22 Fun Facts About February 29 & Leap Year Birthdays

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22 Fun Facts About February 29 and Leaplings
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Every four years, February 29 pops up on the calendar, making people wonder: what’s the deal with this rare day? It’s not just an extra date—it comes with a bunch of cool quirks, fun traditions, and unique challenges, especially for those born on this day!

If you're a leap year baby, or know someone who is, you’re part of a super exclusive club with a birthday that doesn’t happen every year. Let’s dive into 22 fun facts about February 29 and the people born on this rare day!

22 Fun Facts About February 29 and Leaplings

1. People born on February 29 are called “leaplings”

Yep, there’s a special name for them! In English, people born on February 29 are called leaplings or leap year babies.

The term comes from “leap year,” and the word "leap" itself means to skip or jump—kind of like how this birthday skips over most years!

2. Being born on February 29 is super rare

The odds of being born on this day are 1 in 1,461, which makes leaplings a pretty exclusive group.

Right now, only around 5 million people in the world have this birthday. That’s a tiny number compared to the billions of people on Earth!

3. February 29 only happens in leap years

Unlike other birthdays, February 29 doesn’t show up every year. It only happens during leap years, which occur every four years.

Most of the time, February has 28 days, but during a leap year, an extra day is added to keep the calendar in sync with the Earth's orbit.

4. Why do we have leap years, anyway?

A full trip around the Sun actually takes 365.2422 days, not exactly 365 days. If we didn’t have leap years, our calendar would slowly shift, and seasons would start at the wrong times.

To fix this, we add an extra day every four years—February 29—to keep everything lined up!

5. Do leaplings “age” slower?

Since their birthday only shows up once every four years, leaplings often joke that they age four times slower than everyone else!

For example, if someone is 40 years old, they've technically only had 10 real birthdays on their actual birth date. Pretty cool, right?

6. Leaplings have special astrology charts

According to astrology, people born on February 29 are one of a kind. Since their birth date is so rare, some believe they have unique energy, creative minds, and even a bit of mystery.

Some also think leaplings are extra lucky—because, well, how many people can say their birthday only happens once every four years?

7. Some parents want a leap year baby

Believe it or not, some parents plan C-sections or inductions on February 29 so their child can have a unique and special birthday!

On the flip side, others try to avoid this date, worried that their kid might have a hard time celebrating in non-leap years.

8. There’s a whole community for leaplings

Leaplings even have a club just for them! The Honor Society of Leap Year Day Babies is a group where people born on February 29 can connect, share stories, and celebrate their ultra-rare birthdays together.

9. Some businesses give leaplings special perks

Since leaplings have such a rare birthday, some businesses offer freebies or discounts to make them feel extra special.

Restaurants, cafes, and theme parks sometimes have special deals on February 29, like free meals or birthday gifts. Now that’s a birthday worth waiting for!

10. Some websites don’t recognize February 29

Because it’s such an unusual date, some websites and official forms don’t even have February 29 as an option.

Leaplings sometimes have to pick February 28 or March 1 when filling out paperwork—kind of annoying when you’re trying to book a flight or sign up for an account!

11. When do leaplings celebrate their birthday?

Since their actual birth date only happens every four years, leaplings have to choose when to celebrate in non-leap years.

Some celebrate on February 28 to keep their birthday in February, while others pick March 1 since it’s the day right after.

12. Legal birthdays for leaplings vary by country

Different countries have different rules for when leaplings officially “age up” in non-leap years.

Taiwan considers their birthday to be February 28.
Hong Kong & the UK recognize it as March 1.

This can cause problems when dealing with age restrictions or legal documents!

13. Some leaplings can’t legally do things on February 28

In some places, your birthday determines when you’re legally allowed to do things—like drive, vote, or sign contracts.

For leaplings, this can get tricky! Some countries say they must wait until March 1 to do age-restricted things, while others allow them to use February 28.

14. February 29 is Rare Disease Day

Because February 29 is such a rare day, it was chosen as Rare Disease Day—a global event that raises awareness for rare medical conditions.

When it’s not a leap year, this event is held on February 28 instead.

15. Levi Strauss, the inventor of jeans, was a leapling

The man who gave us denim jeans, Levi Strauss, was born on February 29, 1829! His invention completely changed fashion, and jeans are still one of the most popular clothing items today.

16. Sweden had a king born on February 29

King Charles XIII of Sweden was born on February 29, 1746, making him one of the rare few monarchs to have a leap day birthday.

17. A groundbreaking LGBTQ+ TV episode aired on February 29, 1976

On February 29, 1976, the sitcom Norman, Is That You? became the first TV show to mention same-sex marriage—a huge milestone in LGBTQ+ media representation.

18. AI beat a Go world champion on February 29, 2016

On this day in 2016, Google’s AI program AlphaGo defeated the legendary Go player Lee Sedol in a historic match, proving that AI could beat humans at highly complex strategy games.

19. When is the next leap year?

Leap years don’t always happen every four years—there’s a special rule.

A year is a leap year if:

It’s divisible by 4
But not divisible by 100, unless also divisible by 400

This means:

1700, 1800, and 1900 were NOT leap years.
1600 and 2000 WERE leap years.

The next leap years are: 2028, 2032, 2036, 2040…

20. Facebook celebrates leaplings twice

Facebook makes sure leaplings aren’t forgotten by sending out birthday notifications on both February 28 and March 1 during non-leap years.

That means two days of birthday wishes!

21. Twitter (X) once ignored February 29 birthdays

A Reddit user once complained that Twitter (now X) didn’t show birthday balloons for leaplings. It’s unclear if they ever fixed it, but if you’re a leapling, maybe check next time!