The Four Seasons of the Year

By now, if you are reading this, you would know what the four seasons of the year are. They are Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. Winter and Spring are in the first half, and Summer and Fall are in the second half. Winter and Summer begin with a solstice, and Spring and Fall begin with an equinox. Winter and Fall are the cooler seasons, and Spring and Summer are the warmer seasons.

But what today’s entry is about is what months classify as winter months, spring months, summer months, and fall months. Although each season lasts three months, every season has at least five months within its span. That means, every month can be classified as part of two different seasons, except these four months: January, April, July, and October. It’s currently January, which will always be a winter month, no matter how you classify the seasons. Or if you’re reading from Argentina, South Africa, Australia, or any other country south of the equator, January is always a summer month.

With that being said, I will take you through three perspectives of how the seasons can be classified. And in a way, all of these perspectives make sense in some way. There are three different types of months:

• Core Months – the core months are essentially the heart of each season. In this entry, the four core months are the only four months to be classified as part of only one season. The four core months are January, April, July, and October.
• Supporting Months – the supporting months are completely within the same season from start to finish, and are usually in the same season as the previous core month. The four supporting months are February, May, August, and November.
• Transition Months – the transition months are the months where the seasons change. At least one of these days within the months would the Earth be at an equinox or a solstice. The four transition months are March, June, September, and December.

By this classification, Independence Day and Halloween are within the core months, Valentine’s Day and Thanksgiving are within the supporting months, and 9/11 and Christmas are within the transition months.

Traditional View:

The traditional view of the seasons are that each of the four seasons begin with a transition month. As two months are within the same season by all means, the first month is when the solstice or equinox occurs. Whatever season is starts is the season it’s part of. By this definition:

• The Fall Months are September, October, and November.
• The Winter Months are December, January, and February.
• The Spring Months are March, April, and May.
• The Summer Months are June, July, and August.

Let’s forget about the astronomical beginnings of each month. Meteorologically, the first days of each season are the first days of the transition months. As you know, January and February are part of a bitterly cold season with some festivities but still too cold to go out, April and May are part of a season when the flowers bloom and everything warms up, July and August are part of a season when days are long, hot, and humid, and October and November are part of a season when leaves change colors and everything cools down. But how does that explain the transition months’ position of being in the latter seasons?

• March is when it starts to warm up. It’s also when Daylight Savings Time begins, and when the year starts to awaken.
• Summer vacation typically starts in June, and for a spring month, June is pretty hot. It’s also when we get the longest days.
• After two hot months, days start getting cooler in September, as summer vacation should be over by then.
• Christmas, in the Northern Hemisphere, has always been classified as a winter holiday, and December is all about Christmas.

Basic View:

If we use the traditional view, the year begins and ends in the same season. But what if the end of the year means the fourth season is over and vice versa? We have the basic view, which keeps all four seasons within the boundaries of the year. By this definition:

• The Winter Months are January, February, and March.
• The Spring Months are April, May, and June.
• The Summer Months are July, August, and September.
• The Fall Months are October, November, and December.

One way this view makes sense, think of the astrological signs. The winter signs are Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces. The spring signs are Aries, Taurus, and Gemini. The summer signs are Cancer, Leo, and Virgo. And the fall signs are Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius. While each month has two different signs, the first sign of each month takes up the majority. January is to Capricorn, February is to Aquarius, March is to Pisces, April is to Aries, May is to Taurus, June is to Gemini, July is to Cancer, August is to Leo, September is to Virgo, October is to Libra, November is to Scorpio, and December is to Sagittarius. In regards to the transition months, here’s why they would be part of the seasons they end rather than the seasons they start:

• Even though Spring begins in March, it’s still part of the winter, and the cold and snowy days can still extend to March.
• While June is a hot month, it doesn’t get as hot as July or August. It’s also pretty rainy.
• Just like how March can be cold, September can be hot, and thus too hot to be a Fall month. It also doesn’t have any of the major Fall holidays like Halloween or Thanksgiving.
• In some states, December is when you get the pretty fall color, when it’s already past that point in other states. The fact that it continues to get darker would make it more associated with Fall rather than Winter.

Hype View:

Unlike the other two views, this view would give you a new perspective on the four seasons. This view puts the transition months as part of the season they start, but the supporting months would be part of the next season, not the current season. By this definition:

• The Summer Months are May, June, and July.
• The Fall Months are August, September, and October.
• The Winter Months are November, December, and January.
• The Spring Months are February, March, and April.

Now this doesn’t make sense to many, but I’ll walk you through it. While the supporting months are still classified as part of the previous seasons, they sometimes give a sense that the next season is coming, judging by everyday life, farming, and holidays.

• Starting with February, March, and April, February being a spring month and April being no stranger to snow days and (in the Southern United States) chilly days is a reminder that spring can still get cold. We typically see it as the season when the air warms up, but spring has gotten colder in recent times. Additionally, we have the Easter season, which typically begins with Mardi Gras and ends with Easter. Mardi Gras can be in either February or March, while Easter can be in March or April. This would put the entire Easter Season within one season of the year, from the Louisiana festival to the egg hunt.
• May is still a spring month, but by then, the last of the cold days are over. You may remember the phrase “April Showers bring May Flowers”. The flowers mostly bloom in March or April, but they would have closed up in May. Meanwhile, the grass gets greener and the trees get more leaves. For this reason, May can be classified as a summer month, as it bears many similarities with June and July, something March and April doesn’t have.
• August being a fall month and October still being warm is a reminder that fall can still get warm, as the hot days carry on to October. August is too hot and humid to even think of being a fall month, but sometimes, the pretty fall color doesn’t even begin in October, but rather later. It’s also worth mentioning that the school year begins in August, as that’s when summer vacation ends. Another thing, if Daylight Savings Time tells you anything, the entirety of the fall under this classification is during DST.
• November is still a fall month, but given that the year is coming to an end and the days are getting colder, you can see it more like the winter than the fall. Judging by the year being in the last couple days, the colder weather, and the longer and earlier nights, this is when it starts to get depressing. Another reason why November can be classified as a winter month is because of the many similarities Christmas has with both Thanksgiving (the main holiday of November) and New Year’s Day (which is in January). Not to mention, but Christmas lights displays can start in November, and Christmas decorations still carry on to January. Think of the song “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” for a bit.

Four Three-Month Periods, or Three Four-Month Periods:

There’s one more perspective of how you can divide the seasons. Maybe it shouldn’t be in four quarters, but rather three thirds. From the beginning to the end, we have the Winter Third (January, February, March, and April), the Summer Third (May, June, July, and August), and the Fall Third (September, October, November, and December). Just by looking at the language alone, all four months of the Summer Third do not have an “R” in the month name, unlike the other eight months. And all four months in the Fall Third end with the suffix “-ber”. For a bonus fact, most of the months are named after Roman Gods and Roman leaders, but the last four months are named after numbers in the Latin language (septem, octo, novem, and decem, which translate to seven, eight, nine, and ten).

So how do every month resonate with being part of thirds instead of quarters? Let’s take a look:

• The Winter Third consists of months from both the winter and early spring. Pretty much every possible date Easter can land on, as well as Mardi Gras, are all part of February, March, and April. The first 100 days are also part of this third, proving that this is the early year. Also, while January is by no means part of the Easter Season, the season it’s part of extends to March.
• The Summer Third consists of months from both the summer and the late spring. Noted for a lack of holidays and the presence of Summer Vacation, the Summer Third is more about that. May is when the school year ends, August is when it begins, and June and July are completely within the summer.
• The Fall Third consists of every month that has days within the astronomical fall, where nights are longer than days, and days continue to get shorter. One thing all four months in the Fall Third have in common is that Christmas decorations are being sold. Not only that, you’ll see more hype for Halloween in September and October, and more hype for Christmas in November and December. To those who like holidays, the Fall Third should be considered the best third.

Personally, I think the Fall Third is the best time of the year to buy holiday decorations for either Halloween or Christmas, while the Winter Third (especially in the spring months) is the best time of the year to go to Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure Park. My favorite third is the Fall Third, while my least favorite third is the summer third. Ironically, in 2014 (at least in regards to my personal life), the best four months of the year were part of the Summer Third, while the worst four months of the year were part of the Fall Third.