The winter solstice 2018 marks the first day of winter, meaning that all of the trees will continue and complete their process of shedding their leaves and braving the intensity of the cold months.

If you’re wondering when is the first day of winter, look no further as you can start wearing your down jacket and snow boots starting on Friday, December 21, the official day of the winter solstice 2018. The day marks the shortest day of the year as we will have the least amount of sunlight on the winter solstice, meaning that it will be darker than usual across the northern hemisphere

The word ‘solstice’ is derived from the Latin word solstitium, which means that the “Sun stands still” because of the apparent movement of the Sun’s path north or south stops for a brief moment before changing direction. The day is also known as the Yule across Europe, which is derived from the Norse word Jul (or juul), which means wheel.

In the northern hemisphere, the winter solstice takes place when the North Pole is pointing away from the sun. It is the opposite in the southern hemisphere as it marks the time when Antarctica is pointing towards the sun.

In Scandinavian countries, the winter solstice is a time to honor the Norse god Thor as it marks the return of the sunlight, so they would burn Yule logs to honor the day.