Punxsutawney Phil Has Something to Say

Pretty sure this isn't Phil.

Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow this morning. Great. Six more weeks of winter.

How did all this bull-spunk start anyway?

According to About.com, German tradition holds that if the sun comes out on Candlemas, the precursor to Groundhog Day, the hedgehog will see its shadow and six more weeks of winter will follow. When German settlers came to Pennsylvania they continued this tradition, using groundhogs instead of hedgehogs to predict the weather.

The first official Groundhog Day was celebrated on February 2, 1886 in Punxsutawney, PA, with the proclamation in The Punxsutawney Spirit by the newspaper's editor, Clymer Freas:
"Today is groundhog day and up to the time of going to press the beast has not seen its shadow." The legendary first Groundhog Day trip to Gobbler's Knob was made the following year by a group of spirited groundhog hunters who dubbed themselves "The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club." Clymer, a member of the club, used his editorial clout to proclaim that Phil, the Punxsutawney Groundhog, was the one and only official weather prognosticating groundhog.

The groundhog's full name is "Punxsutawney Phil, Seer of Seers, Sage of Sages, Prognosticator of Prognosticators and Weather Prophet Extraordinary." That is just too funny!

Have a fantastic day,
Angela