WELCOME TO AN ENTERTAINMENT SITE FOR SCOTTISH COUNTRY DANCERS!
Enjoy this curated selection of theme-related dances for celebrations and holidays, or find a dance associated with a special calendar day, or EVEN your own birthday!
Feb 2
Groundhog & Hedgehog Day
Hurtling Hedgehog
Other Scottish Country Dances for this Day
Today's Musings, History & Folklore
"If Candlemas Day is clear and bright,
Winter will have another bite.
If Candlemas Day brings cloud and rain,
Winter is gone and will not come again.”
~ Traditional
Inspired by the nickname for a Tory politician (guess who) described as "quite portly, bumbles around a lot, changing direction without warning and trampling over everything in his path", this enjoyable reel is a pleasant reminder of the hedgehog, who shares his famous day with his his North American cousin, the groundhog!
Long ago, people watched hedgehogs, badgers, and even snakes in early February to judge whether winter was loosening its grip or still had weeks to run.
Observed on February 2, Groundhog Day coincides closely with Imbolc, a major seasonal turning point in the Celtic calendar, and with Candlemas in the Christian year. This date sits at the midpoint between the winter solstice and the spring equinox and has long been associated with subtle signs of returning light, warming ground, and the first stirrings of the agricultural year.
When European settlers carried these traditions to North America, the animal changed but the meaning did not. Hedgehogs and badgers were replaced by the groundhog, a native marmot. If the day was cloudy, spring was expected to arrive early; if the sun shone and the animal saw its shadow, winter was said to linger for six more weeks.
So, check with the prognosticating animal of your choice and dance away the winter blues! This direction changing reel with slip steps, reels, pas de basques and chases will have you hurtling hither and thither, dancers! A hedgehog like squeal and "heuch" does very well in this dance! 🤎 🤎 🤎 🦔 🦔 🦔 🌧️ 🌞
Hurtling Hedgehog
Modern customs on Groundhog Day involve public celebrations where early morning festivals are held to watch the designated groundhog emerging from its burrow.
Groundhog Day was officially adopted in the U.S. in 1887 when an enterprising editor of a local paper in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, began promoting the town’s groundhog as the official “Groundhog Day meteorologist.” Today, the largest Groundhog Day celebration is still held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, with the groundhog named "Punxsutawney Phil."
Weather prediction lore using the groundhog began as a transplanted European custom brought by the Pennsylvania German community who settled in southeastern and central Pennsylvania in the 18th century. Whereas in Europe, a hedgehog, a badger or sacred bear would be used as the prognosticator, the native groundhog served the same purpose.
Nowadays, there are many competing groundhogs purported to be able predict the weather.
To see the list of famous weather predicting mammals, click the handy graphic which helps you remember which way the predictions will go!
Click the dance cribs or description below to link to a printable version of the dance!
