Ja Rule Turns 7 on Sunday

By: Elizabeth Bartek
Posted In: News

Imagine if you could stay young forever. Luckily, it’s possible-if you’re born on February 29th!

This year is a leap year and Sunday is leap day, the first and last one in the past four years. A leap year adds one extra day to the end of the month of February, every four years, with the occasional exception. Leap years are needed so the Julian calendar we are familiar with is in alignment with the earth’s rotation around the sun. If we used a calendar that had strictly 365 days a year, after 100 years, the calendar would be more than 24 days ahead of the seasons. Adding a leap year helps the calendar follow the seasons.

Leap Year Facts:

According to Lowdown Magazine, the chances of being born in a leap year are 1 in 1461, or .0684 percent.

About four million people worldwide are “leapers,” meaning they were born on a leap day.

Actor Anthony Sabato Jr. and rap artist Ja Rule are both leapers.

A city called Anthony, on the border between Mexico and Texas, holds a Leap Year Festival and the city refers to itself as the Leap Year Capital of the World.

February 29th is also known as Sadie Hawkins Day. This tradition started with St. Patrick and St. Bridget in Ireland during the 5th century. St. Bridget had complained to St. Patrick that the sisters at her nunnery were upset. They felt it was unfair they had to wait for a proposal of marriage. For some of the sisters, the wait had been long and they wanted to propose to the man they loved. St. Patrick then agreed to allow women to propose to men every four years, during a Leap Year.

In 1288, Scotland passed a law that allowed women to propose to a man of their choice during the Leap Year. Furthermore, if that man declined, he had to pay fine ranging from a kiss to a silk dress to a new pair of gloves.

Finally, a Greek superstition claims couples will have bad luck if they are married during a leap year. One in five engaged couples in Greece avoid planning their wedding during a leap year.

Take advantage of the extra day that only comes along every four years! Happy Leap Year!