The Origin of Mother's Day

When is Mother's Day?

The second Sunday in May every year is Mother's Day, and the Mother's Day in 2015 is May 10, 2015.

Mother's Day (Mother's Day), as a holiday to thank mothers, first appeared in ancient Greece on January 8 every year, while in China, the United States, Canada and some other countries, it is the second Sunday of May every year, and the date is not the same in some other countries. Mothers usually receive gifts on this day. Carnations are regarded as flowers dedicated to mother. The mother flower in our country is Hemerocallis, also known as forgetfulness grass.

The Origin of Mother's Day

Historians claim that it was probably in ancient Greece that people celebrated the festival of the goddess Leia. This goddess was the mother of Zeus, and almost all the Greek gods came out of her. On this day, the ancient Greeks paid homage to Cybele, the mother of the Greek gods, Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Demeter, Hera and Hestia. In ancient Rome, these events became on a larger scale, and celebrations often lasted as long as three days. Of course, in ancient times, people's worship of the goddess was just a kind of superstition, which is very different from people's respect for motherhood today. In the middle of the 17th century, Mother's Day spread to England, and the British took the fourth Sunday of Lent as Mother's Day. On this day, young people who are away from home will return home and bring some small gifts to their mothers.

The Development of Mother's Day in China

Mother's Day entered the mainland only after it became popular in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan in China. Precious jewelry, carnations symbolizing maternal love, special love desserts and exquisite handmade greeting cards have become gifts of love to mothers. In the 1980s, Mother's Day was gradually accepted by people in mainland China. Since 1988, some cities in southern China, such as Guangzhou, began to hold Mother's Day celebrations, and selected good mothers as one of the contents. At the end of the 20th century, with China's increasing integration with the rest of the world, Mother's Day was increasingly popularized all over Chinese mainland, and more and more people began to accept the concept of Mother's Day. Chinese people, together with people from other countries around the world, express their gratitude for their mothers' upbringing in various ways.

Of course, Chinese Mother's Day is more Chinese. Chinese people express their strong affection in their own way. On Mother's Day, people give their mothers flowers, cakes, hand-cooked meals and other gifts. Chinese children, who have been filial to their parents since childhood, will try to cook for their mothers, wash their faces, put on makeup, play music and draw pictures, so that mothers can enjoy the holidays. On this day, in addition to filial piety to their biological mothers, people will also return their affection to more mothers by collecting donations and volunteering.

On Mother's Day, Chinese mothers hold cooking competitions, fashion shows and other activities to celebrate their holiday. All kinds of activities will be held everywhere, such as organizing mothers to travel, selecting excellent mothers and so on. Mother's Day, which respects mothers and promotes maternal love, has become an established holiday in China. Now, Mother's Day, which falls on the second Sunday in May every year, has become a must-have holiday for the public. As Mother's Day has become a public holiday, Chinese people can finally express their deep feelings for their mothers on this day.

Mother's Day all over the world

Although, many countries celebrate their Mother's Day at different times of the year. However, most countries, such as Denmark, Finland, Italy, Turkey, Australia, Belgium and Taiwan Province of China, celebrate Mother's Day on the second Sunday in May.

The dates of Mother's Day in recent years: 9 May 2005, 14 May 2006, 13 May 2007, 11 May 2008, 10 May 2009, 9 May 2010, 8 May 2011, 13 May 2012, 12 May 2013, 11 May 2014, 10 May 2015.