Stonehenge Welcomes 8,000 for Summer Solstice
2023-06-22
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1Around 8,000 people gathered Wednesday around prehistoric Stonehenge in Britain to observe the summer solstice.
2Many wore colorful clothing and even antlers. They stayed overnight to greet the sunrise on June 21.
3It is the day with the most daylight in the Northern Hemisphere.
4The crowd greeted the morning sun shining into the heart of Stonehenge with drumming, chanting and cheering.
5Nichola Tasker is director of Stonehenge at English Heritage, a non-profit group that oversees many historic places in Britain.
6Tasker said: "Stonehenge continues to captivate and to bring people together to celebrate the seasons, just as it has done for thousands of years."
7She added, "There was a wonderful atmosphere from sunset to sunrise, and everybody enjoyed a very atmospheric morning."
8In addition to the 8,000 people present, English Heritage said that about 154,000 others watched on its live stream video.
9In the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice happened at 14:58 UTC on June 21 when "the Sun travels along its northernmost path in the sky," said the Old Farmer's Almanac.
10The day also marks the start of summer in Earth's northern half.
11In the Southern Hemisphere, it's the opposite: the June solstice marks the start of winter when "the Sun is at its lowest point in the sky."
12In China, the summer solstice is called Xiazhi.
13Beijing Tourism says it is a time when people celebrate the wheat harvest and pray for peace.
14And people eat vegetables, cold noodles and what is commonly known as "summer solstice cake."
15Northern European countries like Sweden and Finland celebrate the summer solstice by singing and dancing around the midsummer pole.
16In Ukraine, people traditionally gather to celebrate Ivan Kupala Night in Khortytsya, an important historical area on the Dnieper River.
17The day is also known as the "International Day of Yoga."
18On Wednesday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi led diplomats and others for a morning yoga session at the United Nations.
19In 2014, Modi told world leaders at the U.N., "Yoga is not just about exercise; it is a way to discover the sense of oneness with yourself, the world and the nature."
20At Stonehenge, for just one night of the year, people are permitted to spend time inside the stone circle that is believed to have been built between 5,000 to 3,500 years ago.
21The purpose of the stone circle is still hotly debated.
22English Heritage notes several explanations.
23They include Stonehenge being a coronation place, or crowning place, for Danish kings.
24Other explanations are that the place was a temple, a center for healing, or a structure for astronomy used to predict eclipses and other solar events.
25The organization said the most generally accepted explanation "is that of a prehistoric temple aligned with the movements of the sun."
26The stones are said to line up with the sun at both the summer and winter solstices.
27I'm Faith Pirlo.
1Around 8,000 people gathered Wednesday around prehistoric Stonehenge in Britain to observe the summer solstice. 2Many wore colorful clothing and even antlers. They stayed overnight to greet the sunrise on June 21. It is the day with the most daylight in the Northern Hemisphere. The crowd greeted the morning sun shining into the heart of Stonehenge with drumming, chanting and cheering. 3Nichola Tasker is director of Stonehenge at English Heritage, a non-profit group that oversees many historic places in Britain. Tasker said: "Stonehenge continues to captivate and to bring people together to celebrate the seasons, just as it has done for thousands of years." She added, "There was a wonderful atmosphere from sunset to sunrise, and everybody enjoyed a very atmospheric morning." 4In addition to the 8,000 people present, English Heritage said that about 154,000 others watched on its live stream video. 5Summer solstice 6In the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice happened at 14:58 UTC on June 21 when "the Sun travels along its northernmost path in the sky," said the Old Farmer's Almanac. The day also marks the start of summer in Earth's northern half. In the Southern Hemisphere, it's the opposite: the June solstice marks the start of winter when "the Sun is at its lowest point in the sky." 7In China, the summer solstice is called Xiazhi. Beijing Tourism says it is a time when people celebrate the wheat harvest and pray for peace. And people eat vegetables, cold noodles and what is commonly known as "summer solstice cake." 8Northern European countries like Sweden and Finland celebrate the summer solstice by singing and dancing around the midsummer pole. In Ukraine, people traditionally gather to celebrate Ivan Kupala Night in Khortytsya, an important historical area on the Dnieper River. 9The day is also known as the "International Day of Yoga." 10On Wednesday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi led diplomats and others for a morning yoga session at the United Nations. In 2014, Modi told world leaders at the U.N., "Yoga is not just about exercise; it is a way to discover the sense of oneness with yourself, the world and the nature." 11At Stonehenge, for just one night of the year, people are permitted to spend time inside the stone circle that is believed to have been built between 5,000 to 3,500 years ago. 12The purpose of the stone circle is still hotly debated. English Heritage notes several explanations. They include Stonehenge being a coronation place, or crowning place, for Danish kings. Other explanations are that the place was a temple, a center for healing, or a structure for astronomy used to predict eclipses and other solar events. 13The organization said the most generally accepted explanation "is that of a prehistoric temple aligned with the movements of the sun." 14The stones are said to line up with the sun at both the summer and winter solstices. 15I'm Faith Pirlo. 16Hai Do wrote this story for VOA Learning English from Associated Press and other sources. 17___________________________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19antler -n. bone-like structures on the heads of deer that are not permanent 20captivate -v. to capture the interest or attention of a person 21aligned -adj. being in lined up with; being in the correct position or in agreement with 22___________________________________________________________________ 23We want to hear from you. 24Here is how our comment system works: 25Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.