First Day of Fall: Date, Meaning, Customs, Facts & Quotes

The autumnal equinox, also known as the September or fall equinox, marks the beginning of the fall season in the Northern Hemisphere and the beginning of the spring season in the Southern Hemisphere.

1. What is the Date of First Day of Fall? 

The First Day of Fall 2021 takes place on Wednesday, September 22, 2021. The First Day of Fall 2022 takes place on Thursday, September 22, 2022. The First Day of Fall 2023 takes place on Saturday, September 23, 2023. The First Day of Fall 2023 takes place on Saturday, September 23, 2023. Spring 2022 in the Northern Hemisphere will begin on Sunday, March 20 and ends on Tuesday, June 21, 2022. Summer 2022 in the Northern Hemisphere will begin on Tuesday, June 21 and ends on Thursday, September 22, 2022.

2. First Day of Fall Meaning

It is the day when the sun crosses the celestial equator to the south. As a result, the fall (and spring) equinoxes provide around 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness on Earth. Oh, and after another scorching summer, the first day of September heralds cooler temperatures.

The fall equinox has been associated with the end of the harvest since the time of the Druids. Then came the winter preparations. Families celebrated by throwing parties and attending other social activities. The season of autumn lasts until the winter solstice.

Today, city inhabitants frequently travel to the countryside, such as rural New England, to enjoy the changing hues of the leaves. The fall equinox serves as a symbolic reminder to be grateful for the "harvests" in our own lives throughout the year. Take some time this fall equinox to think about nature's richness and the opportunities for abundance in every aspect of your great life.

3. First Day of Fall Customs

Go paganism!

The solstices and equinoxes were revered by ancient pagan nations. The Druids and Celts respected traditions and ceremonies centered on these rare heavenly days. Taking time to reflect on the good and poor parts of the first three-quarters of the year, based on the equal amounts of light and dark reflected during the equinox, was an especially important part of the fall equinox.

Make your own pumpkin-spiced delight

Have a recipe that is a hit at every party? Pumpkin spice adds tanginess to brownies, cakes, pies, drinks, and even savory pig and beef entrees. Invite your pals over and see what you can come up with together.

Go outside

You've finally escaped the summer heat, so take advantage of these early, cool autumn days. Enjoy the crunch of the leaves on the ground as you stroll, whether it's a simple walk around your neighborhood or an excursion in the woods. Go outside, breathe in some fresh air, and see the changes in nature all around you.

4. First Day of Fall Facts

It has a unique moon

The harvest moon is the full moon closest to the autumn equinox because farmers have more time to bring in the harvest due to the longer night. The 2019 harvest moon occurred on September 13th.

A dietary quandary

Low vitamin D levels have been related to fat accumulation, which is one of the reasons people gain weight in the fall!

Lights!

According to NASA, the brilliant colored lights of the aurora borealis are the result of more frequent geomagnetic storms, and this is a fantastic time to witness this natural phenomenon.

Stonehenge Party

Actually, the fall equinox ceremony at England's Stonehenge is more of a ritual gathering of Druids commemorating the arrival of autumn.

Life in equilibrium

Both amateur and professional astrologers recognize the autumn equinox as the time when the sun enters the sign of Libra.

5. First Day of Fall Quotes

"Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall." —F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

"Even if something is left undone, everyone must take time to sit still and watch the leaves turn." —Elizabeth Lawrence

"Designers want me to dress like Spring, in billowing things. I don't feel like Spring. I feel like a warm red Autumn." —Marilyn Monroe

"Autumn carries more gold in its pocket than all the other seasons." —Jim Bishop

"Autumn passes and one remembers one's reverence." —Yoko Ono

"Autumn, the year's last, loveliest smile." —William Cullen Bryant

"Autumn seemed to arrive suddenly that year. The morning of the first september was crisp and golden as an apple." —J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers." —L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

"April has never meant much to me, autumn seems like the season of beginning, spring." —Truman Capote, Breakfast at Tiffany's

"Fall has always been my favorite season. The time when everything bursts with its last beauty, as if nature had been saving up all year for the grand finale." —Lauren DeStefano, Wither

"And all at once, summer collapsed into fall." — Oscar Wilde

"Ah, September! You are the doorway to the season that awakens my soul..." — Peggy Toney Horton

"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers." — L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

"The trees are about to show us how lovely it is to let the dead things go."

"Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall." — F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

"The only thing getting 'lit' this weekend are my fall-scented candles."

"Early sunsets, warm tea, messy hair, warm sweaters."

"I can smell autumn dancing in the breeze."

"I love fall most of all."

"Oh fall, it's nice to see you again."

"Autumn leaves and pumpkins, please."

"And the sun took a step back, the leaves lulled themselves to sleep, and autumn was awakened." — Raquel Franco

"Autumn shows us how beautiful it is to let things go."

"Autumn killed the summer with the softest kiss."

"Fall has always been my favorite season. The time when everything bursts with its last beauty, as if nature had been saving up all year for the grand finale." — Lauren DeStefano, Wither

"Autumn... the year's last, loveliest smile." — John Howard Bryant

"It's fall, y'all."

"There are two times of the year. Autumn and waiting for autumn."

"There is harmony in autumn and a luster in its sky..." — Percy Bysshe Shelley

"Autumn paints in colors that summer has never seen."

"Fall breeze and autumn leaves."

"Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns." — George Eliot

"Let there be pumpkin spice."

"Light breeze, colorful leaves, bare trees. It must be autumn."

"There is always something to be thankful for."

"So long, summer. Hello fall."

"Psithurism: The sound of the leaves rustling as the wind blows through the trees. "

"The tints of autumn... a mighty flower garden blossoming under the spell of the enchanter, frost." — John Greenleaf Whittier