April Fool's Day
April Fools' Day is celebrated on April 1st of every year
It is celebrated in the Western world
Sometimes referred to as All Fools' Day, April 1st is not a legal holiday, but is widely recognized and celebrated as a day which tolerates practical joke and general foolishness. The day is marked by the commission of good humoured or funny jokes hoaxes and other practical jokes of varying sophistication on friends, family members, teachers, neighbors, work associates.
There are various theories about its origin. It is considered the origin between the Middle Ages and the Modern Age. Some are based on the calculation of the Julian calendar days with the Georgian calendar and another theory is based on the Hebrew calendar and the biblical story of Noah.
Cinco de Mayo
The Cinco de Mayo is celebrated on May 5th in Mexico
Cinco de Mayo is a time to recognize the bravery of those who fight against oppression. Perhaps that is why this holiday is popular wherever there are people of Mexican descent. Each May 5 in Mexico, all conscripts are fulfilling their military service in state capitals pledge allegiance to the flag and the institutions they represent. Cinco de Mayo is celebrated by Mexicans in the U.S. and Mexican Pride Day, with mariachis, bullfights.
Many people believe that May 5 is the anniversary of the Mexican independence. But they're mistaken, for the Mexican Independence Day is September 16. Marks the first time the Mexican army could defeat a foreign power, better prepared, in this case the French. The battle took place in the modern city of Puebla de Zaragoza on May 5, 1862, between the armies of Mexico and France.
Anzac Day
Anzac Day is celebrated on April 25th.
It is celebrated in Australian and New Zealand.
In Australia and New Zealand, Anzac Day commemoration features solemn "Dawn Services", a tradition started in Albany, Western Australia on 25 April 1923 and now held at war memorials around both countries, accompanied by thoughts of those lost at war to the ceremonial sounds of The Last Post on the bugle. The fourth stanza of Laurence Binyon's poem For the Fallen (known as the "Ode of Remembrance") is often recited.
ANZAC was the name given to the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps soldiers who landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey early on the morning of 25 April 1915 during the First World War (1914-1918).
Groundhog Day
Groundhog Day is celebrated on February 2th.
It is celebrated in the United States and Canada.
According to folklore, if it is cloudy when a groundhog emerges from its burrow on this day, it will leave the burrow, signifying that winter will soon end. If on the other hand, it is sunny, the groundhog will supposedly "see its shadow" and retreat back into its burrow, and winter will continue for six more weeks. The largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.
The holiday, which began as a Pennsylvania German custom in southeastern and central Pennsylvania in the 18th and 19th centuries, has its origins in ancient European weather lore, wherein a badger or sacred bear is the prognosticator as opposed to a groundhog. The holiday also bears some similarities to the medieval Catholic holiday of Candlemas. It also bears similarities to the Pagan festival of Imbolc, the seasonal turning point of the Celtic calendar, which is celebrated on February 1 and also involves weather prognostication.[
Valentine's Day
Valentine’s Day is celebrated on February 14th.
It is celebrated in various places around the world.
It is traditionally a day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionery, and sending greeting cards
There are various theories about its origin from ancient Roman rituals to the customs of Victorian England.
Easter
Easter is observed by the churches of the West on the first Sunday following the full moon that occurs on or following the spring equinox (March 21). So Easter became a "movable" feast which can occur as early as March 22 or as late as April 25.
It is celebrated in various places around the world.
Easter is the springtime holiday marking the rebirth of Jesus and the renewal of the Christian faith.It is a blessed time for the faithful to celebrate the life, death and resurrection of the Savior... and a magical time for children to enjoy chocolate bunnies, marshmallow chicks and Easter eggs.
Easter is a time of springtime festivals. In Christian countries Easter is celebrated as the religious holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the son of God. But the celebrations of Easter have many customs and legends that are pagan in origin and have nothing to do with Christianity.
Las Posadas
Posadas are parties that are intended to, prepare for Christmas. Begin the 16th and end on December 24th.
Las Posadas are a Mexican tradition that is still celebrated today in some Latin American countries during the days before Christmas. In some countries, mainly from Latin America like Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Guatemala and Mexico.
Represent the pilgrimage of Joseph and Mary from Nazareth to Bethlehem. This performance takes the form of nine posadas, which start on 16 December and is to seek accommodation in this symbolic journey to Bethlehem until the 24th December, the eve of the birth of Jesus. During these visits are noted by the hardship they had to go to find accommodation in the cave of Bethlehem.
Its origin dates back to the time of the conquest, when the Spanish arrived in Mexico, the Aztecs believed that during the winter solstice, the god Quetzalcoatl (the sun old) down to visitarlos.Los Spanish missionaries who arrived in Mexico late sixteenth century, took advantage of these religious traditions to instill in the natives the Gospel spirit and gave the Aztecs a Christian holiday, which would serve as preparation to receive Jesus in your heart on Christmas Day.
Tet Nguyen Dan
The 30th day of the twelfth lunar month of the previous year to the 3rd day of the first lunar month of the New Year.
It is celebrated in Vietnam.
There are various customs practiced during Tet such as ancestral worshipping, visiting a person’s house on the first day of the new year, wishing Tet wishes, giving lucky money to young children and old people, wishing longevity to the oldest people, opening rice paddies or opening a shop.
Tet falls on a time when the old year is over and the New Year comes by lunar calendar. This is also the time when the cycle of the universe finishes: winter ends and spring, the season of birth of all living things, comes.