Black History Month: Why do we celebrate in February?

Most people and schools in the United States honor Black History Month each February – but do you know how it began, how long it's been recognized and who started it?

Here's a look at why February was chosen as the month for honoring Black history and how Black History Month came to be.

The origins of Black History Month date back to February 1926 when Carter G. Woodson came up with the idea of Negro History Week.

In the aftermath of the Civil War, Black history was being repressed in many schools, especially across the South. Woodson, whose parents had been enslaved in Virginia, was afraid Black students were not learning about their ancestor's lives, accomplishments and struggles in schools.

Because of his own family's economic hardship during his youth, Woodson learned the immense value of education and became passionate about history. He earned a Ph.D. in History from Harvard and founded the Association for the Study of African American History.

Woodson chose February for celebrating Black History because both Abraham Lincoln and Fredrick Douglass celebrated their birthdays in February.

Lincoln's birthday is Feb. 12, and Douglass, who was born enslaved and did not know his actual birthday, celebrated it on Feb. 14.

Because of the connection with Lincoln, the U.S. President who signed the Emancipation Proclamation, and Douglass, a prominent Civil Rights leader and abolitionist, the African American community already celebrated in the second week of February – making it an ideal time to encourage a focus on Black history.

Five decades after the advent of Negro History Week, President Gerald Ford officially recognized Black History Month in 1976.

He called Black History Month a chance to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”

Schools around the United States began adopting Black History Month into their curriculum – helping fight the repression of Black history.

Woodson spent his life advocating for excellence in education for Black students, and for him, Black History Month was just one thread in a much broader goal: Ensuring Black history wasn't erased and that Black students would have equal access to education.