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Portal:HolidaysFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In the English-speaking world, a holiday is a day set aside by a nation or culture (in some cases, multiple nations and cultures) typically for celebration but sometimes for some other kind of special culture-wide observance or activity. A holiday can also be a special day on which schools and/or offices are closed, such as Labor Day. In most of the English-speaking world a holiday is also a period spent away from home or business in travel or recreation; the North American equivalent is "vacation". However, some Canadians will use both the terms vacation and holiday interchangeably when referring to a trip away from home or time off work.  The word holiday has related but different meanings in English-speaking countries. Based on the words holy and day, holidays originally represented special religious days. The word has evolved in general usage to mean any special day of rest (as opposed to regular days of rest such as the weekend). When translated from/to other languages, the meanings of the word "holiday" may be conflated with these of "observance" and "celebration". Most holidays can be placed into one of several groupings depending upon origin, calendar placements, and national observance. Almost all involve traditions of music, dance, art, and/or food facilitating social engagement and relaxation.  Mother's Day is a holiday honouring mothers, celebrated (on various days) in many places around the world. Mothers often receive gifts on this day. Mother's Day is a strange time of year for mail in many countries. In 1973, mail delivery through the U.S. Postal Service was delayed for eight days because of the amount of mail. Telephone networks are also at their busiest on Mother's Day. Mother's Day is the number one holiday for flowers purchased throughout the year. Different countries celebrate Mother's Day on various days of the year because the day has a number of different origins. One school of thought claims this day emerged from a custom of mother worship in ancient Greece. Mother worship — which kept a festival to Cybele, a great mother of gods, and Rhea, the wife of Cronus — was held around the Vernal Equinox around Asia Minor and eventually in Rome itself from the Ides of March (March 15) to March 18. The Romans also had another holiday,Matronalia, that was dedicated to Juno, though mothers were usually given gifts on this day.  Saint Nicholas is the common name for Saint Nicholas, Bishop of Myra, who had a reputation for secret gift-giving, but is now commonly identified with Santa Claus. Among Orthodox Christians, the historical Saint Nicholas is remembered and revered. Saint Nicholas is the patron saint of sailors, merchants, archers, children, and students in Greece, Bulgaria, Georgia (country), Russia, the Republic of Macedonia, Slovakia, Serbia and Montenegro. He is also the patron saint of Barranquilla (Colombia), Bari (Italy) Amsterdam (Netherlands), and of Beit Jala in the West Bank of Palestine.
 Credit: User:Kjrajesh Thrissur Pooram festival (Kuda Mattam).
Holidays - Anniversaries - Civic holidays - Federal holidays - Hallmark holidays - Heroes' Day - National holidays - Observances - Holidays by Country - Victory Days Lists: Christmas carols - Christmas dishes - Hindu festivals - Holidays by country - Objects dropped on New Year's Eve - Winter festivals Religious festivals: Buddhist festivals - Christian festivals - Islamic festivals - Neopagan holidays - Hindu festivals - Jain festivals - Jewish holidays - Roman festivals Secular holidays: April Fools' - Armed Forces Day - Boss's Day - Children's Day - Cinco de Mayo - Commonwealth Day - Earth Day - Father's Day - Grandparents' Day - Halloween - HumanLight - Labor Day - May Day - Mother's Day - Naadam - Pi Day - Presidents' Day - Spring break - Teachers' Day - Thanksgiving - Yom Yerushalayim Winter holidays: Chinese New Year - Christmas - Dōngzhì - Eid ul-Adha - Festivus - Groundhog Day - Hanukkah - Kwanzaa - New Year's Eve - Shab-e Chelle - Sol Invictus - Twelfth Night - Valentine's - Winter Solstice - Yule |
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