In our house, Mother’s and Grandmothers are called by many names. Abuela. Nonna. Nana. ‘Boo (from the Polish Babcia or Busha). My family is from South America, just one generation back- so “Abuela” is natural and normal for us. But for many, like my husband, whose family is Polish and Irish but only several generations ago, the language or other cultural traditions have long since faded away, but the original, native-language name for “Mom” or “Grandma” is still very much a part of their family tradition. In fact, they are among the very first words learned by our children, right? Mama. Grandma.
I was thinking about all of this as I sent off my Mother’s Day cards this year (I even found a few that used our special names- Score!) and began to wonder about Mother’s Day around the world. Loving and honoring your Mother is universal- but does everyone have a “holiday” around it?
I learned that while many cultures and religions celebrated Mothers in some way during the calendar year long before the US- such as Roman Catholic celebrations of the Virgin Mary or the Hindu tradition of “Mata Tirtha Aunshi" or "Mother Pilgrimage fortnight"- the carnations and greeting card holiday as we know it is an American invention, aspects of which have has in fact steadily been adopted around the world. But nonetheless, some countries do retain their own unique traditions or even celebrate the holiday similarly, but for a slew of different reasons…
Bolivia- celebrated on May 27 each year since 1927, Dia de la Madre Boliviana commemorates women who fought during the Bolivian War of Independence in 1812.
China- Mother’s Day is becoming increasingly popular with Carnations being the main “gift” offered to Mom’s. In recent years, community groups and scholars have been trying to change this tradition to Lillies, a flower with some historical Chinese context (unlike the Western Carnation). Since ’97, there has also been a push to make this a day of charity, remembering and coming to the aid of impoverished Mothers and families.
Indonesia- Celebrated in December, Mother’s Day or Hari Ibu is the day of the first Indonesian Women Congress, celebrating women’s independence and spirit and hoping to improve their condition. Today, the celebration involves gift-giving, flowers and other expressions of gratitude (surprise parties and fun competitions) or offering Mom a day with no chores
Sweden: The Swedes have only celebrated the holiday in significant numbers since the 70s and celebrate on the last Sunday in May. Why the late date? To ensure it would be warm enough to go outside and pick flowers!
Thailand: Mother’s day has been celebrated only since the mid 80’s as a type of PR campaign for the Royal Family, so it is celebrated on August 12th, the Queen’s birthday.
Malta: First celebration of the date happened in 1961 but it has since become one of the most popular dates in the Maltese calendar, celebrated on the second Sunday in May with gifts or lunch “someplace nice!”
Pakistan: Mom’s are honored by the giving of gifts and those who have lost their Moms make an extra effort to remember their loved one and pay their respects.
United Kingdom and Ireland: Before modern “Mother’s Day” celebrations, there was “Mothering Sunday” (the fourth Sunday of lent- a religious event originating in the 16th century). US Soldiers brought the modern tradition over during WWII and the two holiday traditions were “merged” so to speak, with a big push of support from UK merchants who saw a great commercial opportunity in the new holiday. But many mothering Sunday traditions do remain even today, such as serving Mom a cake
So, it seems that though the “purpose” or history of the holiday may vary, the modern day celebration rests on the same idea- that we love our Moms and want to shower them with gifts, food or other shows of gratitude.
So what did you do on Mother’s Day? Does your family have any special traditions you’d like to share? What are your families' word for Mom and Grandma? Please share with us by leaving your comments below!
I do hope you enjoyed your own Mother’s Day and showered the Moms in your world with love, because I think we can all agree that Moms- by any name- are amazing!
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| Here I am with my own 2 lovebugs celebrating Mother's Day 2011 with a picnic- it was such a fun afternoon that this may well become a tradition at Casa Bova! -Connie |
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