Zinaida Nikolayevna Hippius (Gippioes):
(Saint Petersburg, 20 November 1869 – Paris, 9 September 1945).
Russian poet and writer from the Symbolist school.
The last days of August are a kind of whisper. Not the Autumn yet, but the smell of it.
This is a poetic way of describing the ’transition between late summer and early autumn’.
– “The last days of August” suggest the end of summer.
– “A kind of whisper” means the change is subtle, quiet, barely noticeable.
– “Not the Autumn yet” means autumn has not fully arrived.
– “But the smell of it” suggests that autumn is already being sensed — in the air, the light, the mood, cooler evenings, dry leaves, etc.
In simpler words:
It means:
> Late August still belongs to summer, but autumn is already approaching and can be felt.
It expresses ‘nostalgia, anticipation, and melancholy’ — the feeling that one season is ending while another is quietly beginning.
📚 Origin and author:
⚠️ Attribution to Zinaida Gippius
This saying is often circulated online and is sometimes attributed to Zinaida Nikolaevna Gippius / Зинаида Николаевна Гиппиус, the Russian Symbolist poet and writer.
However, there does ‘not appear to be a reliably documented source’ confirming that she wrote this exact phrase.
I would treat the attribution to Gippius as ‘uncertain’ or ‘possibly apocryphal’ unless it can be traced to a specific work, diary entry, letter, or poem of hers.
🖋️ About Zinaida Gippius:
Zinaida Gippius — Russian: Зинаида Николаевна Гиппиус
— was a major Russian Symbolist poet, novelist, essayist, and diarist.
– Born: 1869
– Died: 1945
– Associated with: Russian Symbolism
– Married to: Dmitry Merezhkovsky
– Known for:
spiritual, philosophical, and psychologically intense writing
Because her style could be lyrical and meditative, it is understandable that such a phrase might be linked to her online — but that does not prove authorship.
🌍 Possible Russian-style version
> Последние дни августа — это почти шёпот. Ещё не осень, но уже её запах.
Meaning:
> “The last days of August are almost a whisper. Not autumn yet, but already its smell.”
But this wording may be a ‘modern paraphrase’, not necessarily an authentic quotation from Gippius.
December’s immaculate coldness feels warm. December feels like blood.
