March

third month in the Julian and Gregorian calendars
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March (Mar.) is the third month of the year in the Gregorian calendar, coming between February and April. It has 31 days. March is named after Mars, the Roman god of war.

March always begins on the same day of the week as November, and additionally, February in common years. March always ends on the same day of the week as June.

The Month

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The daffodil is a symbol of the month of March, when spring begins in the Northern Hemisphere.

In ancient Rome, March was called Martius. It was named after the war god (Mars) and the Romans thought that it was a lucky time to begin a war. Before Julius Caesar's calendar reform, March was the first month of the year in the Roman calendar, as the winter was considered to be a monthless period. It is one of seven months to have 31 days.

March begins on the same day of the week as February in common years and November every year, as each other's first days are exactly 4 weeks (28 days) and 35 weeks (245 days) apart respectively. March ends on the same day of the week as June every year, as each other's last days are exactly 13 weeks (91 days) apart.

In common years, March starts on the same day of the week as June of the previous year, and in leap years, September and December of the previous year. In common years, March finishes on the same day of the week as September of the previous year, and in leap years, April and December of the previous year.

In years immediately before common years, March starts on the same day of the week as August of the following year, and in years immediately before leap years, May of the following year. In years immediately before common years, March finishes on the same day of the week as August and November of the following year, and in years immediately before leap years, May of the following year.

In leap years, the day before March 1 is February 29. This determines the position of each day of the year from there on. As an example, March 1 is usually the 60th day of the year, but in a leap year is the 61st day.

In terms of seasons, March is one of two months to have an equinox (the other is September, its seasonal equivalent in both hemispheres), with daylight and darkness of roughly the same number of hours, halfway between the December and June solstices. In the Northern Hemisphere, spring starts in this month, while it is autumn in the Southern Hemisphere.

Start of the season

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The official start of either season is March 1, though the equinox can fall on March 20 or 21, occasionally on March 19. The northern spring equinox marks the start of the Iranian New Year and Baha'i New Year. It is from the March 21 date that Easter's date is calculated, on the Sunday after the first full moon in spring, meaning it can fall between March 22 and April 25 in Western Christianity.

Events in March

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Fixed events

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Saint David's Day celebration in Cardiff Bay, Wales on March 1.
 
Seven-tiered doll set celebrating Hinamatsuri, Girls' Day, in Japan on March 3.
 
German poster from 1914 marking International Women's Day on March 8.
 
Saint Patrick's Day celebration in Dublin on March 17.
 
Cesar Chavez, whose birthday is observed in the US on March 31.

Moveable events

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Eggs celebrating Easter, which sometimes falls in late March.

Selection of historical events

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Work on Mount Rushmore begins on March 3, 1925.
 
Devastation caused by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan on March 11, 2011.
 
Canberra is officially named on March 12, 1913.
 
Maine became the 23rd US State on March 15, 1820.
 
Sydney Harbour Bridge, which was opened on March 19, 1932.
 
Painting showing the US's agreement on March 30, 1867 to buy Alaska from Russia.

Trivia

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The planet Mars, also named after the Roman god of war.

Other meanings

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  • A march is also a type of music, originally written for and performed by marching bands.
  • March also refers to a certain way of walking.
  • March is also the name of a place in Germany.
  • There is an animal known as the March hare.
Months of the Year

January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December