The Categorisation of Seasons...

Apparently the meteorological seasons are calculated based on things like annual temperature cycles and they're supposed to make it easier for meteorologists and climatologists to compare statistics, analyse patterns and all that stuff.

Astronomical seasons begin a little later - so Spring, astronomically speaking, begins with the vernal equinox, around 20th - 21st of March.

But however meteorologists or indeed astronomers calculate their seasons, I know for a fact that the Welsh language already categorises the seasons beautifully and accurately. The month of July (Gorffennaf) is so named as it combines the words "gorffen" meaning the end and "'af" which is an abbreviation of "haf" - or summer. So a beautiful example of a Welsh compound word, for which the language is famous. More on this subject here if you're interested Understanding Compound Words in Welsh - WelshAntur Welsh.

Of course from all this we have to calculate backwards. So if a season lasts for 3 months then July, Gorffenaf, will be the end of summer. Thus August will be the start of Autumn, November will be the start of the Winter and February will be the start of Spring. So the end of January, as it is now, will be the end of Winter and a first peek into Spring.

Last weekend - last weekend as I've been too busy to write these past few days, despite best intentions - I had a lovely walk in the woods with the dogs. It's a path I walk (usually) twice a day as it is full of sniffy spots and we have deer, badger and very likely a host of other creatures who are all leaving their scents. So it is a canine paradise. And the weekend certainly had a feeling of Spring in the air.

Since the snowfall the previous week everything had been under a thick layer of snow. It had been so cold (minus 12 degrees centigrade on some days) that the snow fell and immediately froze, remaining in a lovely powdery, crunchy state for the whole week. The woodland floor was white and it was beautiful but wintry.

So you can hopefully imagine my delight to see a host of snowdrops popping up through the dead leaves, some of them flowering. Snowdrops of course can be seen as early as December, if the conditions are right. But also look at the lighter green clump towards the bottom left of the image shared below: are those crocus shoots?

All a reminder that things are growing and Spring will be here very soon!