British holidays during a year

The year begins on the 1st of January; it is New Year’s Day. This holiday is more popular among the Scottish. The other people of the UK more appreciate Christmas. On the 27th of January the British people have Holocaust Memorial Day. February, 14 is a Valentine’s Day, lovers exchange their gifts, and they go to the restaurant as usual.
In March, when the trees begin to bloom, spring comes. The last Sunday of March, they celebrate Mother’s Day. Children prepare cards, poems and songs for their mums. Another important spring holiday is Easter. In Britain there are similar traditions like in Russia. On 1st of May they don’t work, because it’s a Labor Day. They decorate their houses and the traditional maypole with garlands and ribbons. Then they dance around the maypole.

In June, students take the exams at the end of the year. Then they spend holidays with joy. They go out to the streets to meet friends and to listen to the concerts. It is very popular. On the 9th of June all the British people celebrate Queen’s Official Birthday. This national holiday has a strange thing because the Queen was born indeed on the 21st of April.

In July many people go to Wimbledon to watch Championship. During two weeks this place becomes a centre of world tennis. In the end of August children begin to prepare their school bags. It’s time of ‘back to school’.

In autumn the leaves begin to fall down. September is the first harvest time. The 21st of October is an Apple day in Britain. They cook apple pies and other dishes made of apples. In November they celebrate one of the nosiest holidays they have. It’s Guy Fawkes Day and Bonfire Night. It is celebrated on the 5th of November and dedicated by the historical event which happened in 1605.

In December winter comes. The children are waiting for Santa Claus. Christmas is a great family holiday. The whole family gets together at the table on the eve of December, 24.

Some words about Father's Day

Father's Day comes on the third Sunday in June. It is not a national holiday on that day. Americans honour their fathers. Many people send their fathers a card or a gift. Americans are great letter-writers. Whatever happens in a family, they congratulate all the members. They congratulate people on Easter, Christmas and Whitsun. They do not have to possess great literary talent themselves, because one can find printed texts for all possible occasions. One may select and check any of these suggested texts: "Here's to Father: always loved, respected, and admired". "Warmest wishes for your happiness on Father's Day and ever after". About 1909, the churches of Spokane, Washington, set aside the day to honour fathers. The custom soon spread throughout the United States and Canada. During the autumn, some colleges celebrate Dad's Day. They set aside a Saturday during the football season. On Dad's Day, they honour the fathers among the members and friends of the college.

The idea of a special day to honor fathers and celebrate fatherhood was introduced from the United States. There, a woman called Sonora Smart Dodd was inspired by the American Mother's Day celebrations to plan a day to honor fathers. In the USA, Father's Day has been celebrated in June since 1910. The celebrations in the United Kingdom and other countries are thought to have been inspired by the American custom of Father's Day. This is in contrast to Mother's Day, which has a very different history in the United States and the United Kingdom.

10 facts about Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day was first observed in 1919 throughout the British Commonwealth. It was originally called “Armistice Day” to commemorate armistice agreement that ended the First World War on Monday, November 11, 1918, at 11 a.m.—on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

From 1921 to 1930, Armistice Day was held on the Monday of the week in which November 11 fell. In 1931, Alan Neill, Member of Parliament for Comox–Alberni, introduced a bill to observe Armistice Day only on November 11. Passed by the House of Commons, the bill also changed the name to “Remembrance Day”. The first Remembrance Day was observed on November 11, 1931.

Every year on November 11, Canadians pause in a moment of silence to honour and remember the men and women who have served, and continue to serve Canada during times of war, conflict and peace. We remember the more than 2,300,000 Canadians who have served throughout our nation’s history and the more than 118,000 who made the ultimate sacrifice.

The poppy is the symbol of Remembrance Day. Replica poppies are sold by the Royal Canadian Legion to provide assistance to Veterans.

Remembrance Day is a federal statutory holiday in Canada. It is also a statutory holiday in three territories (Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut) and in six provinces (British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador).

The national ceremony is held at the National War Memorial in Ottawa. The Governor General of Canada presides over the ceremony. It is also attended by the Prime Minister, other government officials, representatives of Veterans’ organizations, diplomatic representatives, other dignitaries, Veterans as well as the general public.

In advance of the ceremony, long columns of Veterans, Canadian Armed Forces members, RCMP officers, and cadets march to the memorial lead by a pipe band and a colour guard. At the end of the ceremony, they march away to officially close the ceremony.

Some of the 54 Commonwealth member states, such as Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, observe the tradition of Remembrance Day on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. Other nations observe a solemn day but at different dates. For example, ANZAC Day is observed in New Zealand on April 25. In South Africa, Poppy Day is marked on the Sunday that falls closest to November 11.

Many nations that are not members of the Commonwealth also observe Remembrance Day on November 11, including France, Belgium and Poland.

The United States used to commemorate Armistice Day on November 11. However, in 1954 they changed the name to Veterans Day.

Halloween

History of Halloween Halloween is a holiday celebrated on the night of October 31. The word Halloween is a shortening of All Hallows' Evening also known as Hallowe'en or All Hallows' Eve. Traditional activities include trick-or-treating, bonfires, costume parties, visiting "haunted houses" and carving jack-o-lanterns. Irish and Scottish immigrants carried versions of the tradition to North America in the nineteenth century. Other western countries embraced the holiday in the late twentieth century including Ireland, the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and the United Kingdom as well as of Australia and New Zealand. Halloween has its origins in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain (pronounced "sah-win"). The festival of Samhain is a celebration of the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture. Samhain was a time used by the ancient pagans to take stock of supplies and prepare for winter. The ancient Gaels believed that on October 31, the boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead overlapped and the deceased would come back to life and cause havoc such as sickness or damaged crops. The festival would frequently involve bonfires. It is believed that the fires attracted insects to the area which attracted bats to the area. These are additional attributes of the history of Halloween. Masks and costumes were worn in an attempt to mimic the evil spirits or appease them. Trick-or-treating, is an activity for children on or around Halloween in which they proceed from house to house in costumes, asking for treats such as confectionery with the question, "Trick or treat?" The "trick" part of "trick or treat" is a threat to play a trick on the homeowner or his property if no treat is given. Trick-or-treating is one of the main traditions of Halloween. It has become socially expected that if one lives in a neighborhood with children one should purchase treats in preparation for trick-or-treaters.

NewYear Superstition.

The 1 st of January was highly significant day in medieval supestitions regarding prosperity, or lack of it, in the year ahead. A flat cake was put on one of the horns of a cow in every farmyard. The farmer and his workers would then sing a song and dance around the cow until the cake was thrown the ground. If it fell in front of the cow that signified good luck; to fall behind indicated the opposite.

 NEW YEAR IN ENGLAND!

In England the New Year isn't as widely or as enthusiastically observed as Christmas. Some people ignore it completely and go to bed at the same time as usual on New Year's Eve. Many others, however, do celebrate it in one way or another, the type of celebration varying very much according to the local custom, family tradition and personal taste.

                                       Public Holidays in Great Britian

   There are eight public holidays a year in Great Britain, that is days on which people need not go in to work.They are: Christmas Day,Boxing Day, New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, May Day, Spring Bank Holiday and Late Summer Bank Holiday.

    Besides public holidays,there are other festivals, anniversaries and simply days , for example Pancake Day and Bonfire Night , on wich certain traditions are observed,but unless they fall om a Sunday , they are ordinary working days.