▷ Veranillo de san martin | Actualizado julio 2024

indian summer

This summer has a legend behind it that we will tell later, as well as other curiosities. The popular saying goes that “the summer of St. Martin lasts three days and that’s it! As this popular saying goes, it is not frequent that it lasts more than three days. Normally, at this time is when temperatures rise (especially during the day) throughout the peninsula and the Balearic Islands. There are also weak frosts in the highest areas of the east of the peninsula and especially in the Pyrenees.

Temperatures hover between 20 and 25 degrees, so it is not really considered a summer, but more like a spring. However, it is known by that name because it is more similar to summer.

It is possible that any slight increase in temperatures on dates close to the summer of St. Martin could be confused with this event. However, many meteorologists have been analyzing all the records issued since decades in which it can be seen that in the days around November 11 temperatures rise abnormally. As we have said before, the general trend at this time should be to go down steadily.

summer of st. john

In mid-November, shortly before the arrival of winter, on the feast of St. Martin of Tours, November 11, there may appear a period without rain, with higher temperatures than the rest of the month that lasts only a few days, after which the cold returns again.

The name of this “veranillo” is associated with St. Martin, a saint who divided his cloak into two parts to cover a beggar who was naked and freezing to death and God rewarded him by providing him with pleasant weather to compensate for the cold of winter. St. Elizabeth of Hungary is on November 17 and St. Andrew on November 30.

san juan summer 2021

It also receives this name because this is when the quince is harvested, in some places it is known as the Summer of the Archangels, in Germany it is called Altweibersommer and in the United States Indian Summer.

The summer of St. Martin is linked to a legend about this Saint, who split his cloak in two to cover a naked beggar who was freezing to death. God rewarded the Saint by sending pleasant weather during those days to stop the cold of winter.

quince summer

The summer of San Miguel is also called ‘Veranillo del Membrillo’, so ‘baptized’ by farmers when referring to the time of harvesting their crop with the phrase… ‘San Miguel is coming! The quince is said to be the ‘fruit of love’, because in ancient times quince trees were protected by Aphrodite, goddess of love and fertility, and where newlyweds had to eat a quince before entering the bridal room. In other places it is also known as ‘Veranillo de los Arcángeles’, because on that day, September 29, the feast of the three archangels is celebrated: San Rafael, San Gabriel, as well as San Miguel.

St. Michael is the time of harvesting not only quince but also other crops that owe their name to the saint. Thus, for example, in Asturias, there is a type of fig tree (‘figal’ or ‘figar’ in Asturian) that usually bears fruit around this time, which is called ‘figos miguelinos’ (‘For Saint Michael the figs are honey’), very tasty, high in fiber and one of the fruits richest in calcium.