This month’s name stems from the Roman/Latin word for “seventh month,” from a time when the first month of the year was March. To the Ojibwe people, this may be the month of the Leaves Turning Moon, the Corn Moon, or the Moose Moon.

In the Hebrew lunar-solar calendar, September begins during the month of Elul, and with the next new moon comes the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah (see Sept. 23), observed for two days starting at sundown Sept. 22, when the month changes to Tishrei.

To the Anglo-Saxons, the month of plants, Weodmonath, began on Aug. 24 (a day after the new/dark moon). The Venerable Bede, who is our only source of information about the Anglo-Saxon calendar, explained that the name refers to the abundance of plants, both weeds and crops, “for they are plentiful then,” and so we may also infer that it means it’s the beginning of the harvest. With the next new moon, we begin Haligmonath, or Holy Month, for reasons not explained by Bede, apparently. If I learn more, I’ll tell you about it in October.

*A Labor Day parade in 1909. Click image for link to source.*

Mon., 1. Labor Day was started by the Central Labor Union in New York City on Sept. 5, 1882, to honor working people with parades and picnics, and to advocate for better wages and working conditions. The observance expanded to more and more states and became a national holiday on the first Monday in September in 1894, the same year it was enacted in Canada.

Fri., 5. Mawlid an-Nabi is the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad. The Islamic observance begins the sunset before.

Mon., 15. Central American Independence Day commemorates the 1821 collective declaration of independence from Spain by Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala.

Tue., 16. Mexican Independence Day commemorates the beginning of Mexico’s war for independence from Spain. The revolt was sparked by the Cry of Independence (El Grito de Independencia), a rallying speech by Father Miguel Hidalgo on Sept. 16, 1810, in the town of Dolores. Mexico’s actual independence came years later, on Sept. 27, 1821.

*Image is from the National Museum of African American History and Culture.*

Wed., 17. Constitution and Citizenship Day commemorates the signing of the US Constitution on Sep. 17, 1787; it’s an official observance, but not a holiday. It is also customary to hold ceremonies swearing in newly naturalized citizens on this day. The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia is an independent source of information, programs and documents, including an online interactive constitution, regular articles, blog posts and podcasts about current events and the constitution.

Sat.–Sun., 20–21, 10a.m.–4p.m. LoLa Art Crawl. Sharon’s Compendium is pleased to be a participant in the 2025 LoLa Art Crawl, a self-guided tour of the Longfellow Neighborhood of Minneapolis, featuring local artists and their works. Download a printable PDF map from the LoLa website, or pick up a directory at a business in the neighborhood. Even better, start your crawl with breakfast at Turtle Bread (4205 E. 34th St.), which happens to be right across the street from the Toolbox Collective (3400 42nd Ave. S.), where I’ll be holding court along with nine other artists, and pick up a directory there.

You can get a preview of some of the things I will have on hand here in my online shop, and — this is truly astounding, if you’ve ever bought the Useful Calendar before and are aware of how late I usually have it ready — the 2026 Year of the Horse Useful Calendar! Yes! Including a handbound planner-diary edition, of which there will be a very limited number (depending on how many I get made by then). More details and a look at some of the horsey illustrations and new formats are forthcoming on this very page around mid-month (Sept. 17, to be exact—new Observations appear on Wednesdays).

Mon. 22. The autumnal equinox occurs at 7:05 p.m. CDT, when the sun is exactly in line with the equator. Today, the sun rises due east and sets exactly west everywhere, and all places on Earth have equal daylight and nighttime, more or less. The actual amount of daylight differs from this because of the way our atmosphere refracts light, and because the sun, being a rather large sphere, does not disappear below the horizon in an instant. Sunrise is defined as when the leading edge of the sun first appears above the eastern horizon, and sunset is when the trailing edge of the sun sinks below the western horizon, providing a few extra moments of daylight at the beginning and end of the day.

Tue., 23–Wed., 24. Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year, commemorating the creation of the world. It is marked by the sounding of the shofar, a kind of trumpet made from a ram’s horn. Jewish holidays begin at the prior sunset because the six days of creation each ended at sunset, according to the creation story as told in the book of Genesis. This is the beginning of the High Holidays, the 10-day period that concludes with Yom Kippur on Oct. 2.

Tue., 24. Heritage Day (S. Afr.) was established in 1995 to celebrate the shared culture of the diverse South African ethnic groups; the date was selected because it had been a Zulu holiday. South Africans are encouraged to celebrate their diversity and commonality by getting together for barbecues (called “braai”).

Sun., 29. Michaelmas honors Michael the warrior-archangel, also called Saint Michael, who defeated Satan and cast him out of heaven; Satan is often depicted as a serpent-dragon in traditional art about this, or as some other fanciful beastie (see below), or sometimes he’s kind of human looking. The day is often described as the Feast of the Archangels, which includes Gabriel and Raphael.

Michaelmas is also the name given to the first of the four quarters of the legal year in England, with certain courts first sitting in October after an elaborate ceremony at Westminster Abbey. The US Supreme court retains a remnant of this tradition by beginning its term on the first Monday in October.

September: Change in the Air

Power Line Mysteries and Musings