one year contract I couldn't cancel early without paying a penalty, but if I cancelled after the date i started I'd get charged for another month. She said, "So if you don't want to renew you have to cancel on this exact date next year." Since it was leap day I was like, "But this day doesn't exist next year!" She looked at me like I was crazy. When I explained that it was leap day she seemed shocked. I just wanted to know if I should cancel on February 28th or March 1st. She had to ask the manager and everyone in the store. When nobody knew, they called corporate. A half hour later she tells me nobody seems to know the answer to your question because it's never happened before, but we'll call you when we find out. Nobody ever did. I ended up trying to cancel on March 1 and it was a whole thing all over again. Eventually they decided to give me a month free and cancel the contract in April. The lesson I learned is never sign a contract on leap day. LoL
I’m so glad you mentioned that. It never entered my mind. It’s a good thing to know and think about. I hope a lot of people see your text.
Really? You don't know for sure?
The explanation is provided in the above article. There are rare exceptions to the every-four-year rule. So, you could say Leap Year is every 4 years … until it’s not.
I’m a leap year baby. Born February 29th, 1972. I celebrate my off years 12 noon on the 28th till 12 noon March 1st. I love my special day!!!
Our daughter is a Leapling! She will be 4 years old this year (Sweet sixteen!). My original due date was for March 1. We celebrate her birthday from noon on the 28th to noon on the 1st during non leap years.
My husband & I got a divorce in 1983. But February 29, 1984 I asked him to marry me & he said yes but I also had to give him $50,000! Ha! Ha! Of course he was kidding. But we had to barrow the money to get the license & get to the courthouse in Memphis, TN. To our surprise the news crew from channel 13 in Memphis was there & we were on the news & they mentioned about Sadie Hawkins day. I have tried to find that news clip to no avail. My husband passed away June 29, 2018. Our first marriage was August 26, 1974 (my 17th birthday also). So on that date in 2018 we would have been married 44 years. I still miss him so much! The love of my life - my soulmate forever!
