While France celebrates Mother’s Day on the last Sunday of May, Thailand observes it in August. Here are some interesting facts about the celebrations across the globe
In Bolivia, the date chosen for Mother’s Day was based on the day when women participated in a battle. Other countries have also chosen the date for Mother’s Day to coincide with holidays that also celebrate women.
The writer of The Battle Hymn of the Republic, Julia Howe, tried to start a Mother’s Day in 1872. It was an anti-war observance first held in 1872. It continued in Boston but after 10 years it had lost its popularity.
Mother’s Day originated in the United States in the early 1900s. Although there are older traditions that celebrate similar holidays, they are not considered to be the origins of Mother’s Day.
Mothering Sunday, dating back to the 16th century is considered a precursor to the modern Mother’s Day. It was observed on the fourth Sunday of lent in Europe when people returned to their “mother church” and it evolved to include secular observances honouring mothers. This custom declined in popularity in the 1930s.
The American incarnation of Mother’s Day was created by Anna Jarvis in 1908 and became an official US holiday in 1914.
In Thailand, Mother’s Day is always celebrated in August on the birthday of the queen. Another alternate observance of Mother’s Day can be found in Ethiopia, where families gather each fall to sing songs and eat a large feast as part of Antrosht, a multi-day celebration honouring motherhood.
The French do not celebrate Mother’s Day on the second Sunday in May as the Americans do. Instead, mom’s special day is reserved for the last Sunday in the month of May. A family dinner is the norm, and traditionally the mother being honoured is presented with a cake that looks like a bouquet of flowers.
Mother’s Day celebrations in Ireland take place on the fourth Sunday in the Christian fasting month of lent. The history of celebrating Mothering Sunday, or Mother’s Day in Ireland, can be traced to the medieval practice where children from poor families were sent to work as domestic servants and apprentices to work with the rich. Once in the year in the middle of the lent these children were given a day off to visit their Mother Church and worship Virgin Mary. After visiting the Mother Church or Cathedral of their home town these children visited their mothers and presented them with flowers they picked along the way.
Mother’s Day in Spain is celebrated on December 8. Spaniards pay tribute not only to their own mothers on this day, but also to the Virgin Mary. Mother’s Day in Spain includes religious celebrations across the country.