American Traditions and Holidays

1. American Traditions and Holidays

2. New Year – January 1 • New Years Eve and New Years DayNew Years Day is the first day of the year, January 1st.  It is a celebration of the old year and the new one to come.  People make New Years Resolutions each New Years and promise themselves that they will keep this resolution until next year. 

3. New Year • New Years Eve is a major social event.  Clubs everywhere are packed with party-goers who stay out all night and go nuts at midnight.  At midnight it is a tradition to make lots of noise.  The traditional New Years Ball is dropped every year in Times Square in New York City at 12 o’clock.  This event can be seen all over the world on television. 

4. Martin Luther King Day2nd Monday in January

5. I Have A Dream " I have a dream... I have a dream that one day little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers . . . I have a dream today"

6. Martin Luther King Day • Each year on the third Monday of January schools, federal offices, post office and banks across America close as we celebrate the birth, the life and the dream of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

7. Martin Luther King Day • It is a time for the nation to remember the injustices that Dr. King fought. A time to remember his fight for the freedom, equality, and dignity of all races and peoples. A time to remember the message of change through nonviolence.

8. February 1st • In 1723, the Delaware Indians settled Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania as a campsite halfway between the Allegheny and the Susquehanna Rivers.  The town is 90 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, at the intersection of Route 36 and Route 119.  The Delaware Indians considered groundhogs honorable ancestors.  • According to the original creation beliefs of the Delaware Indians, their forebears began life as animals in "Mother Earth" and emerged centuries later to hunt and live as men.

9. Groundhog Day • When German settlers arrived in the 1700s, they brought a tradition known as Candlemas Day, which has an early origin in the pagan celebration of Imbolc.  It came at the mid-point between the Winter Solstice and the Spring equinox.  • Superstition held that if the weather was fair, the second half of Winter would be stormy and cold.  For the early Christians in Europe, it was the custom on Candlemas Day for clergy to bless candles and distribute them to the people in the dark of Winter.  • A lighted candle was placed in each window of the home.  The day's weather continued to be important.  If the sun came out February 2, halfway between Winter and Spring, it meant six more weeks of wintry weather.

10. Groundhog Day • The earliest American reference to Groundhog Day can be found at the Pennsylvania Dutch Folklore Center at Franklin and Marshall College: February 4, 1841 - from Morgantown, Berks County (Pennsylvania) storekeeper James Morris' diary..."Last Tuesday, the 2nd, was Candlemas day, the day on which, according to the Germans, the Groundhog peeps out of his winter quarters and if he sees his shadow he pops back for another six weeks nap, but if the day be cloudy he remains out, as the weather is to be moderate."

12. Valentines Day February 14

13. Valentine’s Day • Every February, across the USA, candy, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine.

14. Valentine’s Day • The holiday of Valentine's Day probably derives its origins from the ancient Roman feast of Lupercalia. In the early days of Rome, fierce wolves roamed the woods nearby. The Romans called upon one of their gods, Lupercus, to keep the wolves away. A festival held in honor of Lupercus was celebrated February 15th. The festival was celebrated as a spring festival. Their calendar was different at that time, with February falling in early springtime.

15. Valentine’s Day • One of the customs of the young people was name-drawing. On the eve of the festival of Lupercalia the names of Roman girls were written on slips of paper and placed into jars. Each young man drew a slip. The girl whose name was chosen was to be his sweetheart for the year

16. Valentine’s Day • Legend has it that the holiday became Valentine's Day after a priest named Valentine. Valentine was a priest in Rome at the time Christianity was a new religion. The Emperor at that time, Claudius II, ordered the Roman soldiers NOT to marry or become engaged. Claudius believed that as married men, his soldiers would want to stay home with their families rather than fight his wars. Valentine defied the Emperor's decree and secretly married the young couples. He was eventually arrested, imprisoned, and put to death

17. Valentine’s Day • Valentine was beheaded on February 14th, the eve of the Roman holiday Lupercalia. After his death, Valentine was named a saint. As Rome became more Christian, the priests moved the spring holiday from the 15th of February to the 14th - Valentine's Day. Now the holiday honored Saint Valentine instead of Lupercus

18. President’s Day • Until the mid-1970s, the February 22 birthday of George Washington, hero of the Revolutionary War and first president of the United States, was a national holiday. In addition, the February 12 birthday of Abraham Lincoln, the president during the Civil War, was a holiday in most states. The two days have been joined, and the holiday has been expanded to embrace all past presidents. It is celebrated on the third Monday in February.

19. Arbor DayFirst Friday in April • Arbor Day • In Latin, arbor means "tree".  • In the Unites States Arbor Day is a tree-planting day to beautify your towns or to forest empty areas of land. Most public schools celebrate Arbor Day in order to teach about protecting our forests, but in some states it is a legal holiday. 

20. Mother’s Day • In the United States Mother's Day was first suggested in 1872 by Julia Ward Howe (who wrote the words to the Battle Hymn of the Republic) as a day dedicated to peace. Ms. Howe would hold organized Mother's Day meetings in Boston, Mass ever year.

21. In 1907 Ana Jarvis, from Philadelphia, began a campaign to establish a national Mother's Day. Ms. Jarvis persuaded her mother's church in Grafton, West Virginia to celebrate Mother's Day on the second anniversary of her mother's death, the 2nd Sunday of May. By the next year Mother's Day was also celebrated in Philadelphia.

22. Mother’s Day • Ms. Jarvis and her supporters began to write to ministers, businessman, and politicians in their quest to establish a national Mother's Day. It was successful as by 1911 Mother's Day was celebrated in almost every state. President Woodrow Wilson, in 1914, made the official announcement proclaiming Mother's Day as a national holiday that was to be held each year on the 2nd Sunday of May.

23. Mother’s Day • In the United States Mother's Day was first suggested in 1872 by Julia Ward Howe (who wrote the words to the Battle hymn of the Republic) as a day dedicated to peace. Ms. Howe would hold organized Mother's Day meetings in Boston, Mass ever year.

24. Mother’s Day • In 1907 Ana Jarvis, from Philadelphia, began a campaign to establish a national Mother's Day. Ms. Jarvis persuaded her mother's church in Grafton, West Virginia to celebrate Mother's Day on the second anniversary of her mother's death, the 2nd Sunday of May. By the next year Mother's Day was also celebrated in Philadelphia.

25. Mother’s Day • Ms. Jarvis and her supporters began to write to ministers, businessman, and politicians in their quest to establish a national Mother's Day. It was successful as by 1911 Mother's Day was celebrated in almost every state. President Woodrow Wilson, in 1914, made the official announcement proclaiming Mother's Day as a national holiday that was to be held each year on the 2nd Sunday of May.

26. Memorial Day4th Monday of May • This holiday, on the fourth Monday of every May, is a day on which Americans honor the fallen soldiers. Originally a day on which flags and flowers were placed on graves of soldiers who died in the American Civil War, it has become a day on which the dead of all wars are remembered the same way.

27. Memorial Day • On Memorial Day, the President or Vice President of the United States gives a speech and lays a wreath on the tombs. Members of the armed forces shoot a rifle salute in the air. Veterans and families come to lay their own wreaths and say prayers. It is a day of reflection.

28. Memorial Day • In 1971, along with other holidays, President Richard Nixon declared Memorial Day a federal holiday on the last Monday in May. Cities all around the United States hold their own ceremonies on the last Monday in May to pay respect to the men and women who have died in wars or in the service of their country.

29. Father’s Day3rd Sunday of June • Father's Day is a day of commemoration and celebration of Dad. It is a day to not only honor your father, but all men who have acted as a father figure in your life - whether as Stepfathers, Uncles, Grandfathers, or "Big Brothers."

30. Father’s Day • The first Father's Day was observed on June 19, 1910 in Spokane Washington. At about the same time in various towns and cities across American other people were beginning to celebrate a "father's day." In 1924 President Calvin Coolidge supported the idea of a national Father's Day. Finally in 1966 President Lyndon Johnson signed a presidential proclamation declaring the 3rd Sunday of June as Father's Day.

31. Father’s Day • Father's Day has become a day to not only honor your father, but all men who act as a father figure. Stepfathers, uncles, grandfathers, and adult male friends are all honored on Father's Day.

32. Birthdays • The tradition of birthday parties started in Europe a long time ago. It was feared that evil spirits were particularly attracted to people on their birthdays. To protect them from harm, friends and family would to come be with the birthday person and bring good thoughts and wishes. Giving gifts brought even more good cheer to ward off the evil spirits. This is how birthday parties began.

33. Birthdays • Cake, candles and song. • A cake is made, and candles are put on top based on how old the person is. • Then everyone sings the "happy birthday" song, and at the end of the song, the birthday child blows out the candles. • If they blow them all out with one blow, their birthday wishes will come true

34. Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday)Tuesday Before Lent (Feb/March) • The celebration of Mardi Gras -- the day before the Christian season of Lent begins in late winter -- is a big occasion in New Orleans, Louisiana, where huge parades and wild revels take place. As its French name implies (Mardi Gras means "Fat Tuesday," the last day of hearty eating before the penitential season of Lent), the tradition goes back to the city's settlement by French immigrants. There are many other such ethnic celebrations, and New York City is particularly rich in them.

35. March/April • Easter is a major Christian holiday that commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  It is celebrated on a Sunday between March 22 and April 25. The 40 days leading up to Easter are observed as Lent. 

36. Besides the religious aspects of Easter, people also celebrate spring or the signs of new life. Flowers are seen everywhere.  There are often Easter Parades such as the one in New York City where people dress up in their new spring clothes. 

37. Children receive Easter baskets filled with candy Easter eggs, chocolate bunnies and jelly beans!  The dying of eggs with food color is also an Easter tradition in many American families. 

39. Independence Day July 4th Independence Day (fourth of July)  is celebrated every year in the U.S. on July 4th.  It commemorates the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The first Independence Day was celebrated in Philadelphia on July 8, 1776. This is when the declaration was read aloud. 

40. Independence DayJuly 4th Parades, patriotic speeches, fireworks and pageants are all ways of celebrating today.  Many families celebrate the Fourth Of July by having picnics and going to the beach.  You will also find fireworks being displayed in many towns and cities across America on the Fourth of July!

41. Labor Day • Labor Day is a legal holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September.  The celebration of Labor Day is in honor of the working class.  Parades are held throughout the cities and towns of the United States.  Generally, Labor Day is the last day of summer celebrations.  It is a signal to students across the country that school is ready to begin again!

42. Columbus Day • On October 12, 1492, Italian navigator Christopher Columbus landed in the New World. Although most other nations of the Americas observe this holiday on October 12, in the United States it takes place on the second Monday in October.

43. The Story of Halloween • Halloween is one of the with origins going back thousands of years. The holiday we know as Halloween has had many influences from many cultures over the centuries. From the Roman's Pomona Day, to the Celtic festival of Samhain, to the Christian holidays of All Saints and All Souls Days.

44. The Story of Halloween • Hundreds of years ago in what is now Great Britain and Northern , lived the Celts. The Celts worshipped nature and had many gods, with the sun god as their favorite. It was "he" who commanded their work and their rest times, and who made the earth beautiful and the crops grow.

45. The Story of Halloween • The Celts celebrated their on November 1st. It was celebrated every year with a festival and marked the end of the "season of the sun" and the beginning of "the season of darkness and cold."

46. The Story of Halloween • On October 31st after the crops were all harvested and stored for the long winter the cooking fires in the homes would be extinguished. The Druids, the Celtic priests, would meet in the hilltop in the dark oak forest (oak trees were considered sacred). The Druids would light new fires and offer sacrifices of crops and animals. As they danced around the the fires, the season of the sun passed and the season of darkness would begin.

47. The Story of Halloween • When the morning arrived the Druids would give an ember from their fires to each family who would then take them home to start new cooking fires. These fires would keep the homes warm and free from evil spirits.

48. The Story of Halloween • The November 1st festival was called Samhain (pronounced "sow-en"). The festival would last for 3 days. Many people would parade in made from the skins and heads of their animals. This festival would become the first Halloween.

49. The Story of Halloween • During the first century the Romans invaded Britain. They brought with them many of their festivals and customs. One of these was the festival know as Pomona Day, named for their goddess of fruits and gardens. It was also celebrated around the 1st of November. After hundreds of years of Roman rule the customs of the Celtic's Sowen festival and the Roman Pomona Day mixed becoming 1 major fall holiday.

50. The Story of Halloween • The next influence came with the spread of the new Christian religion throughout Europe and Britain. In the year 835 AD the Roman Catholic Church would make November 1st a church holiday to honor all the saints. This day was called All Saint's Day, or Hallowmas, or All Hallows. Years later the Church would make November 2nd a . It was called All Souls Day and was to honor the dead. It was celebrated with big bonfires, parades, and people saints, angels and devils.