Parties and celebrations all year round!
People have the need for events, gatherings and parties to celebrate the many phases of life. Celebrations take place all across the globe, and there are completely different traditions in different parts of the world. There are even great differences between the Nordic countries. Each month has its milestones and celebrations somewhere in the world. Let’s take a closer look at some of the things that happen in January, February and March.
📷 New Year’s fireworks over the Forbidden City in China
Nyttårsaften med fyrverkeri over den forbudte by i Kina.
The month January written in white on a black background
Chinese New Year
The New Year celebration is the most important celebration for the Chinese. Chinese New Year starts on the second new moon after the winter solstice, which is usually between 21 January and 20 February, much later than our own New Year’s celebration. This celebration lasts for about two weeks from the new moon to the full moon, and schools are on break during this period.
Animal symbols
Every Chinese New Year has its own animal symbol. As the New Year celebrations approach, shops are full of products with the animal symbol of that particular year. The animal for 2023 is the hare. The animal symbolising the year in which you were born describes your character.
📷 2022 was the year of the Tiger
Lunar New Year
Chinese New Year is part of the Lunar New Year. There is a big celebration of the Lunar New Year in Asian countries such as Japan, Vietnam, Tibet and South Korea.
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Illustrasjon i tigerens år i Kina i gull på rød bakgrunn.
New Year’s Fireworks
It is time for the New Year’s fireworks. They are both loud and spectacular. Almost all Chinese people set off fireworks, and as midnight approaches, more fireworks are set off in China than anywhere else in the world. At the same time, loud bangs from huge quantities of firecrackers exploding can be heard. Evil spirits are meant to be scared away by this and the New Year can be celebrated.
The Lantern Festival in Taiwan
On the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar calendar, the people of Taiwan celebrate the Lantern Festival. Whilst our calendar is based on the solar calendar, several Asian countries use a lunar calendar. In a lunar calendar each month is 29½ days, adding up to a total of 354 days in a year. Our solar calendar has 365 days.
Ancient tradition
The Lantern Festival is an ancient tradition, but gained new popularity in the 1990s. Fireworks were initially supposed to scare away evil spirits and disease. The lanterns were to symbolise that the village was safe. It is also tradition for individuals to write personal wishes on their lanterns.
The lanterns fly
It is a magical sight when thousands of lanterns fly through the sky. However, it can be quite dangerous. The lanterns are made of paper, and the fire service is always on standby to put out any fires that occur.
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The The month January written in white on a black background February written in white on a black background
Valentine’s Day
Each year on February 14th, Valentine’s Day is celebrated. Valentine’s Day celebrates love and romance. On this day you give cards or gifts to your partner or the person you love. Potentially even someone you are secretly in love with.
Celebrated in many countries
You can also show friends that you appreciate them. If you are giving a gift, chocolate or roses are the most common. Valentine’s Day is celebrated in many countries, but it is the most popular in English-speaking countries and in France.
Popular wedding day
In the Philippines, February 14th is the most popular day for couples to get married.
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Mann står foran en sittende kvinne og han holder røde roser bak på ryggen.
Dragobete
Dragobete is the Romanian day of love and a celebration that spring is coming. The day is celebrated on February 24th. Traditionally, girls and boys would meet to look for spring flowers.
In the middle of the day, the girls run through the village. The boys who have fallen in love with them will run after them. If the boy is quick enough, and catches the girl, she can choose to kiss him or not in front of everyone else. Those who take part in Dragobete will be safe from illness for the rest of the year according to the legend.
Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras is French and means Fat Tuesday. Fat Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday, which marks the start of the 40-day fasting period called Lent, leading up to Easter. On Fat Tuesday, you are supposed to fatten up before Lent, which is traditionally meant to be a period without meat and fatty foods. The celebration takes place slightly differently in different countries, but Mardi Gras is often celebrated with people dressing up and wearing colourful masks.
Carnival
In Norway, Fat Tuesday is also called Fastelavn, which means the night before the fast. It is celebrated in many places with special Fastelavn buns and carnivals. New Orleans in the United States is famous for its Mardi Gras celebrations. Here, the celebrations start as early as the 12th day of Christmas and last until Ash Wednesday. During this long period of time, the streets are full of colourful parades and carnivals both day and night. No wonder that many tourists wish to visit the city during this period. In Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, Mardi Gras is also celebrated with big carnivals.
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Fargerike masker til karneval.
Kalevala Day
Kalevala Day in Finland is celebrated on the 28th of February. The day celebrates Finnish language and culture and its name comes from the Finnish national epic Kalevala. It is an epic poem which contains 50 songs, written in a traditional Finnish way. The texts were originally orally told stories, but in the 19th century Elias Lönnrot gathered the stories and wrote them down as a collection.
Kalevala has played a crucial role in Finnish identity, language and culture, not least after Finland became an independent nation in 1917. The day is marked with good food and a party.
📷 A painting of Elias Lönnrot. Artist: Bernhard Reinhold
The month March written in white on a black background
Hinamatsuri
In Japan on the 3rd of March, they celebrate what is called Girls’ Day. On this day the health and happiness of girls is celebrated. The central part of the celebration is the Hina dolls that Japanese girls are given by their parents or grandparents at birth.
Dressed in traditional costumes
The dolls are usually placed on a stairway that is covered with a red carpet that brings good luck. The dolls representing the emperor and empress are placed at the top. On the steps below are court ladies, musicians, warriors and other people. All the dolls are dressed in traditional clothing from the imperial period called Heian (from 794 to 1185 AD).
The dolls must be packed away in time
The dolls can be shown off from the end of February until March 3rd. If the dolls are not packed away by that date, it is said that it will become difficult to marry off the girl in the future. In some places, the dolls are sent down a river. The idea is that the dolls remove disease and evil spirits.
Decorating with peach blossoms
During Hinamatsuri people decorate with peach blossoms. Colourful rice cakes and coloured puffed rice are presented. Pink, white and green are the most common colours used for this celebration.
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Japansk jente dekorerer rommet sitt med hinadukker.
Holi
Holi is celebrated on the 8th of March and is the Hindu Spring festival. This festival is also called the festival of colour or the festival of love. Celebrations start the evening before, when people gather around a bonfire. Religious rituals are performed to chase away demons or evil.
Playing with colour
The next day it’s time to play with colours. People throw coloured powder at each other across gender, age and caste. This act symbolises that the gods give colour in the same way as when Spring comes. It is also known as the festival of love, where you can make new friendships and repair relationships with any old enemies. The tradition of celebrating Holi dates back to antiquity, and is most common in the northern parts of India.
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Ung jente feirer Holif
St Patrick’s Day
In Ireland, St Patrick’s Day is celebrated on their national day, the 17th of March. The celebration is about the country’s patron saint, St Patrick who introduced Christianity.
In his time, churches, monasteries and schools were built. To start with, St Patrick’s Day was a religious celebration. The Irish who emigrated to the United States in the 19th century brought with them this tradition and made it more common.
It’s common to dress in green
On this day, it is common for people to dress in green. The colour green is related to Ireland. Some people also carry three-leaf clovers. Legend has it that Saint Patrick used the three-leaf clover to explain the Holy Trinity. On this day, people join street parades, eat traditional Irish food and drink Irish beer. The day is also celebrated widely in the United States and Great Britain. One tradition is that the river in Chicago is coloured green.
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To menn med høye grønne hatter står og ser på en parade på Manhatten.
Ramadan
Ramadan is the month of fasting for Muslims. It marks the Prophet Muhammad’s Prophet Muhammad’s first revelation during this period. He then got a calling from God to preach the philosophy of God to all the people. This is written in the holy book of Islam, the Koran. Ramadan is also one of the five pillars of Islam. The five pillars are activities that Muslims must do.
You shall not eat or drink
During Ramadan, one must not eat or drink from sunrise to sunset. Exceptions are made for children and pregnant women. Fasting is meant to give you inner cleansing. On top of that, you get to experience the hunger that poor people feel, and in this way all people are equal. Fasting is also a test of stamina.
The celebration of Eid
Ramadan ends with a big common prayer, and is followed by the celebration of Eid al-Fitr. Food and sweets are prepared and play an important role at the party. Children and adults exchange gifts and it is common to dress up for the Eid party.
The date varies from year to year
The date of Ramadan varies from year to year, but takes place in the 9th month of the lunar year. The lunar year is the Muslim calendar and consists of twelve equal periods. A period is the time between two full moons. A lunar year consists of 354 days, which is 11 days shorter than the solar year. In the next few years Ramadan will take place in March.
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En muslimsk familie på fire personer sitter rundt et bord og spiser et festmåltid under id-festen.
Sources:
- Britannica (25.10.2022) Valentines Day
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Valentines-Day
- Romania Insider (25.10.2022) Dragobete
https://www.romania-insider.com/dragobete-lovers-day-the-romanian-way
- Britannica (26.10.2022) Mardi Gras
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mardi-Gras-carnival
- The Spruceeats (26.10.2022) Hina
https://www.thespruceeats.com/hina-matsuri-2031037
- Wikipedia (26.10.2022) Holi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holi
- Britannica (27.10.2022) Saint Patricks Day
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Saint-Patricks-Day
- Vogt, Kari: ramadan i Store norske leksikon på snl.no. Hentet 13. desember 2022 fra http://snl.no/ramadan
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