Mother's Day: Difference between revisions
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Revision as of 09:57, 10 May 2009
Mother's Day | |
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Observed by | Many countries |
Type | Historical |
Date | Varies regionally |
Related to | Father's Day, Parents' Day |
The modern Mother's Day holiday was created by Anna Jarvis and it's now celebrated on various days in many places around the world. It complements Father's Day, the celebration honoring fathers.
This holiday is relatively modern, being created at the start of the 20th century, and should not be confused with the early pagan and Christian traditions honoring mothers, or with the 16th century celebration of Mothering Sunday, which is also known as Mother's Day in the UK.
In most countries the Mother's Day celebration is a recent holiday derived from the Mothering Sunday holiday in the UK.
It is celebrated in Australia, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Malaysia, India, Canada, and United States each year on the second Sunday of May.
Historical antecedents
Spelling
Common usage in English language also dictates that the singular possessive "Mother's Day" is the preferred spelling.
Dates around the world
Mother's Day is celebrated on different days throughout the world. Examining the trends in Google searches for the term "mother's day" shows two primary results, the smaller one on the fourth Sunday in Lent, from the British tradition of Mothering Sunday (it is also called ladies day and women's day), and the larger one on the second Sunday in May.[1]
The extent of the celebrations varies greatly. In some countries, it is potentially offensive to one's mother not to mark Mother's Day.[citation needed] In others, it is a little-known festival celebrated mainly by immigrants, or covered by the media as a taste of foreign culture (compare the celebrations of Diwali in the UK and the United States).[citation needed]
Note: Countries that celebrate International Women's Day are marked with a cross '†'.
Gregorian calendar | ||||||||||||
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Occurrence | Dates | Country | ||||||||||
Second Sunday of February |
February 8, 2009 |
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Shevat 30 |
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Fourth Sunday in Lent |
March 22, 2009 |
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United Arab Emirates | ||||||||||||
First Sunday in May |
May 3, 2009 |
Mozambique |
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May 10, 2009 |
Anguilla |
Brunei |
Ecuador |
Latvia* |
Puerto Rico |
Trinidad and Tobago | ||||||
Poland "Dzień Matki" | ||||||||||||
Last Sunday of May |
May 31, 2009 |
First Sunday of June if Pentecost occurs on this day: |
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Mongolia† (The Mothers and Children's Day.) | ||||||||||||
Second Sunday of June |
June 14, 2009 |
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Last Sunday of June |
June 28, 2009 |
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Thailand (the birthday of Queen Sirikit) | ||||||||||||
Second Monday of October |
October 12, 2009 |
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Third Sunday of October |
October 18, 2009 |
Argentina (Día de la Madre) | ||||||||||
Last Sunday of November |
November 29, 2009 |
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Persian calendar | ||||||||||||
Occurrence | Dates | Country | ||||||||||
june 14, 2009 |
International history and traditions
In most countries, Mother's Day is a recent observance derived from the holiday as it has evolved in North America and Europe. Many African countries adopted the idea of one Mother's Day from the British tradition, although there are many festivals and events celebrating mothers within the many diverse cultures on the African continent that long pre-date colonization. In Nepal and other hindu tradition, its called "Mata Tirtha Aunshi" or "Mother Pilgrimage fortnight".
Nepal
Mata Tirtha Aunshi, commonly known as Mother's Day, falls in the month of Baishak new moon day(April). This festival falls in the time of new moon’s time which is why this called "Mata Tirtha Aunshi" derived from words: “Mata” meaning mother; “Tirtha” meaning pilgrimage. This festival is observed in the commemoration and respect of the mother which is celebrated by worshipping and gifting living mother or remembering mothers who have become immortal and are resting in peace. Going to Mata Tirtha Pilgrimage, located around the Kathmandu Valley’s eastern side at Mata Tirtha Village is another common tradition in the valley.
There is a very interesting legend regarding this pilgrimage. In ancient times Lord Krishna’s mother Devaki walked out her house to sight-see. She visited many places and delayed a lot to return back to her house. Lord Krishna became very unhappy because of his mother’s disappearance. So he went out in search of his mother to many places without success. Finally, when he reached “Mata Tirtha Kunda”, he happened to see his mother taking bath there in the spouts of that pond. Lord Krishna was very happy to find her there and narrated all of his tragedies in the absence of his mother. Mother Devaki said to lord Krishna that “oh! Son Krishna let then, this place be the pious rendezvous of children to meet their departed mothers”. So legends believe that since then, this place had become a noted holy pilgrimage to see back a devotees’ deceased mother. Also legend believes that a devotee saw his mother’s image inside the pond and he happened to die falling there. So,there is a small pond, fenced by the iron rods, in the place even on this present day. After the worship, the pilgrims enjoy singing and dancing throughout the day in a festive mood. There is no evidence of this legend but have come through elders based on ancient readings.
Japan
Mother's Day in Japan was initially commemorated during the Shōwa period as the birthday of Empress Kōjun (mother of Emperor Akihito). Nowadays it is a marketed holiday, and people typically give flowers such as carnations and roses as gifts.
China
In China, Mother's Day is becoming more popular, and carnations are a very popular gift and the most sold type of flower.[7] In 1997 it was set as the day to help poor mothers, specially to remind people of the poor mothers on rural areas such as China's west.[7] In the People's Daily, the Communist Party of China's journal, an article explained that "despite originating in the United States, people in China take the holiday with no hesitance because it goes in line with the country's traditional ethics -- respect to the elderly and filial piety to parents."[7]
In recent years Communist Party of China's member Li Hanqiu began to advocate for the official adoption of Mother's Day in memory of Meng Mu, the mother of Mèng Zǐ, and formed a Non-governmental organization called Chinese Mothers' Festival Promotion Society, with the support of 100 Confucian scholars and lecturers of ethics.[8][9] They also ask to replace the Western gift of carnations with lilies, which, on ancient times, were planted by Chinese mothers when children left home.[9] It remains an unofficial festival, except in a small number of cities.
Greece
Mother's Day in Greece corresponds to the Eastern Orthodox feast day of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple. Since the Theotokos (The Mother of God) appears prominently in this feast as the one who brought Christ to the Temple at Jerusalem, this feast is associated with mothers. [citation needed]
Iran
The Women or mother's national day in Iran is "24khordad mah" or june 14.
United Kingdom and Ireland
In the United Kingdom and Ireland, Mothering Sunday falls on the fourth Sunday of Lent, exactly three weeks before Easter Sunday (March 22 in 2009). It is believed to have originated from the 16th century Christian practice of visiting one's mother's church annually, which meant that most mothers would be reunited with their children on this day. Most historians believe that young apprentices and young women in servitude were released by their masters that weekend in order to visit their families.[10] As a result of secularization, it is now principally used to show appreciation to one's mother, although it is still recognized in the historical sense by some churches, with attention paid to Mary the mother of Jesus Christ as well as the traditional concept 'Mother Church'.
Mothering Sunday can fall at the earliest on 1 March (in years when Easter Day falls on 22 March) and at the latest on 4 April (when Easter Day falls on 25 April).
United States / Canada
The United States and Canada celebrate Mother's Day on the second Sunday in May.
Julia Ward Howe was the first to propose a "mother's day" in the US, writing in 1870 her "Mother's Day Proclamation". In 1907 Anna Jarvis wanted to honor her dead mother, and she thought independently of a holiday for honoring each person's own mother. The holiday was nationally recognized in the US in 1914.[citation needed]
Vietnam
Mother's Day in Vietnam is called Lễ Vu-lan and celebrated on the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar. People with living mothers would be thankful, while people with deceased mothers would pray for their souls.
Commercialization
Nine years after the first official Mother's Day, commercialization of the U.S. holiday became so rampant that Anna Jarvis herself became a major opponent of what the holiday had become and spent all her inheritance and the rest of her life fighting what she saw as an abuse of the celebration.[11]
Later commercial and other exploitations of the use of Mother's Day infuriated Anna and she made her criticisms explicitly known throughout her time.[12][11] She criticized the practice of purchasing greeting cards, which she saw as a sign of being too lazy to write a personal letter. She was arrested in 1948 for disturbing the peace while protesting against the commercialization of Mother's Day, and she finally said that she "wished she would have never started the day because it became so out of control ...".[12]
Mother's Day continues to this day to be one of the most commercially-successful U.S. occasions. According to the National Restaurant Association, Mother's Day is now the most popular day of the year to dine out at a restaurant in the United States.
For example, according to IBISWorld, a publisher of business research, Americans will spend approximately $2.6 billion on flowers, $1.53 billion on pampering gifts—like spa treatments—and another $68 million on greeting cards.[13]
Mother's Day will generate about 7.8% of the U.S. jewelry industry's annual revenue in 2008, with custom gifts like mother's rings.[14]
See also
- Father's Day
- Children's Day
- Mothering Sunday
- May crowning
- International Women's Day
- Hallmark holiday
Notes
- ^ Since the Persian Calendar uses the lunar year, which is shorter than the solar year, the day will migrate through the seasons. Every year it will correspond to a different day in the Gregorian Calendar, so it is listed separately.
References
- ^ "mothers day (sic)". Google Trends. Google. Retrieved 28 May 2006.
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ignored (help) - ^ "Principales efemérides. Mes Mayo". Unión de Periodistas de Cuba. Retrieved 2008-06-07.
- ^ "Calendario Cívico Escolar". Dirección Regional de Educación de Lima Metropolitana. Retrieved 2008-06-07.
- ^ Xinhua from China Daily (2006-05-16). "It's Mother's Day". SCUEC online.
- ^ "Haiti: Main Holidays". discoverhaiti.com. Retrieved 2008-07-08. * "6310.- Fêtes et Jours Fériés en Haiti" (in French). Retrieved 2008-07-08. Template:Fr icon
- ^ "Ahmadinejad highlights women's significant role in society". Presidency of The Islamic Republic of Iran News Service. 2009-12-16. Retrieved 2008-07-19.
{{cite web}}
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(help) - ^ a b c "Mother's Day Popular in China". People's Daily. 2001-05-14.
- ^ people.com.cn, sina.com.cn (2008-06-17). "Researchers and Experts Propose a Chinese Mother's Day". All-China Women's Federation.
- ^ a b "Do we need our own Mother's Day?". China Daily. 2007-05-16.
- ^ "Mothering Sunday". Religion & Ethics. bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2006-05-28.
- ^ a b Louisa Taylor, Canwest News Service (2008-05-11). "Mother's Day creator likely 'spinning in her grave'". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 2008-07-07.
- ^ a b AP (2008-05-11). "Mother's Day reaches 100th anniversary, The woman who lobbied for this day would berate you for buying a card". MSNBC. Retrieved 2008-07-07.
- ^ Recession or not: Mom comes 1st (phillyBurbs.com) | Local Business
- ^ Barnett Helzberg (2003). John Wiley and Sons (ed.). What I Learned Before I Sold to Warren Buffet. p. 80. ISBN 0471445398.
Bibliography
- LEIGH Eric Schmidt (1997). Princeton University Press (ed.). Consumer Rites: The Buying and Selling of American Holidays (reprint, illustrated ed.). pp. 256–275. ISBN 0691017212.
- LAROSSA, Ralph (1997). University of Chicago Press (ed.). The Modernization of Fatherhood: A Social and Political History (illustrated ed.). p. 90,170-192. ISBN 0226469042.
External links
- International Mother's Day Shrine
- Mother's Day History
- Happy Mothers Day
- Mother’s Day in Cuba by Irina Echarry, Havana Times, May 10 2009
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