The winter solstice - the shortest day of the year - falls on Monday, December 21 in 2026, bringing Scotland its fewest hours of daylight. After this date, daylight gradually begins to increase each day, nudging toward brighter mornings and eventually spring.
How long is the shortest day?
In 2026, the solstice will occur at 8.50pm in the UK. Around the world, it is marked with festivals and holidays, with Stonehenge one of the best-known gathering spots.
The Royal Museums Greenwich (RMG) explains: "The shortest day lasts 7 hours 49 minutes and 42 seconds in London. This means that the length of the day during the winter solstice is 8 hours, 49 minutes shorter than the summer solstice."
Winter solstice timings across Scotland
According to timeanddate, Glasgow is set to see sunrise at 8.45am and sunset at 3.44pm, with daylight predicted at 6 hours and 58 minutes. In Aberdeen, sunrise is set for 8.46am and sunset for 3.26pm, giving 6 hours and 40 minutes of daylight.
Edinburgh will see sunrise at 8.42am and sunset at 3.39pm, with 6 hours and 57 minutes of daylight. Inverness is set to see the sun rise at 8.57am and set at 3.52pm, with day length at 6 hours and 35 minutes.
Do the days get longer after the solstice?
In the UK, the clocks go back one hour at 2am on Sunday, October 25, as British Summer Time ends and Greenwich Mean Time begins. The clock changes from 2am to 1am, and evenings start getting darker earlier, with sunsets before 5pm in most major cities.
After December 21, daylight gradually increases and nights start to shorten. At the spring and autumn equinoxes, day and night are roughly equal at around 12 hours each. Daylight keeps increasing until it peaks at the summer solstice.
From December 22, the UK starts gaining a little more light each day. At first it is barely noticeable, but by late January the shift is much easier to spot, with brighter mornings and lighter evenings.
The word 'solstice' comes from the Latin 'solstitium', meaning 'Sun stands still', because the apparent movement of the Sun's path north or south stops before changing direction.
Why is the winter solstice the shortest day?
The Sun's position in the sky changes during the year. In summer, it rises higher and stays above the horizon longer; in winter, it stays lower and is up for a shorter time.
RMG explains: "This variation happens because the Earth orbits at an angle: it is tilted 23.4 degrees on its axis. During summer in the northern hemisphere the North Pole is tilted towards the Sun, and therefore this part of the Earth receives more direct sunlight and longer daylight hours. During winter in the northern hemisphere the North Pole is tilted away from the Sun, resulting in fewer daylight hours."
Whether the solstice marks the start of winter depends on the definition. In astronomical winter, the winter solstice is the first day of winter; in meteorological winter, winter starts on December 1. Meteorologists split the year into four seasons of three months each, and the coldest daytime temperatures often arrive weeks after the shortest day.
