In my home, we spend a lot of time understanding our days of the week, months of the year, and the moon calendar. I realize that much of the world does not function off of the Gregorian calendar alone, the function of a lunisolar calendar. However, when doing business they refer to the calendar that we commonly know as the international calendar.
Tonight we are under a Waxing Gibbous moon; in two days on March 7th we will be under the full moon for the month. For the month of March, it is known as the Worm Moon. Lady J and I go over the moon phase almost daily, that way she can identify the moon no matter the phase. As she gets older we will discuss how the moon affects our daily life and the importance of understanding the moon calendar to the global community.
When gardening and farming, however, you need to be aware of the lunar cycle. Indigenous Americans do not get enough credit for all that we have learned from them. The various names of the full moons can be credited to them. The names of these moons help them to mark the seasons, as well as, guide the planting and harvest seasons. The Indigenous Americans named the whole month by the name of the full moon. And the month either started on the new moon or the full moon. An example would be, this full moon is named the Worm Moon. However, instead of naming this moon the worm moon. This month would have been the worm month. The Colonial European Americans learned about the various seasons as well as planting techniques, and skills from the indigenous Americans’ traditions; they renamed all of the full moons according to their traditions.
Indigenous Americans, just like all other global indigenous cultures, had developed their own calendar systems prior to the invasion by Colonial European Americans. Some of the native nations developed 12 moon system while others developed a 13-moon system. The names of the moons were not standardized throughout the indigenous American nations, but varied throughout the nations.
**Small Rant**
I am overly disgusted with the statement that we brought these savages civilization and culture. The more I have taken the time out to learn about all of our Indigenous Cultures, be it Indigenous African, American, or Asian, the angrier I get at the blatant savagery displaced by colonial and current European Americans.
The worm moon is significant because it is the last full moon before spring. Colonial European American folklore states it is because this is the time of year the worms become active and the first robins of the year get the worms. According to Indigenous American traditions, this is the time of year when various larvae begin to venture from their winter safe havens and would come to life.
I am ordering a couple of books for Lady J, pertaining to the moon lore because they are a creative way to understand the season of the year. What is amazing is that live a part of the Global North experience the four seasons Spring Summer Fall and winter. While our family in the Global south experience 2 seasons: rainy(monsoon) season and dry seasons. The Ancient Egyptian divided the year into 3 seasons, the rainy season, winter, and the dry season.
For me personally, part one of the biggest parts of being a global citizen is approaching the world with the understanding that people may not or will not experience life the way I do or through the lens that I see the world. Whether that is the holidays they celebrate, the way love is expressed, how they worship, or even how they measure time on this earth we all share.
These are my thoughts,
Shanté
© 2023 Shante Nixon. All rights reserved.
Resources and Sources:
Full Moon Calendar for 2023
Welcome – Native-Land.ca
We strive to map Indigenous territories, treaties, and languages across the world in a way that goes beyond colonial…
native-land.ca
Native American Moon Names – AIANTA
With 576 federally recognized tribes, Native Hawaiians and even more state-recognized tribes throughout the country…
www.aianta.org
Archeo | Native Moons | Western Washington University
when snow blows like spirits in the wind frost sparkling in the sun buffalo dropping their calves ice breaking in the…
www.wwu.edu
https://www.easterntrail.org/why-native-americans-named-the-moons
Full moon names for 2023 (and how they came to be)
(Image credit: Smartshots International/Getty Images) Full moon names date back to Native Americans, of what is now the…
www.space.com
Full Moon Names for 2023
Here’s the official guide to every full Moon name of the year from The Old Farmer’s Almanac. Learn the special meaning…
www.almanac.com
Full Moon Calendar 2023-24: When is the Next Full Moon? | Dates and Times
When is the next full Moon? We have dates, times, names, and folklore for the year! The next full Moon will occur on…
www.farmersalmanac.com
Did we need the moon for life?
For all we know, Earth is the only place in the Universe where life appeared. This makes the mystery of our existence…
phys.org
How does the Moon affect life on Earth?
‘The Moon has been up there as long as evolution has been taking place, and lunar rhythms are embedded in the life…
www.nhm.ac.uk
Must-See Animal Migrations
What is the sound of nearly two million wildebeest and zebra moving across the plains of Tanzania’s Serengeti and…
www.nathab.com
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This post was previously published on medium.com.
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