Why are there only 28 days in February?

For those in relationships or Aquarius and Pisces signs, February is a time to celebrate. But the second month of the year is perplexing: why does it only have 28 days? This episode of Eden Explains is a snappy history lesson on the month of love that may be useful at your next trivia night.

The world follows the Gregorian calendar, founded by Pope Gregory XIII in 1572. This calendar differs from its predecessor, the Julian calendar, which determined that a year comprises 365 days, a full rotation of the Earth around the sun. The leap year we experience every four years is due to balancing the calendar and seasons—but this is another article for another day. 

If you're the Romans or Michael Scott, you may be a little stitious, where the lore of 28 days in February begins. Romans believed even numbers were unlucky and could not count the winter months. Romulus, the supposed founder of Rome, had said the calendar had 10 months from March to December, totalling 304 days. Roman king Numa Pompilius then decided to add the months of January and February to sync the original calendar -  the Roman calendar - with the lunar year. King Numa also believed that even numbers were unlucky and wanted to keep the months at either 29 or 31 days, so the Romans decided to choose the month of February to give 28 days so the year would end with 355 days - an odd number like the Romans liked. 

However, Julius Caesar introduced the Julian calendar to make it accurate and align with the solar cycle of 365 days. Most months were adjusted to 30 or 31 days, but February remained with 28. The leap year, the 29th day of February, was added every four years to help the seasons align with the calendar.  The more you know!