3-4 February 2020
TIMING Imbolc or Oimelc
The midpoint between Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox, measured zodiacally with the Sun at 15° 00’ Aquarius, marks the cross-quarter day, called variously, Imbolc, Imbolg, and Oimelc. There is a distinction between the calendar accident when the holiday is generally celebrated, February 1, and the precise timing of the moment. The Winter-Spring midpoint occurs this year, on February 3 or 4, depending on location, in Hawai’i, at 11:03:14 PM AHST. Here’s a list with a few more time zones.
London, United Kingdom
9:03:14 AM GMT-UTC
Tuesday, February 4, 2020
New York, NY, USA
4:03:14 am EST UTC-5 hours
Tuesday, February 4, 2020
Chicago, IL, USA
3:03:14 am CST UTC-6 hours
Tuesday, February 4, 2020
Denver, CO, USA
2:03:14 am MST UTC-7 hours
Tuesday, February 4, 2020
Los Angeles, CA, USA
1:03:14 am PST UTC-8 hours
Tuesday, February 4, 2020
State of Hawai’i
11:03:14 PM HST UTC-10 hours
Monday, February 3, 2020
Imbolc or Oimelc (ewe’s milk), is an ancient celebration of the promise of springtime, the festival in the middle of the Celtic winter. It is one of the four cross-quarter days that divide the seasons defined by the solstices and equinoxes. Imbolc between Winter Solstice and Vernal Equinox is marked by megalithic monuments aligned with the day’s sunrise on this and an opposite point, Samhain (Halloween).
As is common with the dates that mark seasonal divisions of the year that correspond to Earth’s alignment with the Sun, Imbolc is linked with other traditions’ holy days (Candlemas, Ground Hog Day, Feast of the Purification, Feast of St. Brigit). The feast of Saint Brigit, St. Brigit's Eve, corresponds with Oimelc like Christmas with the Winter Solstice holiday, Yule.
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| Statue of Saint Brigit - Saint Brigit's well Kildare |
