'Couples who get married on Feb 29...': Check superstitions, traditions around Leap Year 2024

livemint.com:

AP report. Since the 16th century, leap years was an invention of the Gregorian calendar, to address a discrepancy in the solar year. Bearing in mind it takes around 365.2422 days each year for the Earth to revolve around the sun, the extra snippet (around six hours a year) adds up over time.

Leap days regulate things -- without them we would fall out of sync with the seasons, causing havoc for farmers and their crops as well as school holidays. But, do you know, cultures around the world hold difference significance of this day as some consider leap year as opportunity while some consider leap days, months whereas the whole year as bad luck. In Ireland, February 29 is known as Bachelor's Day or Ladies Privilege, when, tradition has it, women can propose to men rather than waiting to be wooed.

While some claim only a "Yes" answer is allowed, others say the man can decline, but must buy his admirer a gift. In accordance with Greek customs, marrying during a leap year, particularly on a leap day is considered unlucky as reports state that the marriage could lead to divorce, The Quint has reported. In Scotland, there exists a belief that people who are born on a leap day will experience a life filled with hardships.

Not just this, but overall, some consider leap year as a bad year for farmers. Some reports of superstitions linked to the year are that the number of deaths also suddenly rises and many people die in that particular year. In Taiwan, it is believed that elderly parents are more prone to passing away every four years.