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Summer is one of the four seasons of the year. In the West, the seasons are generally considered to start at the equinoxes and solstices, based on astronomical reckoning. In English-language calendars, based on astronomy, summer begins on the day of the summer solstice and ends on the day of the autumn equinox. When it is summer in the in the Northern Hemisphere, it is winter Southern Hemisphere, and vice versa.

However, because the seasonal lag is less than 1/8 of a year (except near large bodies of water), the meteorological start of the season, which is based on average temperature patterns, precedes by about three weeks the start of the astronomical season. According to meteorology, summer is the whole months of June, July, and August in the Northern Hemisphere, and the whole months of December, January, and February in the Southern Hemisphere. Today, the meteorological reckoning of the seasons is gaining broader acceptance[citation needed], but the astronomical definition is still more frequently used.

The convention in Australia is to use the meteorological definition so that summer starts on 1 December.[citation needed] In Ireland, summer starts as early as May 1 even though July, August and September are the warmest months there.[citation needed] In some countries, summer begins on June 1,[citation needed] while in others it arrives as late as July 1.[citation needed] In general, seasonal changes occur later in coastal regions, so countries close to the oceans go for a later start to summer (with the exception of Ireland) than inland ones. Summer is commonly viewed as the season with the longest (and warmest) days of the year, in which the daylight predominates, through varying degrees.[citation needed]

Elsewhere, however, the solstices and the equinoxes are taken to mark the mid-points, not the beginnings, of the seasons. In Chinese astronomy, for example, summer starts on or around May 6, with the jiéqì (solar term) known as Lixia (立夏), i.e. "establishment of summer". An example of Western usage would be William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, where the play takes place over the shortest night of the year, which is the summer solstice.

In Southern and Southeast Asia where the monsoon occurs, summer is more generally defined as March to May or early June, their warmest time of the year, ending with the onset of the monsoon rains.

In most countries children are out of school during this time of year, although dates vary. Some begin as early as mid-May, although in England, from the ages of 5-16, school ends in the middle of July. In the Southern Hemisphere, school holiday dates include the major holidays of Christmas and New Year's Day. Summer school holidays in Australia begin a few days before Christmas and end in late January to mid-February, with the dates varying from state to state. Summer is also the season in which many fruits, vegetables, and other plants are in full growth.

In popular culture

There are many cultural associations with summer. Commercials touting summer may involve beach imagery, including bathing suits, beach balls and surf boards. Summer clothing accounts for the effects of increased heat and sunshine, including but not limited to shorts, tee shirts, sun dresses, sunglasses, and sandals.

In the United States, Memorial Day, in late May is the unofficial kickoff for summer and Labor Day, in early September is the unofficial end of summer, with other peak summer travel occurring over July 4 weekend. Because schools let out in the summer, this season is common for travel, such as road trips. As a result of supply and demand, gas prices often tend to increase in the summer. Many high school and college students get summer jobs.

Movies

Since the late 1990s in North America, likely due to release of summer blockbusters beginning the first Friday in May, there has been an increasing trend for businesses to begin summer promotions on May 1 in order to get a head start on tourists. This is likely due to the fact that although May is the typically only the fifth warmest month in the Northern Hemisphere, it is the third largest month of daylight hours. In addition, an earlier start for the back-to-school promotional period along with the trend of having the last day of school before Memorial Day in many states forces many retailers to push summer ahead.