Global Celebrations

Sunday, April 21st, 2013

Ridvan: April 21 – May 2

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Ridvan: April 21 – May 2
Almost 150 years ago, Baghdad experienced a spring such as the city had never seen before and has not seen since. In the last week of April, a wind blew that lasted for days. In the Najibiyyih Garden, in Baghdad’s Rusafa district on the banks of the Tigris River, roses bloomed in profusion as the nightingale sang without restraint. But the spring of 1863 was memorable not only for its physical beauty. Today, it is remembered by Baha’is the world over for the historic declaration of Baha’u’llah, an exiled Persian nobleman, to a handful of friends and family members that he was the Promised One of all the religions, the one whose mission it would be to usher in the era of peace spoken of in all the holy books.  Read more »

5 Fun Ways to Celebrate Earth Day with Your Kids

April 22 every year is observed as Earth Day in many countries to inspire awareness and activism towards protecting our fast depleting planet.  Read more »

Vaisakhi (Bhaisakhi): April 14

Vaisakhi (also spelled Bhaisakhi) is a joyful festival on April 14, celebrating the founding of the Sikh community known as the Khalsa.  Read more »

A Children’s Book for Holi

If Diwali is the festival of lights, then Holi is the festival of colors! March 27, 2013 was Holi, a holiday celebrated in India, more gloriously in the western and northern parts, and by Hindus all over the globe.  Read more »

Passover: March 25-April 2

Passover is one of the most important holidays of the Jewish year.  Passover celebrates the biblical account of the ancient Israelites' redemption from slavery in Egypt to freedom. According to the book of Exodus in the Hebrew Bible, the Pharaoh (ruler) of Egypt enslaved the Israelites, forcing them to endure cruel labor and eventually ordered the murder of all male children.  Read more »

Ayyam-i-Ha: February 26-March 1

Ayyam-i-Ha (also called Intercalary Days) is a period of hospitality, charity and gift-giving for Baha'is that is celebrated from February 26 to March 1. This is a festive time where people give gifts--mainly to children, have parties and focus on charity. Baha'u'llah, the founder of the Baha'i faith, said of Ayyam-i-Ha, "It behoveth the people of Baha, throughout these days, to provide good cheer for themselves, their kindred and, beyond them, the poor and needy, and with joy and exultation to hail and glorify their Lord, to sing His praise and magnify His Name.  Read more »

St. Nicholas Day: December 6

St. Nicholas Day is a popular celebration for children across many European countries. St. Nicholas is the predecessor to Santa Claus and has a reputation for his generosity. As legend has it, he leaves children presents if they are nice and coal if they are naughty in their shoes. St. Nicholas lived in what was formerly Greece and is now Turkey in the third century A.  Read more »

Mexico’s Dia de los Muertos: November 1st

Mexico’s Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a well-known holiday that, despite its motif of death, is a celebration of the lives of loved ones who have passed away. Originally derived from Azetc rituals, the holiday became connected to All Soul's and All Saint's Day after Spanish conquest, as the Spaniards tried to put a Christian spin on it.  Read more »

Eid al-Adha: October 26

Eid al-Adha (the Festival of Sacrifice) celebrates Ibrahim's (Abraham in Christianity and Judaism) obedience to God in nearly sacrificing his son Ishmael (Ismael), but instead was able to sacrifice a ram in his place. It is celebrated on the 10th day of the month of the lunar Islamic calendar following Hajj, Muslims' annual pilgrimage to Mecca. Since Eid begins at the first sighting of the new moon, the date varies by one day depending on whether the Saudi Arabian or North American sighting is observed.  Read more »

Enkutatash (Ethiopian New Year): September 11

Enkutatash, the Ethiopian New Year, marks the end of the rainy reason and the beginning of the spring sunshine. While Ethiopia follows the Julian calendar, the holiday falls on September 11th according to the Western or Gregorian calendar, except for leap years, when it occurs on September 12th. Enkutatash, meaning “gift of jewels” in Amharic, originally derives from the story of the Queen of Sheba returning from visiting King Solomon in Jerusalem, according to popular legend.  Read more »

Ramadan: July 20 through August 18

Ramadan falls in the ninth month of the Muslim lunar year and is one of the largest holidays for Muslims. It begins when the new moon is spotted and falls on August 1st this year; each year it begins approximately 10 to 11 days earlier. It was during Ramadan that Allah (God) first revealed the Quran to Prophet Muhammed. Ramadan is a month of spiritual reflection and self-control through fasting.  Read more »

Scandinavian Midsummer Festival: June 21

Traditionally in Scandinavian countries on the 21st of June, bonfires glow in a night with no darkness, since at this time of year the sun never really sets. On this evening, buried treasures can be discovered by studying how moonbeams fall. Girls and young women pick flowers on their way home and lay them under their pillows so that that their dreams reveal who their husbands will be.  Read more »

Nowruz (Persian New Year): March 20

Nowruz (Nouruz/Nowrooz/Norooz), the Persian New Year, falls on the first day of spring of the solar calendar (which is different from the Gregorian solar calendar). Nowruz is a festivity that transcends religions as it is not confined to any one religious group--it is celebrated in many countries globally including Iran, Central Asia, Turkey and in other traditional Persian communities found throughout the world.  Read more »

Holi: March 8

Holi is the Indian Festival of Colors. It is the celebration of the beginning of spring and represents rejuvenation and rebirth through all of the bright colors associated with the festival. During the festival, people smear powdered, bright colors on each other's faces and splash colored water at one another.   Holi is a Hindu festival, typically celebrated in the North of India, and is also celebrated around the world in places like Nepal, Sri Lanka, and countries which have a large Hindu Diaspora like Suriname, Guyana, South Africa, Trinidad, the U.  Read more »

Imbolc: February 1-2

Imbolc is a pagan holiday, usually celebrated on the eve of February 1 and into February 2 in Ireland and Scotland. In the Middle Ages, its association may have been with the goddess Brigid (later Christianized as St. Brigid). Brigid is the Gaelic goddess of poetry, healing and smithcraft. In the Christian calendar, the holiday is now called Candlemas.  Read more »

Lunar New Year: January 23, 2012

The Lunar New Year (or Asian New Year) is the most celebrated holiday of the year across many Asian countries. On the first day of the first new moon after the winter solstice in the lunar calendar (January 23, 2012), countries like Korea, Taiwan, China, Vietnam and Asian communities in many Western countries will celebrate the New Year. The New Year flushes out the old and welcomes in the new, making space for happiness, wealth, luck and longevity.  Read more »

Three Kings Day: January 6

While many people are undergoing the Christmas let-down that happens after the 25th, others are just gearing up for their holiday season. Christmas is just one marker on the festive path through the holidays that culminates in Three Kings Day (El Dia de los Reyes Magos also known as Epiphany). Three Kings Day is celebrated in many Christian regions around the world, including Latin America, Spain and much of Eastern Europe, and by Christian populations in places like Turkey, Syria and others.  Read more »

Hopi Winter Solstice (Soyal): December 22

The Hopi Indians, who have lived in the highlands of northern Arizona for over a thousand years, divide their calendar into 12 months with different ceremonies in each month. December is the month where the katsinas or kachinas, the spirits that guard over the Hopi, come down from their world at the winter solstice or Soyal (also referred to as Soyaluna and Soyalangwu).  Read more »

Germany’s Oktoberfest: September 17 – October 3

Germany's Oktoberfest, one of the largest fairs in the world, attracts over six million people annually to Munich to drink locally brewed beer, eat German specialties, sing and dance. The beer comes from six local breweries and the most typical foods are roast chicken, pork knuckles, sauerkraut, and sausages together with other foods like potato pancakes and apple strudel.  Read more »

The Festival of the Virgin of Carmen: July 16

Nestled in the Andean highlands, quiet Peruvian villages become teeming centers of dance, music, and merrymaking every year on July 16th that lasts for three days.   The festival offers a blend of religious devotion and Incan tradition, with regional dance troupes decked out in ornate costumes and vibrant masks. The dancers retell battle stories and the traditional folklore of the Inca, while the masks commemorate those used for protection when vanquished Incan peoples danced in rebellion against Spanish rule.  Read more »

Mongolia’s Naadam Festival: July 11-13

The Naadam Festival is the major Mongolian holiday. Naadam, meaning game or competition in Mongolian, features the three sporting passions of Mongolians: wrestling, horse racing and archery over three days of festivities. Naadam is not just limited to sports but is a carnival of music, dancing and food.   All three sports have their roots in the historical warrior tradition of Mongolia.  Read more »

St. Jean Baptiste Day (Canada): June 24

Akin to the national holiday of Quebec, Saint Jean Baptiste Day is a celebration of Francophone culture in Canada. While Jean Baptiste is Quebec’s patron saint, Jean Baptiste Day has more pagan than religious roots and remains a secular holiday today.   The day was originally a celebration of the summer solstice. However, in 1834, after becoming inspired by the celebration of St.  Read more »

Vesak (Wesak): May 13 (date varies)

Vesak (also known as Wesak) commemorates the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death with a colorful, fun festival. Casually the holiday is often referred to as the “Buddha’s birthday.” The exact date of Vesak changes according to the varying lunar calendars used in different traditions. It is primarily celebrated within Theravada Buddhism (practiced in Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, Malaysia, Laos, etc.  Read more »

Easter: April 8

Easter is a Christian holiday, celebrating Jesus Christ's resurrection from the dead. It falls two days after Good Friday, which commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus. Easter also marks the end of Lent, the 40-day season characterized by fasting, prayer and penance. In the Western church, Easter is celebrated on the first Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal equinox.  Read more »

Chinese New Year: February 3

The Chinese New Year is the most celebrated holiday of the year in China. It takes place on the first day of the first new moon after the winter solstice in the lunar calendar (February 3rd, 2011). Socially, it is a time for being with friends and relatives and the greater significance is of flushing out the old and welcoming in the new. This holiday, more than any other Chinese holiday, stresses the importance of family ties.  Read more »

Japanese New Year: January 1st through January 3rd

The Japanese New Year, shogatsu, spans several days from December 31st to January 3rd. It is the most important holiday of the year in Japan. While the New Year was originally based on the Chinese lunar calendar, in 1873, it changed to the Gregorian calendar. To prepare for the New Year, people clean their houses and decorate. Kadomatsu are a common decoration made from bamboo, pine branches and strips of folded white paper.  Read more »

Armenian Christmas: January 6

Armenian Christmas, also known as Theophany, is celebrated one day before the Orthodox Christmas. Although Armenia follows the Gregorian calendar, when the Romans changed the date of Christmas to December 25 in the fourth century, Armenians held to the original January 6th date. Santa Claus/Father Christmas is known as Gaghant Baba to Armenians. He traditionally comes on New Year's Eve (December 31st), which is the start of the holiday season leading up to Christmas.  Read more »

Hanukkah: December 1

Hanukkah, meaning "dedication" in Hebrew, celebrates the re-dedication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem after the Jews defeated the Seleucids (Syrian-Greeks). It is an eight day and night tradition where one additional candle is lit each night on the menorah. The history of Hanukkah dates back to 18 B.C.E. when the Seleucids took the Jewish Holy Temple from the Jewish people and dedicated it to the worship of the God Zeus.  Read more »

Diwali: November 5th

Diwali, the Festival of Lights, is one of the most vibrant and exciting Hindu celebrations. It is full of color and reverie, representing the philosophy behind it. The festival celebrates the triumph of good over evil and awareness of one's own inner light against a backdrop of fireworks, sweets, new clothes, decorating and cleaning homes, lighting lanterns and diyas (small oil lamps made of clay), exchanging gifts and drawing henna designs on hands.  Read more »
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Ridvan: April 21 – May 2

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Vaisakhi (Bhaisakhi): April 14

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Hello All I am Australian and have travelled to quite a few countries and loved the cultures and experiences of every one....except Germany and, in particular, Berlin. We stayed there for two day...
From Are Germans Really Rude?
Wonderful article! We are all different races and colors in our house, with varying curliness- I loved your suggestions:...
From How to Talk to Kids About Race: What’s Appropriate for Ages 3-8
Great tips, and great book recommendations! Another title that we like is Shades of People (http://bit.ly/16AflfQ). Also, a great leaning activity for us (white parents + Black son) was getting ...
From How to Talk to Kids About Race: What’s Appropriate for Ages 3-8
Only in the US. why make sth simple so complicate...
From How to Talk to Kids About Race: What’s Appropriate for Ages 3-8
[...] and not just the books that tell stories around racism, though those are important too. It is essential that your child sees characters of all races in “every day” books, experiencing rel...
From Ten Reasons Parents Should Read Multicultural Books to Kids
As a mother of a multiracial child I really enjoyed reading this guest post. I have already made a list of the books she suggested, and I'd like to add a few more that we personally own: Whoever Yo...
From How to Talk to Kids About Race: What’s Appropriate for Ages 3-8
This is brilliant! Thank you for this very informative article! I've used several of the books you mention with my children, as they asked since an early age why their friend(s) had "such curly hair...
From How to Talk to Kids About Race: What’s Appropriate for Ages 3-8
Very informative and interesting article. I will definitely be using some of these ideas when my daughter is old enough to understand things. I like the book recommendations and will be looking into...
From How to Talk to Kids About Race: What’s Appropriate for Ages 3-8
[...] being a white kindergarten teacher and mother of two biracial daughters. I’ve thought a lot about how to lead developmentally appropriate conversations about race with my students and my chi...
From How to Teach Kids about Race and Social Justice: One Teacher’s Approach
[...] Der findes kulturer, hvor børn ammes til de ikke vil det længere – se denne artikel: http://www.incultureparent.com/2011/02/breastfeeding-land-genghis-khan [.....
From Breastfeeding in the Land of Genghis Khan
I was in the same situation! I ended getting a Cantonese tutor and setting up a Cantonese playgroup so my son could get better Cantonese exposure. Feel free to contact me on info@playcantonese.com i...
From Do I teach my child my native language even though I am not fluent?
Great to see someone say, it is ok to switc...
From Do I teach my child my native language even though I am not fluent?
I encountered this article by chance. I wasn't searching for this type of parenting advice, but I am so glad I found it. This is extremely non-traditional, and having grown up in a more traditional ...
From A Buddhist Approach to Sex and Your Teenager
Wonderful post! It is so hard to switch out of the flexible, explore as we go mode we had before we had kids to having to plan much more ahead of time, but it really can help. Thanks for the tip...
From 7 Tips for Parents with Inflexible Travelers
Great essay, Michelle. You're wise to have discussed some of these culturally-biased preferences BEFORE your child arrived. In my case, I was so excited about being pregnant that I never considered ...
From Cross-Cultural Parenting in Guatemala: Rethinking Cultural Norms
Great column. I live in Senegal. I got tired of a sore back using the "ergonomic" baby bjorn and decided to tie my baby on my back like the Senegalese do. What a difference! I can finally stand up s...
From Cross-Cultural Parenting in Guatemala: Rethinking Cultural Norms
I think it's a cool concept this idea of a third culture, but in my Colombian-American household we've taken a kind of different approach to our dueling cultural backgrounds. We just explain to our ...
From Cross-Cultural Parenting in Guatemala: Rethinking Cultural Norms
[...] a lantern/Deepan tutorial for you to celebrate and decorate your home with Janmashtami [.....
From Diwali Craft: Make a Lantern
[...]  Board Games from around the world [.....
From 5 Board Games from Around the World
[...] Want more on parenting approaches worldwide? Check out what cross-cultural parenting is like in Kenya. [.....
From Parenting in Kenya: What It Takes a Village Really Means
[...] few days ago an article I wrote appeared on InCultureParent, a great online resource and link for parents [.....
From Cross-Cultural Parenting in Guatemala: Rethinking Cultural Norms
[...] I wear the abaya, during Ramadan for family gatherings as well as the complicated tobe, since I am married into the culture. It’s feminine and girlish fun, reminding me of dress-up games as ...
From Almost African: My Childhood as a Serbo-Croatian in Sudan
[...] road, a French bakery and an internet café nearby. It’s been a gift to have this opportunity to experience a beautiful culture as it was and see glimpses of how it will be. It’s a very in...
From Traveling to Myanmar with Kids
[...] To read more about Chandra’s global homeschool adventure, see her post Around the World in One Semester. [.....
From Around the World in One Semester
Hallo Jan I came across your article as I typed in a phrase to get to understand why I am constantly surrounded with people who are unfriendly and in a bad mood in Berlin, where I am temporarily ...
From Are Germans Really Rude?
My experience is different. My grandmother only ever spoke German and taught me to read and write in German as well. I also learned farsi from close family friends because of my immersion abilitie...
From Perfect Bilingualism: Does it Exist?
(And as a side note, if you want to shut someone up, just quote one (of many) benefits of bilingualism: it recently was found that it can protect the brain from developing Alzheimer's :) Here are tw...
From 10 Things Not to Say to Parents of Multilingual Children
Hi Olga, I am raising a trilingual boy (Dutch, Italian, English) in the US and also here, mostly postive comments. The negative ones I've heard all came from Dutch family friends..! My profession is...
From 10 Things Not to Say to Parents of Multilingual Children
Thank you, Olga. I think you're right on-- both ways work indee...
From Cross-Cultural Parenting in Guatemala: Rethinking Cultural Norms
Meerna, thank you for your kind words. It's true huh...one is not superior, just different. I have a feeling our mother-in-laws would get along :...
From Cross-Cultural Parenting in Guatemala: Rethinking Cultural Norms
Thank you so much for your articles. I am falling of the wagon too and just try to climb back on over and over again and it's reassuring to hear that it also happens to other parents. I try to speak...
From Falling off the OPOL Wagon
Love this article! Finally someone who says: "we have our way and their have their ways, and both of these ways work". Thank yo...
From Cross-Cultural Parenting in Guatemala: Rethinking Cultural Norms
I loved that you chose to write about this and with such clarity! I strongly believe that every cultural practice has a reasoning and justification. One is not superior than the other, they are just...
From Cross-Cultural Parenting in Guatemala: Rethinking Cultural Norms
[...] Kai-Hwa Wang also writes about her daughter’s experience with that same taunt. In her article Preparing Our Children For Racism, Part I,  she outlines concrete steps parents can take t...
From Preparing our Children for Racism — Part 1
[...] The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends mothers exclusively breastfeed infants for their first six months to achieve optimal growth, development and health, yet globally less than 40% o...
From Breastfeeding in Jordan
[...] Their ease with experimenting with the Spanish they know, and their ability to understand some of what was going on around them, also reassures me in relation to their Arabic. Since they speak...
From Why Do You Speak Arabic, Baba?
Thanks so much for your comments! Yay for PR for 2 weeks Frances! I was amazed at what just 10 days did. Hope you have a fantastic trip!! Thanks for the recommendation Lillian. The buhos were put to...
From How Immersion Travel Helped My Kids Progress in Spanish
Thank you for another beautiful truth. I am still breastfeeding my 18 month old daughter and it feels as natural as breathing. I do get odd looks and raised eyebrows but I couldn't ever let that swa...
From Why African Toddlers Don’t Have Tantrums
Brilliant!!! Love to hear the cultural perspective! Hmmm... might be more willing to let my three year old at it more often! Tandem feeding with her little sister, I go bonkers sometime...
From Breastfeeding in the Land of Genghis Khan
I love to hear about the progress your kids have made with Spanish. I am sure they will be fluent speakers with a little more practice. I recommend reading them stories for bedtime in Spanish. Or ge...
From How Immersion Travel Helped My Kids Progress in Spanish