The so-called “Merla Days” arrive, the last days of January which, according to tradition, should be the strictest of the year. Let’s find out what they are, why they are called that and what happens if it is hot or cold in that period.
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The Blackbird Days begin tomorrow: 29, 30 and 31 January would be the coldest of the year, at least according to tradition: global warming has actually been denying one of the best-known popular legends in Italy for some time now, which has these birds as its protagonists.
The latter narrates that if those last three days of January are particularly cold, good weather will not be long in arriving. On the contrary, in the case of Merla Days which are not very cold, the sun and above all the heat will take a long time to arrive.
When the Merla Days 2024 fall, the dates
The Merla Days 2023 are, according to tradition, January 29th, 30th and 31st, so this year they will start on Monday and end on Wednesday.
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They are, as mentioned, those that should be the coldest of the entire winter and therefore of the entire year, often characterized by frost and snow.
Why they are called the three Days of Blackbird, the meaning and the legends
There are several legends handed down over the years as to why these three days are called that. These are stories that also try to explain the origin of the gender difference in blackbirds, where the males are all black while the females are grey-brown. Well, it was once believed that the latter were all white. Then one day, towards the end of January, a blackbird decided to take refuge in a chimney to seek shelter from the frost with her chicks. She came out on February 1st and, because of the soot, she and the little ones had changed color: all black.
There is also another story which always has as its protagonist a blackbird that was originally white and above all beautiful: so beautiful that it attracted the envy of January who made it cold every time the bird went out to get food. So the blackbird asked him to last less (at the time January had 28 days), but she didn’t get his help. And so the other one got smart for next year: she put aside a good supply of food and didn’t go out even for a day. January replied by asking his brother February to borrow three days and to take revenge on him he unleashed a storm. Here the element of the fireplace returns: in fact, to protect itself from the cold, the blackbird hid for three days with its chicks inside the chimney, here it became black together with all its young, forever transforming the color of its species.
Another perhaps less well-known legend tells of two birds in love, Merlo and Merla, who set their wedding at the end of January. To return home they were forced to cross the frozen Po. But Merlo ended up in the freezing water and died: Merla has been mourning him ever since and her lament is heard above all on the three coldest days of the year. The Days of the Blackbird.
What happens if it will be hot or cold on those days
We can say that the three Blackbird Days determine what spring will be like. If it is cold, spring will be enjoyable and mild; if they are warm, the good season will be long in coming.
Well, looking at the weather forecast, the tradition could be respected. At least only in some regions: the latest update has in fact confirmed the arrival of currents from the North Pole whose effects will also affect Italy. Values are also expected to be below zero degrees at night and in the early morning across the entire northern area of the country and in some internal areas of the South and the two Major Islands.