What do YOU know about Groundhog Day?
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SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- In Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, according to tradition if Groundhog Phil comes out of his hole on February 2nd and sees his shadow, it means 6 more weeks of winter.
Now according to the History Channel, the tale actually originated from a Christian tradition called Candlemas when clergy would distribute candles for winter. The candles represented how long winter would be. Then, Germans expanded on this concept by selecting a hedgehog to predict the weather.
Once they came to America, specifically Pennsylvania, they continued to rely on an animal but switched to groundhog because the state had more of them. In 1887, a newspaper editor attributed the name Punxsutawney Phil as the official groundhog. Now many cities have weather predicting animals! Believe it or not there is Birmingham Bill or Staten Island Chuck amongst a few.
It is pretty incredible to think this all started in 1887, and here we are on February 2nd in 2021 where tens of thousands of people gather in Punxsutawney to witness Phil’s prediction.
ABC57 went to go see what the people of Michiana knew about Groundhog Day.