Secular
History of the Super Bowl: Just another Religious Holiday?
The Super Bowl™ is a territory acquisition athletic contest played on a fixed agrarian grid using, as a token, an inflated porcine prolate spheroid. It is the most important holiday of the year in America some will say. While it is ostensibly a secular holiday, others argue that it is truly a religious holiday. And…
Read MoreHistory of Groundhog Day
HISTORY OF GROUNDHOG DAY Groundhog Day comes from Candlemas Day, observed for centuries in parts of Europe on February 2, where the custom was to have the clergy bless candles — representing how long winter would be — and distribute them to the people. This seems to have derived from the pagan celebration of Imbolc…
Read MoreHistory of February
HISTORY OF FEBRUARY February is the month we love to misspell, or at least mispronounce, but you’re forgiven for dropping the first “r” as dissimilation causes people to do that when there are two “r”s or “l”s in close proximity to each other in a word. The word came from the Latin Februa an ancient Roman…
Read MoreHistory of Australia Day: Ties to the American Revolutionary War?
HISTORY OF AUSTRALIA DAY Did you know that the history of European Australia has ties to the American Revolutionary War? Back when the 13 American Colonies were part of the British Commonwealth, it was convenient for England to transport its convicts to the Colonies. Indeed, it was considered more humane to “transport” prisoners than to…
Read MoreHistory of Ben Franklin: The Original Founding Father?
HISTORY OF BENJAMIN FRANKLIN We know this polymath as a writer, publisher, printer, merchant, scientist, moral philosopher, international diplomat, and inventor. Musically he invented the glass harmonica, but he also invented the Franklin stove and started the first lending library and fire brigade in Philadelphia. He did experiments in electricity and developed the lightning rod.…
Read MoreHistory of New Year’s Resolutions: Where Did They Begin?
HISTORY OF NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS As I mentioned previously, New Year’s Day celebrations began in pre-Christian times, beginning with the Babylonians in March, but later changed to January by the Romans. Where did we get the idea of New Year’s Resolutions and why at the beginning of the year? Roman New Years Resolutions The…
Read MoreHistory of New Year’s Day: Why on January 1?
History of New Year’s Day: Why on January 1? It wasn’t always on this date. This article discusses its history.
Read MoreHistory of Auld Lang Syne: What Does It Mean?
HISTORY OF AULD LANG SYNE: WHAT DOES IT MEAN Why is it that each New Year’s Eve, we sing “Auld Lang Syne,” but do we know what it means? The song contains words from a language that few are familiar with, in a syntax that is confusing to most, and is from a poem about…
Read MoreHistory of the 12 Days of Christmas: They’re after Christmas?
THE HISTORY OF THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS The 12 Days of Christmas are the dozen days in the liturgical or ecclesiastical calendar of the Western Church between the celebration of the birth of the Christ Child (Christmas Day, December 25) and the coming of the Wise Men, or Magi, to visit at his house in Bethlehem…
Read MoreHistory of Christmas Traditions: Some pre-Christian?
HISTORY OF CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS Many of the customs that we commonly associate with Christmas come from previous pagan or pre-Christian European backgrounds. Let’s take a look at some of these familiar traditions and some connections to other folklore elements with which we may be unfamiliar. Traditions The word Yule comes from the Germanic jōl or…
Read MoreHistory of Christmas: Advent
THE HISTORY OF CHRISTMAS: ADVENT Here begins our series of articles on the History of Christmas. The traditional season of Advent, leading up to Christmas, begins today. It is celebrated in the church calendar as one of the most festive seasons of the year. Meaning “Advent” from the Latin adventus means the “coming” or “arrival”…
Read MoreHistory of Black Friday: One Day Only?
What is the origin of Black Friday, and the modern practice around it.
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