Groundhog Day

Discussion in 'All Languages' started by ilocas2, Feb 1, 2013.

  1. ilocas2 Senior Member

    Hello, tomorrow is Groundhog Day, how do you call this day in your language?

    Czech: Hromnice - originally candles that protect against thunder (hrom - thunder)
  2. apmoy70

    apmoy70 Senior Member

    Hi ilocas,

    We don't have this folklore prognostication custom, I'll give you instead the Greek translation of the title of the eponymous (Groundhog Day) American film:
    «Η μέρα της μαρμότας»
    [i 'mera tis mar'motas]
    lit. "the day of groundhog"

    «Μαρμότα» [mar'mota] (fem.) is an Italian loanword marmotta
  3. rusita preciosa

    rusita preciosa Modus forendi

    USA (Φιλαδέλφεια)
    Russian (Moscow)
    Same in Russian, we do not have that tradition.

    The movie title is День сурка /den' surka/ (day of the marmot). Cурок is a general name for the genious marmotas.
    From the movie the expression "день сурка" entered the everyday language and means a day that repeats itself / days that are almost identical.

    EDIT: I just looked it up and on 2 Feb (15 Feb Julian) there is a Christian holiday of Сретение Господне /sretenye gospodne/ (Presentation of Jesus at the Temple) that is somehow related to the day of громницы /gromnitsy/, also from the word гром /grom/ (thunder). Wiki says that day is/was believed to be the day when “the winter meets the spring”, but I’m not sure exactly how that is related to Groundhog Day, the thunder and the tradition of predicting the weather.
    Last edited: Feb 1, 2013
  4. bibax Senior Member

    The traditional English term is Candlemas, referred to the practice whereby a priest on 2 February blessed beeswax candles for use throughout the year, some of which were distributed to the faithful for use in the home. Officially this feast is called The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple. According to the gospel, Mary and Joseph took the baby Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem forty days after his birth.

    In Poland the feast is called Święto Matki Boskiej Gromnicznej. This name refers to the candles that are blessed on this day, called gromnicy (in Czech hromnice; hrom = grom = thunder), since these candles are lit during (thunder) storms and placed in windows to ward off storms.
  5. bibax Senior Member

    I have found that the Greek name of the feast is Η Υπαπαντή του Κυρίου (or του Χριστού) - 2 Φεβρουαρίου.

    Υπαπαντή (hypapante) = meeting;
  6. 涼宮

    涼宮 Senior Member

    Sbaeneg/Castellano (Venezuela)
    In Japanese there are 2 terms. The 1rst is for the tradition which is taken from English: グラウンドホッグデー　guraundo hoggudee.　And the film is called 恋はデジャ・ブ koi wa deja bu, which means ''love is a déjà vu''

    In Spanish it's ''día de la marmota'' (it means the same as in English)

    In Mandarin it's: 土拨鼠日 tǔ​bō​shǔ​ rì​, which means the same as in English, the word is made of 4 words: earth +move +rat + day (day of the rat that moves in the earth). In traditional hanzi it'd be written 土撥鼠日, being the difference only the 2nd hanzi. :)
    Last edited: Feb 1, 2013
  7. Encolpius

    Encolpius Senior Member

    magyar Gyertyaszentelő (Boldogasszony napja)

    and here you can find the name of the feast in many languages
  8. apmoy70

    apmoy70 Senior Member

    I'm aware that February 2 is the feast of the «Υπαπαντή» but I'm afraid Candlemas and its paraphernalia is not Orthodox Tradition, we do not have any specific custom related to the feast
  9. ilocas2 Senior Member

    I'm adding that there is proverb in Czech Na Hromnice o hodinu více (something like On Candlemas one hour more) which means that the day (light period) is one hour longer than on the Winter solstice. And the movie Groundhog Day was translated as Na Hromnice o den více (something like On Candlemas one day more).
  10. AutumnOwl

    AutumnOwl Senior Member

    Swedish - Sweden, Finnish
    The day is not celebrated in Sweden, but the translation of Groundhog day is Murmeldjursdagen. February 2 is also Kyndelsmässodagen (Candlemas day) in the Swedish almanack and of course Imbolc in the pagan calendar.
  11. DearPrudence

    DearPrudence Dépêche Mod

    French (lower Normandy)
    In France, we don't have this tradition either but the literal translation (used in the film) is "jour de la marmotte".
    But we celebrate "la chandeleur". To be honest, I don't think French people know where this tradition comes from exactly (I don't) but we just know that it is traditional to eat crêpes! :)
  12. The_Moonlight

    The_Moonlight Banned

    In Polish it's "Dzień świstaka" (literal translation).
  13. elitaliano

    elitaliano Senior Member

    Italia - italiano
    In Italy it is the same.
    The translation in italian for title of the mentioned film is "Il giorno della marmotta".
    We celebrate (used to celerate) la Candelora.

    For this day we have a ryme in dialect

    Per la santa Candelora
    dell'inverno semo fora;
    ma se piove o tira vento
    nell'inverno semo dentro

    In the holy Candelora day
    we are out of the winter
    but if it rains or if the wind blows
    we are inside the winter

    (sorry for my english)
    Last edited: Feb 10, 2013

Share This Page