A leap of faith? How leap day marriage proposals became a thing

There are a few customs associated with leap day worldwide but none as persistent as that around women using the day to propose marriage. Anna Murray looks back at the history of an increasingly outdated tradition.

Unmarried women everywhere are likely bracing themselves this morning for the usual jokes and jibes around marriage proposals that come every four years on February 29.

As the tradition goes, leap day is a time when women are "allowed" to propose marriage. It's a convention that's become a little more antiquated with every leap year — but how did it come to be in the first place?

There are a couple of stories that usually crop up when it comes to the origins of the leap day proposal.

It's generally considered to be an Irish tradition, harking back to the fifth century and St Brigid of Kildare.

Brigid apparently insisted that St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, give women permission to propose marriage every leap day. When Patrick relented, legend has it that Brigid immediately proposed to him.

He refused and offered her a silk gown instead, which is why the Irish tradition states that a man who refuses a leap day proposal must give the woman asking a silk gown. This is just one of the traditions about what happens if a man refuses a marriage proposal. (More about that later.)

But much doubt has been cast on this tale, mostly because it's believed Brigid would have been no older than 10 at the time Patrick died and probably wasn't campaigning for marriage proposals then.

Queen Margaret of Scotland also crops up as an instigator of the leap day proposal.

Some stories claim she enacted a law in Scotland in 1288 where women could propose during leap years. According to that supposed law, the woman had to wear a red petticoat while proposing and men were fined if they didn't accept the proposal.

If that didn't already sound like a fanciful concept, Margaret was only five years old in 1288 and likely not bothered about the social norms around marriage proposals. Scholars have also been unable to find any references to that law.

Still, the idea of leap day proposals has persisted.

The tradition has some different rules depending on which part of the world you might find yourself in.

We've already talked about the silk gown that a man is supposed to buy a woman if he turns down her marriage proposal, but other traditions dictate his penance as being a fur coat or several pairs of gloves (to help hide the fact the woman isn't wearing a wedding ring).

For many decades, a handful of towns in the US state of Illinois would replace its council members, police officers and firefighters with women every February 29, when they would "arrest" unmarried men. That tradition appears to have ended in 1980. Presumably, those towns now have women on the council, police force and fire service all year round.

Of course, in 2024, women are free to propose to whomever they like, whenever they like. So go forth and propose today or any day, ladies.

Or, you know, don't?