Celebrating Mother's Day Around The World
What will you be doing to celebrate Mother's Day this year? Whether you're in the UK or abroad, a card and a thoughtful gift for Mum is always appreciated! But of course there are many ways (and days) to celebrate this special event, depending on where you live.
We've found some fun Mother's Day facts from six very different countries around the world - read on to find out more ...
United Kingdom
Mother's Day falls on the fourth Sunday of Lent, stemming from its origins as an early Christian Festival. "Mothering Sunday" (as the day's still officially known) was a time when people returned to their home village and "mother church" for an annual service.
Although this tradition became less relevant over time, after the creation of Mother's Day in the US (see below), people wanted to start celebrating it again. A booklet called "The Revival of Mothering Sunday" was published, and by World War II it was well on the way to becoming the widely celebrated event it is today. Around 30million Mother's Day cards are now sent annually in the UK!
And did you know that in the past Mothering Sunday was also called Refreshment Day? It marked the time when people could finally break their fast after Lent, and could enjoy eating simnel cake (above) and other tasty food again.
United States
In America, Mother's Day was declared to be a national holiday in 1914 and soon became very popular. Anna Jarvis, founder of the International Mother's Day Association, thought people should mark it in a relatively low key way, by wearing white carnations, visiting mothers and going to church.
When the event became more commercial, however, Anna tried to stop some groups from using the name "Mother's Day" and ended up spending a fortune on legal fees. She also attempted to get the holiday removed from the calendar and wanted nothing to do with it when she died, childless, in 1948.
According to data from Statista, Americans were planning to spend an astonishing $28 billion on this event last year! In the US (and subsequently many other countries), Mother's Day is celebrated on the second Sunday of May, which will be 8th May in 2022.
Norway
Norwegians get their "Morsdag" celebrations in before anyone else, on the second Sunday of February. The event was first held in 1919, following Mother's Day becoming a national holiday in the US..
No one seems entirely sure why it's held so early, although one suggestion is that, if it had been held in early-mid May, it would have been too close to Norway's national day (17th May). Although this does mean it now falls very close to Valentine's Day as well ...
Bolivia
"Dia de la Madre" is the most celebrated day in Bolivia after Christmas. No one is left out - mums, friends' mums, friends who are mums, grandmothers, aunts, sisters, cousins, and friends are all included and it's common for large extended families to get together on the day!
Mother's Day is held on 27th May to commemorate a famous battle in1812, when hundreds of women - armed only with saucepans, sticks and small weapons - were killed defending their homes against the Spanish army. It celebrates the bravery of the “Heroinas de la Coronilla” ("Heroines of the Hill").
Thailand
Since 1976, Mother's Day in Thailand has taken place on August 12th, the birthday of the Queen Mother Siriket (called the "Mother of Thailand"). People start to prepare a few weeks before the national holiday, with decorations and portraits of the Queen being displayed in homes and at work.
On Mother's Day, it's traditional to carry out charitable works including giving alms to Buddhist monks. It's also very popular for children to give white jasmine flowers to mothers, representing gentleness and pure maternal love.
Malawi
In 2008, Malawi's president moved Mother's Day to 15th October, to coincide with the UN's International Day of Rural Women. This recognises the efforts of rural mothers to provide for their families and fight poverty.
Brightly coloured wraps or sarongs are often given to mothers on this day. And the event rightly celebrates the dedication and resilience of mothers in Malawi, where (according to a recent Unicef report) 42% of women are married before they're 18.
And more ..
Lastly, as with the US, the United Nations also recognises the second Sunday of May as Mother's Day. In fact, it's the most popular date around the world, in countries ranging from Australia to Austria, China to Columbia, Iceland to India, Uganda to Ukraine, and many more.
Back in the UK, however you're planning to celebrate Mother's Day this weekend, we hope you have a wonderful time! And of course you don't need to give her an extravagant present - breakfast in bed, a hand made card or a thoughtful phone call if you can't be there, are all ways of showing her you care.
We have to say that we're also fans of the all inclusive Bolivian approach to celebrating - after all, why not recognise as many amazing mums,stepmums, grandmothers, extended family members and female friends as we can?
And if you're looking for gift inspiration, take a peek at our collection of beautiful, practical and unusual gifts for her. They're affordable enough for you to be able to treat Mum all year round, not only on Mother's Day!
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