By Avery Walker

There is perhaps no month more abounding in myths, legends, and old wives’ tales than the month of March. Perhaps it is the transition from winter to spring that has inspired the imagination over the centuries and seeded these now common sayings and superstitions. Is every one of them fanciful, or do some have their basis in truth? Here are three of the most well-known sayings associated with the third month of the year and how they came to be.

In like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb

This familiar saying, “If March comes in like a lion, it will go out like a lamb,” along with its slightly lesser-known Scottish equivalent, “March comes in with adders’ heads and goes out with peacock’s tails,” attempts to make sense of the often unpredictable March weather. With longer days and often the blooming of early flowers, March is a month that has us longing for spring. This seasonal proverb attempts to bring hope to those disappointed by a rough start to the month by promising that better weather is coming before April arrives. There are many theories as to where this weather proverb originated, but the Farmer’s Almanac suggests the rhyme comes from an ancestral belief in balance. Other theories include the movements of the Leo (lion) and Aries (ram) constellations, and the Biblical symbolism of Jesus as both a sacrificial lamb and conquering lion coinciding with the advent of Easter often occurring in March. Though often proved true by the natural occurrence of late winter storms near the beginning of March and the steady progression toward spring by April, there is not really any other scientific basis for this saying. It does, however, serve to bring a little bit of hope to those suffering through the late winter doldrums.

Mad as a March Hare

This idiom has its roots in English literature, dating back as early as the 16th century. Comparing a person’s behavior to a rodent in a certain month might seem nonsensical but is actually based on scientific observation. The European hare, normally a quiet, shy, nocturnal animal, seems to lose all sense of decorum in March (the peak mating season). The small animals begin coming out in broad daylight, leaping, boxing, chasing, and competing with one another in frenzied bouts of kicking and jumping. This led poets and authors in the 1500’s and beyond to compare a person acting erratically with the “March hare.” Perhaps the most well-known example is the March Hare character in Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland and his eccentric friend, the Mad Hatter. Many believe the term “March madness,” which has been applied to everything from sports championships to department store sales, stems from this same rodent-based idiom.

The Ides of March

Shakespeare can be credited as carrying this ancient Roman calendar term into modern times through his beloved tragedy Julius Caesar. In the play, a soothsayer warns Julius Caesar to “beware the Ides of March,” foretelling his assassination and betrayal by Brutus and Cassius. Based on the actual assassination of the Roman emperor Julius Caesar on March 15th in the year 44 BC, the Ides of March came to represent a sense of foreboding and doom. On the ancient Roman calendar, the Ides were a way of marking the center of a month, which for March was the 15th. The Nones traditionally marked the 3rd or 5th day of the month, and the Kalends marked the first. According to the traditional lunar calendar, the Ides of March often coincided with the first full moon of the year and was a day for many traditions, celebrations, and paying of debts. Though originally meant to be a term synonymous with joy and new beginnings, the Ides of March were tainted by both history and literature and continue to be a phrase associated with looming misfortune.

These are only a few of the plethora of sayings and traditions making March a colorful month for the imagination. Many revolve around predicting the weather, such as “a dry March and a wet May; fill barns and bays with corn and hay,” “March winds and April showers bring forth May flowers,” or “so many mists in March you see, so many frosts in May will be.” Others are based in ancient mythology and legends. There is certainly something inspirational about the month of March. The transformation from an often dreary winter to the first hopeful signs of spring can bring about feelings of “spring fever” and everything that goes along with it. March is a time of planning and hopefulness for gardeners and outdoor explorers hoping for mild weather in the weeks to come. It is a time of new birth and excitement. It is no wonder March has been the muse of poets and farmers alike for hundreds of years and continues to inspire people around the world.