January
1
New Year's Day - the official start of the New Year.
Celebrated
with big parades in New York City and Pasadena, California (the Rose
Bowl Parade), preceded by parties, masquerade balls and and fireworks
the preceding night at midnight, Dec. 31.
Official song: Auld Lang Syne
Symbols: noisemakers, party hats
Third Monday
in January
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - commemorated in honor of Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr., the heroic civil rights leader assassinated in 1968.
Note: Most businesses stay open
February
14
Valentine's Day - a holiday celebrating love. Friends and couples
exchange Valentine's Day cards, send flowers (a dozen red roses symbolize
true love) and enjoy romantic dinners
Note: The government, banks and businesses stay open
Third Monday
in February
Presidents' Day - commemorates Presidents George Washington,
1st President of the United States and commanding general of the US
Revolutionary Army in the American Revolution; and President Abraham
Lincoln, under whose leadership slavery was abolished in the South.
Note: Most businesses stay open
March 17
St. Patrick's Day - a Catholic holiday that has become celebrated
by the mainstream. People wear the color green (in order not to be pinched),
carouse at bars, and cities hold parades.
Symbols: shamrocks, leprechauns
Note: Not a federal holiday. Banks and businesses stay open.
Fourth
Sunday in April
Easter - a Catholic holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus
Christ that has become a mainstream celebration. Parents hold pastel-colored
"Easter egg" hunts for their children, while practicing Catholics
attend church and families gather to have large Easter suppers.
Symbols: bunny, Easter egg
Colors: purple and yellow
Second
Sunday in May
Mother's Day - mothers and grandmothers are honored with cards,
gifts and special luncheons.
Last Monday
in May
Memorial Day - American cities and towns hold solemn memorial
services to pay respect to the men and women who have died in wars or
in the service of their country. This day honors not only armed forces
personnel but loved ones who have passed on. Families visit the cemetery
and place flowers on gravestones.
June 14
Flag Day - People patriotically display American flags outside
their homes.
Note: The government, banks and businesses stay open
Third Sunday
in June
Father's Day - a holiday honoring American fathers and father
figures, like stepfathers and grandfathers.
July 4th
Independence Day - a patriotic national federal holiday commemorating
the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 that led to the
American Revolution. The day is celebrated with fireworks, barbecue
cookouts and baseball games.
First Monday
in September
Labor Day - a holiday originally honoring American workers. Considered
the last day of summer. Everyone takes the day of to enjoy a three-day
weekend filled with picnics, barbecues, department store sales and going
to the beach.
October
31st
Halloween - originally a pagan holiday, it has been modified
in the US to become a playful children's holiday, where children carve
pumpkins into "jack o' lanterns", bob for apples, dress up
in costumes and go from house to house asking for candy from neighbors.
"Trick or treat" is the greeting used. Adults, too, have costume
parties.
Symbols: witch, black cat
Colors: Orange and Black
Note: The government, banks and businesses stay open
November 11
Veterans Day - originally set aside to commemorate Armistice Day,
the end of World War 1. Today Americans honor the fallen soldiers of
the Vietnam War by attending ceremonies. Friends and relatives of the
dead visiting the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C., a long black
wall which contains the names of every known US soldier who died in
the war.
Fourth
Thursday in November
Thanksgiving - originally
celebrated by the first American colonists (Pilgrims) as a day of thanks
for the first harvest in the New World in Plymouth, Massachusetts after
a year of starvation. Families come together and partake of elaborate
dinners featuring traditional Thanksgiving foods like turkey with cranberry
sauce, stuffing, and pumpkin pie.
December
25
Christmas
- a Christian holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus
Christ, which has become a mainstream holiday for many. Americans celebrate
by
exchanging gifts and decorating their homes with Christmas trees, ornaments
and wreaths. Catholics attend Christmas Mass.
Symbols: Christmas Tree, Santa Claus (a fat white-bearded man in a red
suit who is said to come down the chimney at midnight bearing the gifts
and placing them under the Christmas tree).
Colors: Green and Red
Note: On Christmas Eve, December 24, many businesses close early for
the holiday. Some stores even close the night before.
December
31
New Year' Eve - in the evening, people in cities and towns gather
for large street celebrations and fireworks. At midnight there is a
countdown to New Year's Eve. Millions gather in Times Square to see
a large metallic ball "drop", producing spectacular lighting
effects.
