Category Celebration All Around the World

Victoria Day

On the Monday before May 25, Canadians celebrate the birthdays of two British queens born more than 100 years apart. The first queen was Queen Victoria. She was born on May 24, 1819. British people celebrated her birthday every year. After Queen Victoria’s death, Canadians continued to celebrate her birthday to express their loyalty to the British Empire. The holiday is named in her honour.

The second queen is the current queen of the United Kingdom, Elizabeth II. She was born on April 21, 1926, but Canadians celebrate her birthday on Victoria Day.

Canada celebrates Victoria Day with picnics, parades, outdoor concerts, and fireworks. Many families use the long weekend to go camping, host backyard barbecues, or otherwise get outside. It’s also a popular weekend for sporting events, such as car racing in Clarington, Ontario; the Scotiabank Blue Nose Marathon in Halifax, Nova Scotia; and logger sports with ax throwing, log rolling, and tree climbing in Kaslo, British Columbia.

At Upper Canada Village in Morrisburg, Ontario, you can get back to the holiday’s source during a 1860s-style birthday celebration for Queen Victoria, complete with mock military maneuvers, historical speeches, and a sing along of “God Save the Queen.” The authentic 19th century village also stages athletic games from the 1800s and serves birthday cake in the queen’s honor.

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Boys’ Day/ Children’s Day

Does your family hang flags or wind socks outside your home as a decoration? On May 5, many Japanese parents fly carp-shaped kites in honour of their boys. The carp is a fish. It is a symbol of strength, courage, and determination.

May 5 is Kodomo no hi, or Boys’ Day, Tango no Sekku, in Japan. There are many traditions on this day. Some families display warrior dolls to remind their sons of stories about heroes.

Kodomo no hi is particularly well known for the unique traditions and decorations that are associated with the celebration of the holiday.

In 1948, the Japanese government made this day a double holiday. It started a new national holiday called Children’s Day to honour both boys and girls. Other countries also celebrate Children’s Day. Some of these countries are Argentina, Iceland, Thailand, and Turkey.

Also on this day, families often take baths sprinkled with iris leaves and roots. This is because the iris is thought to promote good health and ward off evil. Rice cakes wrapped in oak leaves and filled with sweet bean paste, called kashiwamochi, are also eaten.

May Day/Labour Day

With flowers in their hair, children dance around a tall pole. They hold colourful ribbons that stream from the top of the pole. As they dance, they weave the ribbons in and out, covering the pole with bright colours. It’s May Day in England, and the Maypole dance celebrates springtime.

May Day was brought to England by the ancient Romans. In Rome, there was a day in a spring when men paraded through the city, carrying pine tree. There was also a festival to honour Flora, the Roman goddess of springtime.

On May Day in England, a pole was set up on a village green and decorated with flowers and ribbons. Villages then danced around the Maypole.

The first of May is also Labour Day in some countries. This holiday celebrates working people. Many countries have parades and picnics.

On 1 May 1886, the labour unions in the United States decided to go on a strike demanding that workers should not be made to work for more than 8 hours a day. Just three days after the strike began, a blast occurred in Chicago’s Haymarket Square leaving many dead. To honour those workers who died in the blast, the International Socialist Conference declared May 1 as a day designated for labourers.

In India, Labour Day is also celebrated as ‘Antarrashtriya Shramik Diwas’, ‘Uzhaipalar Dinam’ (Tamil) or ‘Kamgar Din’ and its first formal celebration was initiated by the ‘Labour Kisan Party of Hindustan’ in Chennai on May 01 1923. 

The Month of May

May is the fifth month of the year. There are several stories about how this month was named. According to one story, May was named after Maia, the Roman goddess of spring and growth.

In older versions of the ancient Roman calendar, May was the third month of the year. It became the fifth month when January and February were added to the calendar.

There are 31 days in May and it does not start or end on the same day of the week as any other month.

In parts of the Northern Hemisphere, May is one of the most beautiful months of the year. The days are warmer and the flowers are in bloom. In the Southern Hemisphere, the days are getting colder.

The Full Moon of May is known as the Flower Moon, named after the blooming flowers in the Northern Hemisphere, where these traditional Full Moon Names originated.

In ancient times, it was common to track the changing seasons by following the lunar month rather than the solar year, which the 12 months in our modern calendar are based on.

Passover

Long ago, the Jewish people were slaves in Egypt. To help the Jews, God told a Jewish man named Moses that he was to lead his people to freedom. God then told Moses what must be done.

Each family was to mark its doorway with the blood of a lamb. The people were to stay in their houses. They were to gather their belongings together and be ready to leave Egypt.

During the night, the Angel of Death visited every Egyptian home. And in each home, the first-born child died. But the Jews were safe. The Angel of Death saw the blood on their doorways and went by, or passed over, their houses. This is how the Jewish feast called Passover got its name.

After this terrible night, the Egyptian king, or pharaoh, let the Jews go. Afraid that the pharaoh might change his mind, the Jews hurried out of Egypt. Leaving Egypt, they became free.

Today, Passover begins with the Seder, which is both a religious service and a feast. The family prays and eats traditional foods. One of these foods is matzah, unleavened bread. Traditionally, after the Seder service, everyone sings happy folk songs.

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Easter

Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity, died on a cross on a Friday about 2,000 years ago. Christians believe that on the following Sunday, Christ arose from the dead and, in so doing, proved that He was the Son of God. The day Jesus died and was buried is known as Good Friday. The following Sunday is Easter.

Christians celebrate Easter by going to church. Some people attend special outdoor services at sunrise. The light of the rising sun reminds them of the light that comes back to the world with the newly risen Jesus.

Easter customs include wearing new clothes, which represent new life, and eating lamb, which represents Jesus, “the Lamb of God”. Eating and hunting coloured Easter eggs are also popular customs. Some children play a game with eggs. They roll the eggs down a hill. The egg that stays uncracked the longest wins.

Most Christians celebrate Easter on a Sunday between March 22 and April 25. Others celebrate it between April 3 and May 8. Whenever Easter comes, it’s the oldest, the most important, and the most joyful of all Christian holy days.

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