August

From ArticleWorld

August is the eighth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days to it.

August begins, and astrological terms, with the sun in the sign of Leo and then ends in the sign of Virgo. Astronomically speaking, the sun begins in the constellation of Cancer and ends in the constellation of Leo.

August was named in honor of the great Augustus. The month reputedly has 31 days because Augustus wanted as many days as Julius Caesar's July. Augustus placed the month where it is because that is when Cleopatra had died.

Before Augustus was renamed August, it was called Sextilis in Latin language, since it was the sixth month in the Roman calendar which started in the month of March.

In Brazil, folk superstition associates bad luck to the month of August, with the proverb "Agosto, o mês do desgosto," which translates to: August, the month of misfortune. This is the same that is often heard.

This may come from the sinister memories of the dreaded St. Bartholomew's day, which his August the 24. It is particularly despised in the Northeast of the country. August 24 is also, in the tradition of Candomblé, the day of Eshu, one of the most malevolent deities. Coincidentally, some unfortunate political events took place in August, like the suicide of the then President Getúlio Vargas.

August is also the name of a Japanese visual novel company.

Other events that take place in the month of August are: back to school, national investor’s month, women's small-business month, and midyear having month, and in many European countries, August is the holiday month for most workers.