'If the groundhog doesn't see its shadow then it goes back into hibernation for a few more weeks as the winter will continue.'

On February 2nd in the USA, a rodent is asked to predict the weather for the next six weeks. Andy Jackson explores the traditions associated with Groundhog Day

Click on the dark blue links to visit a website about the highlighted subject. Please note that we are not responsible for the content of these websites.

February 2nd in the USA and Canada is Groundhog Day, which most people this side of the Atlantic know from the 1993 film starring the wonderfully funny actor Bill Murray.

According to legend, if a groundhog, a rodent of the family Sciuridae belonging to the group of large ground squirrels, emerges from its burrow and sees its shadow, it will leave the burrow believing that the weather has warmed up and Spring is not far away.

If the groundhog doesn't see its shadow then it goes back into hibernation for a few more weeks as the winter continues.

The holiday, which began as a Pennsylvania German custom in the 18th and 19th centuries, has its roots in Europe where a badger or bear was supposed to predict the forthcoming weather.

It also has connections to Candlemas and the Celtic pagan ritual of Imbolc.

Accuracy

The groundhog is only ever 40% correct, according to the US and Canadian weather departments, a fact contested by Groundhog Day purists!

The largest Groundhog Day celebration is the one featured in the film in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.

Up to 40,000 people come to see what the groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, will predict. The congregate at Gobbler's Knob, located in a rural area about 2 miles east of the town.

Punxsutawney Phil is reported to be 120 years old, having been given the elixir of life - or Groundhog Punch - every summer by the inner circle members of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. Every sip lengthens his life by seven years.

However, this has never been done in public and so there are many conspiracy theories about the animal, whose lifespan is normally a decade, being periodically replaced!

Language

Another legend is that Phil speaks to the Club President in "Groundhogese", which only the Inner Circle appear to understand, and then his prediction is translated for the entire world.

In southeastern Pennsylvania, Groundhog Lodges celebrate the holiday with fersommlinge, social events in which food is served, speeches are made, and one or more plays or skits are performed for entertainment.

The Pennsylvania German dialect is the only language spoken at these events, and those who speak English pay a penalty, usually in the form of a coin per word spoken, put into a bowl in the centre of the table.

The Lord's Prayer in one of the two main dialects is as follows:

Unsah Faddah im Himmel,
dei nohma loss heilich sei,
Dei Reich loss kumma.
Dei villa loss gedu sei,
uf di eaht vi im Himmel.
Unsah tayklich broht gebb uns heit,
Un fagebb unsah shulda,
vi miah dee fagevva vo uns shuldich sinn.
Un fiah uns naett in di fasuchung,
avvah hald uns fu'm eevila.
Fa dei is es Reich, di graft,
un di hallichkeit in ayvichkeit.
Amen.

• Groundhog.org, the official site of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club

• PunxsutawneyPhil.com