Dec 27, 2009 17:14
Full Moon names date back to Native Americans, of what is now the northern and eastern United States. The tribes kept track of the seasons by giving distinctive names to each recurring full Moon. Their names were applied to the entire month in which each occurred. There was some variation in the Moon names, but in general, the same ones were current throughout the Algonquin tribes from New England to Lake Superior. European settlers followed that custom and created some of their own names. Since the lunar month is only 29 days long on the average, the full Moon dates shift from year to year.
* January - Wolf moon only
* February - Ice moon
* March - Storm moon
* April - Growing moon
* May - Hare moon
* June - Mead moon
* July - Hay moon
* August - Corn moon
* September - Harvest moon
* October - Hunter's moon
* November - Snow moon
* December - Winter moon