March Wind Proverbs and Folklore About the Third Month

March Wind Folklore

There is much folklore associated with March, starting with the wind. There is a saying: "March winds and April showers bring forth May flowers. ”This is an English proverb that often is shortened to "April showers bring May flowers."

The Cherokee name for the full moon in Marc?h is "Windy Moon," which refers to the winds of the third month. When I was a child in the late 1960s, the March winds were notorious for being so strong that you could hardly stand. This became the ideal time for kite flying

Why are the March winds stronger?

I can recall wind that pushed school children back like the child in the above image and caused umbrellas to invert. Today, March winds in Virginia are not as boisterous as they once were. However, there is a scientific reason why the winds are traditionally so strong.

During the third month, there is an increase in atmospheric instability caused by the Earth's position at this time. This effect is caused by the increasingly strong sunlight heating the Earth's surface. Since warm air is lighter than cold air, it rises and leads to strong gusty winds.

The Ides of March

When the Roman calendar was in use the mid-point of each month was called "Ides} and was marked with religious ceremonies that would correlate with the first full moon of the year. The Ides of March was known for something different.

According to Shakespeare, it has been alleged that, in 44 BC, a seer gave Julius Caesar a prophecy that his downfall would come no later than the Ides of March.

The warning was ignored, and when mid-March came, the ruler said to the seer, “The Ides of March have come.” The prophet replied, “Aye, Caesar, but not gone.” The stubborn Caesar attended a senate meeting at the Theatre of Pompey and was murdered that very day by as many as 60 conspirators.

The spot in Rome where Julius Caesar was assassinated has been designated as a no-kill cat sanctuary. The prophet was only in Shakespeare's play, but Caesar did die at the hands of conspirators on March 15th.

March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb

There is a saying that March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. If March began with howling winds and cold temperatures, it was said to be roaring like a lion. When the month came in with warm, calm weather, it was said to be mild as a lamb.

Some people believe the lion and lamb references are related to the Bible. Revelation 5:5 says that Jesus is the lion of the tribe of Judah. John 1:29 describes him as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

Mad March Hare and March Madness

The expression "March Madness" was first used by Henry V. Porter in 1939. He was a high school basketball coach in Illinois, and the saying was coined to describe the excitement surrounding the Illinois State boys basketball tournament.

Today, the term is used by sports promoters and fans, especially for the NCAA basketball tournament, which is televised every year in mid-March. Television commercials and promotions for retail merchants advertising sales in March often use "March Madness as their advertising slogan."

Mad March Hare comes from the Lewis Carol classics, Alice in Wonderland, where the March Hare and Mad Hatter were in attendance at a bizarre party. Sometimes it's said that someone is as mad as a March hare or as kooky as the Mad Hatter.