Summer solstice predicts weather for the entire summer: what types of rain do we have?

June brings abundant rain to Estonia in various forms: drizzle, fine rain, rain showers, and rainbow rain. The approaching summer solstice is an important weather prediction date in the folk calendar. Estonian has as many different words for rain as Inuit peoples have for snow.

June in Estonia is exceptionally rainy this year. Rain falls into potato fields, children play outdoors in large puddles, and the sky seems to be emptying itself of all the moisture accumulated throughout spring.

Estonian vocabulary is accordingly rich in rain-related terms: drizzle, fine rain, white rain, rain wall, rainbow rain, stale rain and bubble rain are just a few examples. Linguists note that Estonians have as many different words for rain as Inuit peoples have for snow, a reflection of deep contact with nature over centuries.

The solstice as weather forecaster

The summer solstice, which arrives at the end of June, is one of the most important weather prediction moments in the folk calendar. According to ancient folk belief, the weather on the solstice predicts the weather for the entire remaining summer. If it rains on the solstice, one can expect the summer rainy period to continue for some time longer.

Observers of the natural calendar call upon Estonians to pay attention to the surrounding nature at these special times, when the year turns from the longest day to shorter ones. This is a time when nature is at its fullest and most varied-both the flowering of plants and the whims of the weather-are felt most keenly.