Global Holidays and Traditions - February 2024

Before the Latin name of February was adopted for our second month, the Old English name was?Solmonath,?which literally means “mud month.”? A lesser-used term was?Kale-monath, which meant “cabbage month.”? Since other months are named after Roman gods, one might think the same for February. In reality, the word?February comes from the Roman festival called?Februa,?during which people were ritually washed to purify their souls.

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February is widely known in the United States and Canada as Black History Month, where we celebrate the historical challenges and contributions of Black leaders, scientists, artists, and freedom fighters. Black History month was created because an incredibly important part of American (and Canadian) history was left out of schoolbooks, literature, and public celebrations. To compensate for that absence, Black History Month offers daily celebrations, film festivals, documentaries, lectures, and other educational opportunities for everybody. The theme for this year is going to be spectacular: African Americans and the Arts!

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Also kicking off this month on February 2nd is Groundhog Day. For some, it’s a day that celebrates the 1993 movie starring Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell. For most people in the US, however, it celebrates a tradition where the beloved groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, emerges to determine whether we will observe six more weeks of winter, or see an early Spring arrive.

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Also celebrated on February 2nd is Philippines Constitution Day!? There have been six constitutions since the proclamation of independence in 1898 and the adoption of every new constitution required the changing of Constitution Day.? The current constitution of the Philippines came into force on February 11, 1987, but the celebration of Constitution Day was ratified to February 2 in 1988 and it still holds true today!?

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February 2nd is also “Work Naked Day.” ?Please remember to keep your video OFF!

Starting on the evening of February 7th and finishing on the evening of February 8th, our Muslim friends will be celebrating Isra and Mi'raj, also known as Al Isra' wal Miraj. In the Islamic calendar, it is observed on the 27th day of the month of Rajab, the seventh month. This event?marks the night that Allah took Mohamed on a nighttime journey in two important legs: the first from Mecca to Jerusalem and then the second, from Jerusalem to heaven.

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?The Tapati Festival (Tapati Rapa Nui) will be celebrated this year from February 9th to the 17th in one of the more remote destinations, Easter Island (Rapa Nui). This fascinating tradition celebrates the arrival of the first Polynesian settlers and their king Hotu Matu’a, who settled on this remote island that is now part of Chile. This festival includes dancing, singing and traditional sporting events celebrating this amazing island and its culture. Perhaps the most unusual of these traditional sports is the Haka Pei – a rite of passage for young men that involves hurtling down the side of a volcano riding on a sled carves from a banana tree trunk!? This would be an amazing place and time to visit, but I’m not sure I will participate in the Haka Pei!

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February 9th is World Pizza Day!? Enough said.

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One of the most important celebrations across Asia starts early this year!? Chinese New Year (or the Lunar New Year) 2023 earlier this year – on February 10th and culminates with the Lantern Festival on February 24th!? This holiday is one of the reasons I started sharing Global Holidays and Traditions in the first place. If you have customers, employees, or friends in Asia, you need to understand that this is THE holiday of the year, dwarfing almost all other celebrations. And THIS year marks the Year of the Dragon!

The Chinese Zodiac dates to the Qin Dynasty over 2000 years ago and is rooted in a system of zoolatry (or animal worship). This year, it is not only the Year of the Dragon, but of the Wood Dragon specifically! The wood dragon symbolizes power, nobility, honor, luck, and success. 2024 is forecasted to bring about opportunities, changes, and challenges. If you're seeking a shift in your current lives, this year might offer a favorable chance! The luckiest color will be green, by the way!

There are many greetings for the Chinese New Year, depending on region and language and intended tone, even for the most basic “Happy New Year.” The simplest is, of course,?Happy New Year:?新年快乐?(xīn nián kuài lè). In Cantonese-speaking regions, it’s more popular to say?恭喜发财?(gung hei faat coi). This is a blessing for wealth and prosperity. A variant of this phrase is also used in other regions (Mandarin: gong xǐ fā cái).

February 10th also marks the Lunar New Year in many other Asian countries as well, each with their own special traditional difference, including Seollai in Korea, Tet Nguyen Dan in Vietnam (which also celebrates the Year of the Dragon, though the animals are not always the same). New Year in Mongolia - Tsagaan Sar (which translates to white moon) is also celebrated on this day!? In Tibet, we celebrate Losar and Dangpa Losar in Bhutan!? It really is an amazing time of celebration across many countries in Asia and one of my favorite times of the year!?

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Much of the United States and an increasingly large number of global fans will be tuning into the Super Bowl LVI on February 11th! ?To those who care, you probably already know who is playing! To those who are just curious, the San Francisco 49ers will play the Kansas City Chiefs!

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And a gentle reminder to those of you in relationships and especially for those of you who spent Sunday staring at football, don’t forget February 14th is Valentine’s Day. This holiday was originally a Christian holiday but has evolved into a more secular celebration of love and romance! Fun Fact: there is a very very similar tradition in China called the Qixi Festival (also known as The Double Sevens Festival) which is usually observed in August!

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Christians around the world enter the week of February 14th as the final days of celebration prior to their period of Lent, leading up to Easter next month.? There are many varieties of celebration around the world with different names and traditions – but all centered around the final days before the fasting of Lent.

In Germany, the celebrations of Fasching actually start in November but finishes on the 42nd day before Easter, known as Rosenmontag – which falls on February 12th this year. Celebrations and parades can be found across most of Germany but especially in the cities of K?ln (Cologne), Rottweil, and Braunschweig.

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February 13th is Shrove Tuesday?- observed in many?Christian countries ?through participating in?confession and absolution alongside pancakes and sweets.? In my family, we celebrated Pancake Tuesday, when my Polish father always made thin crepe-style Nalesniki with lemon and sugar!?

But the most globally famous (and infamous) celebrations on this Tuesday go by other names!? The term?Mardi Gras?is French for "Fat Tuesday," referring to the rich, fatty foods eaten before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season.? While celebrated in many French-speaking parts of the world, New Orleans, Louisiana in the United State has become synonymous with this holiday.? In most years, crowds celebrate from dusk to dawn eating, drinking, wearing gaudy costumes, fancy masks and throwing beads leading up to an extravagant parade of ornately decorated floats and characters!?

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Carnival, or?Carnevale, has been?celebrated?for centuries throughout Italy. The name is said to derive from the expression carne vale - 'farewell to meat' - which explain the function of the?celebration. Visit the beautiful city of Venezia if you want to experience Carnevale in all its splendor! ?But if you can’t make it to Italy, Carnival is also celebrated in many other countries in Europe!

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And if you’re even more adventurous, visit the resplendent city of Rio de Janeiro for the?Carnival of Brazil or the Oruro Carnaval in Bolivia!

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And after all the celebrations, February 14th is Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday is observed mainly by the Roman Catholic Church and some Protestant denominations. It takes places immediately after the excesses Carnival revelry to prepare for the period of Lent – 40 days before Easter, when Roman Catholics are supposed to abstain from all bodily pleasures, including the consumption of meat. The name of the day comes from the custom that churchgoers are marked on the forehead with a cross of ash to symbolize death and regret for past sins.

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Parinirvana Day, also known as Nirvana Day, is celebrated annually on February 15th to commemorate the death of the Buddha when he attained complete nirvana or parinirvana.?While most people celebrate this holiday on the 15th, some countries begin celebrating is on the 8th of February. Parinirvana Day is celebrated by different people in different ways. Some people reserve the day for intense meditation and for reading excerpts from the Parinibanna Sutta. It is an especially important time for Buddhists to reflect on the impermanence of life and upon their inevitable death. Other people use the day to go on pilgrimages. These people head to different Buddhist shrines, also known as stupas. These include the Wat Thai Temple, The Ramabhar Stupa or the Nirvana Stupa. Festivals all over the world are also held on this day to honor the life and death of Buddha.

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February 19th is President's Day in the United States - a day set aside to honor all U.S. presidents though most Americans think of two particular presidents, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, as the holiday falls, by design, between their birthdays.

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Laylat al-Bara'at, also known as the Night of Forgiveness, is a Muslim holiday celebrated annually. It occurs two weeks before Ramadan on the fifteenth day of the Islamic month Shabaan. ?This year, it falls on the 25th of February! On this day, Muslims seek forgiveness for their sins and believe that their destinies are cemented for the coming year. This day may include various middle eastern treats celebration with friends and family in some regions while it may include a quieter night of prayer in others.?

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And last but not least… 2024 is a Leap Year so you get an extra February Day!

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Have a happy Mud Month!

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