Mother’s Day, a national holiday honoring mothers, is set to land on May 11 this year. Though it’s not considered a public holiday, many take the day to celebrate their moms either one-on-one or as a family.
Modern-day Mother’s Day was introduced to the United States by Anna Jarvis in 1907. Jarvis campaigned to have a day to celebrate her mom, who died in 1905. The first Mother’s Day was in 1908. Mother’s Day became a recognized holiday across every state in 1911. Though she accomplished her original goal, Jarvis was against the commercialization of Mother’s Day. Globally, Mother’s Day is celebrated on different days depending on the country.
Mother’s Day is meant to celebrate mothers and mother figures, and their contributions to society and family. On Mother’s Day, everyone takes the day to make the mothers in their lives feel loved and appreciated for their love and their hard work.
Three students at Damascus shared why they are thankful for their moms. Mara Kuroda shared that her mom “works really hard and she deserves a day” to be celebrated for “all the hard work she does”. Her message to her mom is that she’s “grateful for her and her hard work is noticed and she needs to cut herself some slack.” Rebecca Cordova, a junior at Damascus High School, shared that she is grateful for her mom because she has given her many opportunities. As a tradition, Cordova and her family buy her mom a present and eat at her mom’s favorite place. Kimberly Granados, another junior, shared her family’s tradition of sharing a home-cooked meal dedicated to her mom.
The most popular day on which Mother’s Day lands is the second Sunday in May. the countries where Mother’s Day is the second Sunday in May are: Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Bermuda, Bhutan, Botswana, Brazil, Canada, Cambodia, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guyana, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Latvia, Liberia, Malaysia, Malta, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Samoa, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, the United States, Uruguay, Vietnam, Venezuela, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
In some countries, Mother’s Day lands on the last Sunday of May. These countries are: Algeria, Cameroon, Dominican Republic, France, Haiti, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Niger, Senegal, Sweden, and Tunisia. In other countries, Mother’s Day is set to coincide with International Women’s Day on March 8. These countries are: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Russia, Serbia, and Vietnam.
In some countries, Mother’s Day is celebrated on the fourth Sunday of Lent because, on this day, people would return to their mother church for a special service. It was also originally a day to honor the Virgin Mary. countries that celebrate Mother’s Day on the fourth Sunday of May are: Guernsey, Ireland, Isle of Man, Jersey, Nigeria, and the United Kingdom.
In Mexico, El Salvador, and Guatemala Mother’s Day is celebrated on May 10. In Mexico, in the past, the tenth of the month was payday, which is why Mother’s Day was set for May 10. As it was payday, people could afford to celebrate their mothers.
In Thailand Mother’s Day is Aug. 12 because it’s Her Majesty Queen Sirikit’s birthday, the “Queen Mother of Thailand”. In Norway Mother’s Day is the second Sunday of February because it aligns with the seasonal shift from winter to spring; another likely reason is that Norway already has many holidays in May. In Poland, Mother’s Day falls on May 26 and is not considered a federal holiday. In Nicaragua Mother’s Day is on May 30 because it’s the birthday of Casimira Sacasa de Debayle, who was the mother-in-law of Nicaragua’s former president. In Malawi Mother’s Day is celebrated on Oct. 15 because it’s the same day as World Rural Women’s Day.
No matter what day Mother’s Day lands on, its goal is always the same: to celebrate mothers for their hard work and the love they give.
