Mother’s Day began in the early 1900s in the United States. Although there are older customs that celebrate similar holidays, they are not thought to be the origins of Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day is intended to honor mothers and their societal influence, maternal bonds, and motherhood itself. It is observed on the second Sunday of May in the United States and Canada, but in other parts of the world, it is observed in March as well as other months.
Mothering Sunday, a Christian holiday, is frequently associated with Mother’s Day. They have no relation to one another.
Mother’s Day has also been linked to the Greek festival of Cybele and the Roman festival of Hilaria. They are, once again, unrelated to Mother’s Day.
Mother’s Day was first observed in 1908. Anna Jarvis paid tribute to her mother, Ann Jarvis, with a memorial. In 1868, Ann Jarvis formed a committee to establish ‘Mother’s Friendship Day.’ Her motivation had been to reunite families who had been separated during the Civil War. She died in 1905, before Mother’s Day was made a national holiday.
Anna Jarvis trademarked both “Mother’s Day” and “the second Sunday in May” in 1912. She also founded the International Mother’s Day Association.
Mother’s Day became a recognized holiday in the United States in 1914.
Anna Jarvis was dissatisfied by the 1920s because it had already become overly commercialized.
The holiday was then adopted by a number of other countries.
Attempts were made in various parts of the United States in the 1800s to celebrate mothers, but none of them spread beyond their local areas.
On Mother’s Day, approximately 122 million phone calls are made to mothers in the United States.
The word for mother begins with an’m’ in the majority of countries and languages.
The carnation is the most popular flower for Mother’s Day; pink and red for mothers who are still alive, and white for those who have died.
According to legend, carnations were created from Jesus’ mother’s tears as she wept at his feet during his crucifixion.
One-quarter of all flowers purchased for holidays are for Mother’s Day.
In the United States, approximately $14 billion is spent on Mother’s Day.
Flowers, dinner or lunch in a restaurant, jewelry, gift cards, clothing, and treats such as a spa visit are popular Mother’s Day gifts. Books, CDs, housewares, and gardening tools are also popular gifts.
Receiving flowers has been shown in studies to have health benefits.
The date chosen for Mother’s Day in Bolivia was based on the day that women participated in a battle. Other countries have chosen the date for Mother’s Day to coincide with other holidays honoring women.
Julia Howe, the author of The Battle Hymn of the Republic, attempted to establish Mother’s Day in 1872. It was an anti-war protest that began in 1872. It continued in Boston, but after ten years it had fallen out of favor.
On Mother’s Day in the former Yugoslavia, children would tie up their mothers. She had to pay them with treats in order to be released.
Mother’s Day is celebrated in close to 50 countries in different parts of the world.
