Holidays? Why holidays?

I happened upon this idea by chance after reading a post from "On this day in History." As a fan of history and historical things, I thought about what issue I could explore for this blog. After much thought, I came to this: a blog dedicated to updating people on the happenings of religious and national holidays this year from around the world. As a fan of holidays and celebrations, it seemed like a natural choice, and I hope that readers have as much fun learning about different holidays as I have had researching them. Enjoy!

December 1: Freedom and Democracy Day

In Chad, today marks the Day of celebration for Freedom and Democracy. The holiday specifically commemorates the official ousting of Hissène Habré by Idriss Déby in 1990. After achieving independence in 1960 from France, François Tombalbaye

felt that Chad was not able to sustain itself purely on it's own resources, and hoped that France would aid in their democratic emergence. Unfortunately, rebels in 1963 began to threaten the nation, and in 1975, Tombalbaye was assassinated. His successor was unable to pacify the rebels, and in 1982, Habré's forces were able to take control and assert political dominance over the government. Habré eventually was forced out in December of 1990, and Idriss Déby,

 who was a member of the Patriotic Salvation Movement, became the president of Chad. As a measure of promoting safety and stability, the French government sent troops to the region. Today, government offices are closed and the people of Chad celebrate for Freedom and Democracy.

November 27: Thanksgiving

Unlike the popular myth of Thanksgiving, the first ever Thanksgiving was not between the pilgrims and the native people, but instead between settlers just north of the Jamestown colony (called Berkeley Hundred) in 1619. See photo for the American myth version that, while glamorous, is inaccurate. It has been celebrated in the US every year as a federal and national holiday since 1863, when Abraham Lincoln declared a national day of "Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who hath dwelleth in the Heavens."Lincoln originally declared Thanksgiving to be on the final Thursday of November, instead of the fourth Thursday that is observed today.

Franklin D. Roosevelt is to thank for that change, when in 1939 he declared that Thanksgiving would be on the 4th Thursday. There is debate to the reasoning behind this, but many attribute it to his acknowledgment that having more time between Thanksgiving and Christmas would allow merchants to sell more goods than they would had the "season" not begun yet. That particular year, because there were to be 5 Thursdays in the month instead of the normal 4, made FDR nervous because the nation was still caught up in the Great Depression. Today, Thanksgiving is generally celebrated by the consumption of fall harvest foods, like sweet potatoes and cranberries, and turkey is cooked. The day is marked by parades (like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade) and football, and is considered to be a distinctly American holiday.

November 22: Albanian Alphabet Day

In Macedonia, November 22 is the commemorative day to celebrate the Congress of Manastir, who met from November 14 to November 22, 1908 with the goal of standardizing the Albanian alphabet. The alphabet, which prior to the Congress was comprised of 6 different alphabets, was made the most phonemically possible, meaning that it corresponded best to the written language.

Today, the holiday is a national holiday celebrated by Albania, Kosovo, and the Republic of Macedonia, as well as the Albanian diaspora. In 2008, festivities were held to commemorate the 100th year anniversary of the congress, but most often the day is met with education in schools, with one hour of this day dedicated solely to the teaching about the congress and the language.

November 19: Discovery of Puerto Rico Day

On November 19, 1493, Puerto Rico was found (not discovered, as there were already people living there, Columbus wasn't great about these things) by Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to what he called the West Indies. He was attempting to find more land to colonize in the name of Spain, under the name of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella.

The native people called the island Borinquen, and Columbus renamed it San Juan Bautista. The island would later become a great trading port for the Spanish empire, and thus renamed Puerto Rico, meaning "rich port." Puerto Rico celebrates today with a national holiday, and a huge parade shows the spirit of the public today. The flag can be seen almost anywhere today, as people happily wave it in praise of their discovery. The holiday is also celebrated in the US, and Jennifer Lopez, who is of Puerto Rican descent, participates in the parade (pictured in New York).

November 17:25th Anniversary of the Velvet Revolution

25 years ago today, a peaceful uprising against the Communist regime took place in Czechoslovakia. Demonstrators met against the government, and the result was the collapse after 41 years of Communist rule. The largest of the demonstrations was in Prague, the Czech Republic's current capital, on November 17, 1989. This was the first of many protests, which spanned from November 16/17 through December 29.

On the 28th of November, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia claimed that it would relinquish power, thereby dismantling the single-party state. Czechoslovakia held it's first democratic election in June of 1990, it's first since 1946. Today, the president of the Czech Republic, Milos Zeman, met and stood with presidents of Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia in celebration of the anniversary. He was surprised by eggs, which were thrown at him throughout a speech he made to commemorate the day. Many protestors today chant "Resign, Resign!" and carry banners that read "We don't want to be a Russian colony."

November 11: Veterans Day/Day of Remembrance

Today is known both as Veterans Day and Day of Remembrance for people of the US and the Commonwealth of Nations, respectively. Veterans day, celebrated in the US, honors people who have served in the armed forces, originally was born out of Armistice day, which recalls the end of hostilities of World War I.

It became a holiday in 1954, and unlike Memorial day, reflects on and appreciates the lives of veterans past and present. It is a federal holiday in the US, much like the Day of Remembrance for countries of the Commonwealth.

Day of Remembrance is more like memorial day, recalling veterans who have fallen in the line of combat. Traditionally, a red remembrance poppy is worn to commemorate the day, and represents the blood spilled in battle as a reference to the poem In Flanders Fields.