• 18 •
February
2013
February 2013
• 19 •
A Bit of History
Did You Know?
From new beginnings to colorful parades to declarations of love and roses,
February is a month full of celebrations! But who started the party?
Chinese New Year • February 10, 2012
The Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival as it’s been called
since the 20th century, remains the most important social and
economic holiday in China. Originally tied to the lunar-solar
Chinese calendar, the holiday was a time to honor household and
heavenly deities as well as ancestors. It was also a time to bring
family together for feasting. With the popular adoption in China
of the Western calendar in 1912, the Chinese joined in celebrating
January 1 as NewYear’s Day. China, however, continues to celebrate
the traditional Chinese New Year, although in a shorter version with
a new name–the Spring Festival. Significantly, younger generations of Chinese now observe the holiday
in a very different manner from their ancestors. For some young people, the holiday has evolved from an
opportunity to renew family ties to a chance for relaxation from work.
Mardi Gras • 2.12.13
A Christian holiday and popular cultural
phenomenon, Mardi Gras dates back thousands of
years to pagan spring and fertility rites. Also known
as Carnival, it is celebrated in many countries around
the world–mainly those with large Roman Catholic
populations–on the day before the religious season of
Lent begins. Brazil, Venice and New Orleans play host
to some of the holiday’s most famous public festivities,
drawing thousands of tourists and revelers every year.
Valentine’s Day • 2.14.13
Lupercalia survived the initial rise of Christianity, but was
outlawed—as it was deemed “un-Christian”--at the end of the 5th
century, when Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine’s
Day. It was not until much later, however, that the day became
definitively associated with love. During the Middle Ages, it was
commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was
the beginning of birds’ mating season, which added to the idea
that the middle of Valentine’s Day should be a day for romance.
Valentine greetings were popular as far back as theMiddleAges,
though written Valentine’s didn’t begin to appear until after 1400.
The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem
written in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London
following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. (The greeting is now part of the manuscript collection of
the British Library in London, England.) Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer
named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.
As if February was not busy
enough, we don’t want to forget our
forefathers! February 18 is Presidents’
Day. Here’s a little history to honor
them.
The story of Presidents’ Day
begins in the year 1800. Following
President George Washington’s death in
1799,
his February 22 birthday became
a perennial day of remembrance. At
the time, Washington was venerated as
the most important figure in American
history, and events like the 1832
centennial of his birth and the start
of construction of the Washington
Monument in 1848 were cause for
national celebration.
The shift from Washington’s
Birthday to Presidents’Day began in the
late 1960s when Congress proposed a
measure known as the UniformMonday
Holiday Act. Championed by Senator
Robert McClory of Illinois, this law
sought to shift the celebration of several
federal holidays from specific dates to a
series of predetermined Mondays. The
proposed change was seen by many as
a novel way to create more three-day
weekends for the nation’s workers, and
it was believed that ensuring holidays
always fell on the same weekday would
reduce employee absenteeism. While
some argued that shifting holidays from
their original dates would cheapen their
meaning, the bill also had widespread
support from both the private sector and
labor unions and was seen as a surefire
way to bolster retail sales.
The Uniform Monday Holiday
Act also included a provision to combine
the celebration of Washington’s
Birthday with Abraham Lincoln’s,
which fell on the proximate date of
February 12. Lincoln’s Birthday had
long been a state holiday in places like
Illinois, and many supported joining
the two days as a way of giving equal
recognition to two of America’s most
famous statesmen.
McClory was among the
measure’s major proponents, and he
even floated the idea of renaming
the holiday “President’s Day.” This
proved to be a point of contention for
lawmakers from George Washington’s
home state of Virginia, and the proposal
was eventually dropped. Nevertheless,
the main piece of the Uniform Monday
Holiday Act passed in 1968 and
officially took effect in 1971 following
an executive order from President
Richard Nixon. Washington’s Birthday
was then shifted from the fixed date
of February 22 to the third Monday of
February. Columbus Day, Memorial
Day and Veterans Day were also moved
from their traditionally designated dates.
(
As a result of widespread criticism, in
1980
Veterans’ Day was returned to its
original November 11 date.)
Washington and Lincoln still remain
the two most recognized leaders, but
Presidents’ Day is now popularly seen
as a day to recognize the lives and
achievements of all of America’s chief
executives.
