In USA they
celebrate the second Sunday of May as Mother’s day. According to Wikipedia “The modern holiday of Mother's Day was first celebrated
in 1908, when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother in Grafton, West Virginia. She then began a
campaign to make "Mother's Day" a recognized holiday in the United
States. Although she was successful in 1914, she was already disappointed with
its commercialization by the 1920s. Jarvis' holiday was adopted by other
countries and it is now celebrated all over the world. In this tradition, each
person offers a gift, card, or remembrance toward their mothers, grandmothers,
and/ or maternal figure on mother's day.
In 1912, Anna Jarvis trademarked the phrases "second Sunday in
May" and "Mother's Day", and created the Mother's Day
International Association.[8]
She specifically noted that "Mother's" should "be a singular
possessive, for each family to honor its mother, not a plural possessive commemorating
all mothers of the world."[9]
This is also the spelling used by U.S. President Woodrow
Wilson in his 1914 presidential proclamation, by the U.S. Congress in
relevant bills,[10][11]
and by various U.S. presidents in their proclamations concerning Mother's Day.[12] However,
"Mothers' Day" (plural possessive) or "Mothers Day" (plural
non-possessive) are also sometimes seen.”
When is Mother's Day 2014?
Mother's Day - or
Mothering Sunday - falls on March 30 this year, so you've still got time to
plan ahead to the annual celebration.
Why does it change every year?
Mothering Sunday
does not have a fixed date and so it can even be in different months sometimes.
It has its roots
in the Church and falls on the fourth Sunday of Lent. Mothering Sunday can fall
at the earliest on 1 March and at the latest on 4 April.
What's the history of the celebration?
In the UK,
Mothering Sunday is believed to have evolved from the 16th-century practice of
visiting one's mother church annually.
Most churchgoers
used to worship at their nearest parish, also known as a daughter church, every
Sunday.
It was considered
important to return to the main church in the area, or mother church, once a
year and people would do so in the middle of lent.
This also became
a time for families to reunite. It was not unusual for children as young as 10
to leave home for work in those days and they would be given the day off to
return to their mother church.
Historians
believe the tradition of the children picking flowers along the way to take
home led to the tradition of giving presents to mums.
It has now
evolved into a day of appreciation where mums are given flowers and other gifts
as a sign of thanks.
