March 15 - Ides of March. The Ides of March has long been considered an ill-fated day. The ides were the 15th days of some months in the ancient Roman calendar. The word ides derives from a Latin word meaning "to divide." The ides were originally meant to mark the full Moon, but because calendar months and lunar months were of different lengths, they quickly got out of step. In fact, the ancient Romans considered the ides of any month unfavorable, as well as the calends (first of the month) and the nones (ninth day before the ides). The concept of unlucky days survived Julius Caesar (who was assassinated on March 15, 44 B.C. -- talk about bad luck) and calendar reforms. William Shakespeare made the phrase "Beware the ides of March" a popular idiom in his play Julius Caesar.

Back to Red-letter Days.

The term "red-letter day" originates with the tradition of marking holy days in a church calendar in red. We use the term here to designate days of special significance in each month -- holidays, astronomical happenings, anniversaries of historic events, and days with memorable folklore attached. Information is drawn from the library of The Old Farmer's Almanac.