What Is Candlemas? Meaning, Date & Traditions

Candlemas is the Christian feast day on February 2 that marks the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple in Jerusalem, exactly 40 days after Christmas. Its name comes from the old custom of blessing the year's candles on this day, a sign of Christ as the "light of the world." For many families it is also the gentle, official close of the Christmas season, the day the tree finally comes down and winter turns its face toward spring.

If you have only ever heard "Candlemas" in a carol or seen February 2 marked on a church calendar, here is the warm, plain-English version: where it comes from, why it lands 40 days after Christmas, the foods and folklore tied to it around the world, and a few simple ways to mark the day at home.

What is Candlemas, and when is it?

Candlemas always falls on February 2. In 2026 that is a Monday, and in 2027 it lands on a Tuesday. The date is not random: it is the fortieth day after December 25, counting Christmas Day itself. Under Jewish law in the Gospel of Luke, a mother brought her firstborn son to the Temple forty days after birth for the rites of purification and to consecrate the child to God, and that is exactly what Mary and Joseph did with the infant Jesus.

The feast carries several names depending on the tradition. Western churches have long called it the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord and the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In Eastern Orthodox churches it is the Hypapante, or "the Meeting," because it was at the Temple that the elderly Simeon and the prophetess Anna met the Christ child and recognized who he was.

Why is it called Candlemas?

When Mary and Joseph reached the Temple, Simeon took the baby in his arms and called him "a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel" (Luke 2:32). Those words, known as the Nunc Dimittis or the Canticle of Simeon, are the heart of the day. Because Jesus was hailed as the light of the world, churches began blessing candles on February 2, candles that the faithful would carry home and burn through the year for prayer and protection. The English word "Candlemas" is simply "candle" plus "mass," the candle Mass. The custom is old: candles were being blessed on this feast at least as far back as the seventh century, and the feast itself was kept in Jerusalem as early as the fourth century.

The Groundhog Day connection

Here is the part most Americans never learn in school. Groundhog Day grew straight out of Candlemas. An old English weather rhyme ran, "If Candlemas be fair and bright, come Winter, have another flight. If Candlemas brings clouds and rain, go Winter, and come not again." German farmers carried the same idea, watching to see whether a hedgehog cast a shadow in the February 2 sun. When German-speaking settlers, the Pennsylvania Dutch, came to America, the hedgehog became the groundhog, and the church feast of light quietly turned into Punxsutawney Phil and his shadow. So the next time you watch the groundhog forecast, you are watching a folk tradition with a 1,500-year-old religious root.

Candlemas foods and traditions around the world

Candlemas is celebrated very differently from country to country, and the food is half the fun.

• France: February 2 is la Chandeleur, the day of crepes. Their round, golden shape recalls the sun and the return of light, and tradition says you should flip a crepe in the pan with one hand while holding a gold coin in the other to bring prosperity for the year.
• Mexico: as Día de la Candelaria, families gather for tamales. Whoever found the baby figure hidden in the Rosca de Reyes on Three Kings' Day in January is the one expected to host and provide the tamales on February 2.
• Spain and the Canary Islands: the day honors the Virgen de la Candelaria with processions and the blessing of candles.
• Luxembourg: children walk the streets in small groups on Liichtmëss, carrying lanterns and singing for sweets, a descendant of an old torchlight procession.

One symbol shows up almost everywhere: the snowdrop. These small white flowers often push through the frost right around early February, which is why they are nicknamed "Candlemas Bells." Folklore treated them as a sign of hope that winter would not last forever.

The day the Christmas season ends

For centuries, Candlemas marked the true end of the Christmas and Epiphany cycle, not New Year's Day. In many homes and churches the Nativity scene and the last greenery stayed up until February 2, and only then were they packed away. Pope John Paul II kept the Nativity scene in St. Peter's Square until Candlemas for exactly this reason. If your tree is somehow still standing, you are not behind, you are simply observing the old calendar.

It is a lovely excuse for one last cozy night of the season. Light a few candles, pull on something warm, and enjoy the quiet before the long stretch of late winter. A soft Christmas sweater or a pair of Christmas pajamas is exactly right for a low-key February evening in front of the fire.

Simple ways to observe Candlemas at home

You do not need to be a churchgoer to mark the day in a small, meaningful way:

• Light candles at dinner and let them stand in for the church's blessed candles, a quiet nod to the "light of the world."
• Make crepes or pancakes, the way French families do, and try the gold-coin flip for luck.
• Take down the last of the Christmas decorations together and close the season gently.
• Step outside and look for the first snowdrops, the original Candlemas Bells.
• Watch the Groundhog Day forecast and tell everyone where the tradition really came from.

Whether you keep Candlemas as a holy day, a folk tradition, or simply the moment you finally box up the ornaments, February 2 is a small turning point worth noticing. The candles are blessed, the snowdrops are stirring, and the light, slowly but surely, is on its way back.

For more on the feast's long history and its many regional names, see the overview on Candlemas at Wikipedia, and National Geographic's feature on how Candlemas became the Christian feast of light.