Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu is the name of a hill in New Zealand and the worlds longest place-name still in use.
The word "robot" was created by Karel Capek. It came from Czech/Slovak "robotovat," which means to work very hard.
The term, honeymoon, is derived from the Babylonians who declared mead, a honey-flavored wine, the official wedding drink, stipulating that the bride's parents be required to keep the groom supplied with the drink for the month following the wedding; that month became known as the honeymonth, hence our honeymoon. Source: Bryan Giese
"Evian" spelled backwards is naive.
The language Malayalam, spoken in parts of India, is the only language whose name is a palindrome.
"Freelance" comes from a knight whose lance was free for hire, i.e. not pledged to one master.
The phrase "rule of thumb" is derived from an old English law which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb.
In Chinese, the words for crisis and opportunity are the same.
Spring is a time for rebirth, renewal and regrowth. The number of daylight hours is raqidly increasing and it is getting warmer, this is due to the increase in the tilt of the earth's axis toward the sun.
This is a time of year is celebrated with great festivity in many cultures around the world. We here at Natural Languages would like to take a moment to Get Cultured and explore a few of the most joyus celebrations of Spring and all it represents!
Holi
The festival of colors. Celebrated in India, on the day after the last full moon of winter to welcome spring - in a big way. It is traditional for people to throw water and vibrant colors on one another until everyone is completly painted in a bright mosaic of mirth and abandon. This is a most joyus festival where social restrictions are relaxed into oblivion. Revelers often indulge in intoxicating drinks and sweets laced with opium or marijuana. Folk music is played/sung and there is much dancing amid literal clouds of vibrant color. This most ancient of Hindu festivals predates Christ by several centuries and is said to commemorat the immortal love of Krishna and Radha. You can get away with almost anything on Holi by saying "Bura na mano, Holi Hai" - Dont Mind, its Holi.
Nowruz
This holiday originated in ancient Persia over 3000 years ago. It is a preislamic festival,celebrated by the Persian kings, who would pardon prisoners and hold royal audiences with the public. It takes place on the vernal equinox, which is also considered the New Year. This is a non-religious holiday celebrated in many cultures and by people of varying religions. Countries that celebrate Nowruz include: Turkey, Afganistan, Iran, Azerbijan and Tajikistan. The word Nowruz literally means "A new day". It is traditional to do a "Khouneh Tekouni" literally "shaking of the house" or what we in the west would refer to as spring cleaning. Other traditions inclide visiting relatives and friends, wearing new clothes, and display of tulips and hyacinths. The night before Nowruz it is traditional to hold a "Chaharshanbe Suri" (light winning over the darkness). Bonfires are lit in the streets and young men display their prowess by jumping over them.
The exact second of the change from old to new year is calculated. A few minutes before Now Ruz, the entire family gathers around the Haft Seen table. Prayers are offered until the Nowruz (New Year) arrives at which point there is much cheering and clapping, hugging and kissing. Everyone sitting around the table, sweetens his or her mouth with Shirini (Sweets) that come from the decorated table. The head of the family distributes gifts (usually gold coins) to all present. The family stands before the Haft Seen Table which contains a ceremonial display including; of a copy of the holy book (Bible, Torah, or Quaran depending on the religion of the family), sprouted grains and lentils, and seven items beginning with the Persian letter "seen", corresponding to the English "s". The most common items on today's Haft Seen (Seven S's) are:
Senjed: a kind of sweet, dry, pithy fruit, symbolizes regeneration and new life because of its seed. Sabzeh: Sprouted grains or lentils (green grass), symbolizes life. It is believed to happiness, freshness, purity, and good life in the coming new year. Seer: Garlic, symbolizes wealth. It is believed to keep us away from sickness in the coming new year. Serkeh: Vinegar is believed to bring energy and strength. Samanoo: A sweet porridge made from sprouted wheat and flour symbolizes freedom. It is believed to bring strength and productivity in the upcoming year. Sekeh: Gold coin symbolizes wealth. It is believed to bring courage in the upcoming year.
Purim
A Jewish holiday celebrated to commemorate the foiling of a plot to kill the Jews of Ancient Persia. The historical basis for the holiday is recounted in the Book of Esther. Judiasm dictates four Mitzvots (duties) for the day:
K'riat Megallah - listening to a public recitation of the Book of Esther
Mishloach Manot - sending gifts of food and drink to friends
Matanot La 'Evyonim - giving charity to the poor and
Se-Udah - sharing a festive meal with loved ones.
This holiday is celebrated with great revelry. People don brightly colored costumes, wear masks and drink plenty of wine. There are often public celebrations including parades, theatrical reenactments of the Book of Esther (or any other topic roughly related to judiasm and often satirical).
Black History Month began in 1929 as Negro History Week. Celebrating African American history in this way was the brainchild of Carter G. Woodson, a historian also know as "The Father of Black History".
In Honor of Black History Month Natural Languges will explore The Harlem Renaissance, which occured just 10 miles from our offices, just accross the Hudson River, in Jersey City.
Harlem was first developed as an exclusive white upper-middle class neighborhood of Manhattan. Later abandoned by its intended residents Harlem started becomming a black enclave in the early 1900s. The Great Migration brought hundreds of thousands of African Americans to Northern cities to work as unskilled laborers in the war effort. One common destination would later come to be known as "The Black Mecca" or Harlem.
The Harlem Renaissance is often considered as beginning in 1917 with the premeire of Three Plays for the Negro Theatre, written by white playwright Ridgely Torrence. Previously black characters were always played by actors in blackface acting as servile, dimwitted, joyus bufoons in the minstrel show tradition. Here black actors finally displayed complex human emotion. Another historic moment in the Harlem Rennaisance came in 1919 when Claude McKay published his famous poem, If We Must Die, in response to a wave of hate crimes perpetrated on blacks by whites in a dozen American cities.
This poem was used by Winston Churchill in a speech before Parliament in the 1940s in which he issued a rallying cry for Britain to go to war against Hitler’s Nazi Germany.
If We Must Die
If we must die, let it be not like hogs,
Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot,
While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,
Making their mark at our accursed lot.
If we must die, O let us nobly die,
So that our precious blood may not be shed
In vain; then even the monsters we defy
Shall be constrained to honor us though dead!
O Kinsmen! We must meet the common foe!
Though far outnumbered, let us show us brave,
And for their thousand blows, deal one deathblow!
What though before us lies the open grave?
Like men we’ll face the murderous, cowardly pack.
Pressed to the wall, dying but fighting back!
Claude McKay.
What the Harlem Rennaisance signifies is the mainstream regoconition of the valuable cultural contributions of America's African Minority by its European Majority. These contributions included Literature, music, fine and performing arts as well.
One of the most prominent African American Painters of the Era was Malvin Grey Johnson. As a young member of the Harlem Renaissance group of artists Johnson was infuenced by both impressionism and cubism and his works are prized as some of the most significant commentaries on African American life.
Brothers by Malvin Grey Johnson
Another great of the Era was Aaron Douglas. Born in Topeka Kansas Douglas got his BA in fine art from The University of Nebraska, He also studied in Paris before returning to the US and becoming President of the Harlem Artists Guild in 1928. Mr Douglas was a Professor of Art at Fisk University from 1939-1966. Below is his Into Human Bondage
No sampling of the artisty of the Harlem Renaissance Would be complete without a poem from one of the eras most well loved poets Mr. Langston Hughs, famous for the genre he created, Jazz poetry:
I've known rivers: I've known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins.
My soul has grown deep like the rivers.
I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young. I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep. I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it. I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went down to New Orleans, and I've seen its muddy bosom turn all golden in the sunset.
I've known rivers: Ancient, dusky rivers.
My soul has grown deep like the rivers.
Langston Hughes
And finally The Harlem Renaissance will always remain in our hearts because of the sweet music that was made. I am taking about Jazz folks.
Some of the most celebrated musicians of the time were singer Leena Horne the first black actress to be signed by a major Hollywood film studio
Duke Ellington was one of the greatest composers of all time. His instument was the piano and he was a big band learder of worldwide critical acclaim. He composed over 1000 original peices and awarded a Pulitzer Prize posthumously in 1999
Another great band leader was the infamous Cab Calloway a master of the Scat styke of singing Caloway performed until his death at 86 in 1994. Calloway's band included geart like Dizzie Gillespe. The were the house band along with Duke Ellington's band at the Cotton Club.
The Cotton Club was a speakeasy, the most famous of Harlem speakeasys. Afterall the Harlem Renaissance occured during the roaring twenties also a time of prohibition in the United States. This grandest of speakeasys was fashioned after a plantation. All of the performers were black and almost without exception all of the patrons were white. It featured virtually all of the most prominent black entertainers of the era and despite a somewhat racist philosophy helped to catapult many to lasting stardom.
The rose is red, the violet's blue The honey's sweet, and so are you Thou are my love and I am thine I drew thee to my Valentine The lot was cast and then I drew And Fortune said it shou'd be you.
-Grammer Gurton 1784
May Cupid's Arrow be straight and true. Speaking of Cupid, did you know that our modern day Cherub was originally a Roman God. The Romans knew him as a mischevious boy, able to inspire both love and hatred; he always carried two quivers of bows, one for each purpose.
180 Million - The number of Valentines given each year in the United States alone. Making
Valentines day the 2nd most popular greeting card giving occasion (Christmas is #1).
$102 - The amount of money spent by the average american on Valentines Day.
$12-13 Billion - Annual Valentines day sales.
198 Million - The number of roses sold on Valentines day. Why the rose? The red rose is the favorite Flower of Venus, goddess of Love. Men account for 73% of all Valentine's Day Flower sales (who said a good man is hard to find?)
How a Deaf Person Should Handle a Run-In with the Cops
Courtesy of The New Jersey Department of Human Services - Division of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
The job of the Police is to make sure that laws are obeyed and enforced and that people and property are protected. United States Federal Laws including section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act., require the police to have TTY so that people with hearing loss can contact them and understand what they say.
Most state and municipal jurisdictions also have their own laws which in conjunction with federal law requires the police t obtain or make a reasonable effort to secure an interpreter. Some jurisdictions require the interpreter to be certified by the National Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID) so that you can: make a complaint against another person; understand what you are being accused of doing; communicate with police as the parent of a juvenile who is accused of wrongdoing; and provide police with information about someone else who is suspected of doing something wrong.
Definitions
Crime: An act that breaks the law.
Victim: A person who has been injured or has had a crime committed against him/her.
Witness: Someone who sees a crime or accident happen or has information about a crime.
Arrest: When the police stop you from leaving if there is reason to believe that you committed a crime.
Warrant: A court paper that allows the police to arrest someone or look for something.
Summons: A paper served to someone suspected of a crime. This paper tells the person to go to court on a certain day. You must go or you will be in more trouble.
If you are a victim or witness a crime:
Contact the police immediatly
Be able to give basic information about the incident - Who, what, where, when, how, license plate numbers, etc.
Let the police know that you need an interpreter; the police department is responsible for payment of the interpreter.
If your car is stopped by the police:
Let the police know that you are deaf. Be careful to explain what you are doing before you reach for anything. Do not move fast. She the police your drivers license, registration, and insurance card. The police may give you a ticket. If you do not agree with the ticket do not argue with the police; you have a right to go to court and tell a judge. Read the ticket carefully to find out what you must do. If you do not want to go to court, you may pay the ticket before the court date. Note: If you are arrested you do not have to provide additional information until the until the interpreter arrives.
If you are in a car accident:
Do not leave the place where the accident happened. You will be in trouble if you drive away without permission from the police officer.
If someone is hurt or there is a lot of damage to cars or property, contact the police.
Exchange names, addresses, telephone numbers, insurance companies and policy numbers with the other driver.
If the police come politely get the officer's name, badge number and accident report number.
Try to obtain names, address and telephone numbers of any wittnesses.
Mave the cars out of the way if you can; only if no one was seriously hurt.
Your Legal Rights:
A legal right is something that the law provides you with or allows you to do. No one can take away your legal rights. If you do not know your rights you may not be treated fairly.
If you are arrested:
Let the police know that you are deaf.
Give the police your name and address.
You do not have to give the police any more information until an interpreter arrives (The police are not required to provide an interpreter in motor vehicle stops.
If you say anything to the police they can use it against you in court.
Do not argue or fight with the police even if you think they are wrong.
Do not accept an interpreter you cannot understand or who cannot understand you.
Do not talk to the interpreter privatly about the situation.
You have a right d to have a lawyer. A lawyer will help you to avoid incriminating yourself.
You have a right to talk privately with your lawyer.
If you cannot afford a lawyer the court will provide one.
Let the lawyer know you need an interpreter.
Be honest with your lawyer, tell them everything that happened.
Ask your lawyer about anything you do not understand.
If you must go to court
The court must provide you with a certified interpreter, assistive listening device or real time captioning.
Everything you say in court must be the truth.
You cannot be forced to say anything that will hurt you.
Your lawyer has the right to ask all witnesses questions.
Here we are in Jersey City, USA. Jack Frost is nipping at our noses, in earnest, and old man winter has sent the first dusting of snow. With the winter solstice fast approaching we here at Natural Languages thought you would enjoy a look at the festivities that are happening around the World.
Bodhi Day:
A Buddhist holiday celebrated on December 8th, or the 8th day of the 12th lunar month in countries that follow a lunar calendar (China). Bodhi Day commemorates the day that the Buddha gained enlightenment. This holiday is named for the Bodhi tree under which the Buddha sat for a very long time! Celebrations vary by region but it is generally traditional to string multi-colored lights about the home to symbolize the many paths to enlightenment. It is also a good day to spend time in meditation.
Pancha Ganapati
A Hindu festival lasting five days, it is celerated Decembr 21-25 in honor of Lord Ganesha, patron diety of the arts and sciences, guardian of culture, Lord of obstacles, new beginnings, intellect and wisdom. Ganesha has the body of a man and five elephant heads. This holiday seeks harmony with others through new beginnings and the mending of past mistakes.
A shrine with a statue of Lord Ganesha is erected in the family room. It is decorated in richly colored lights, flowers, tinsel, etc. Each morning Ganesha is presented with an array of sweets and incense. Gifts are exchanged amoung the groups honored on that day. All gifts are placed beneath the statue of Ganesha and not opened until the 5th day. Ganesha is then dressed and decorated in his color corresponding with the day's Sadhana (spiritual objective).
The Sadhanas are:
December 21: Golden Yellow - To celebrate love & harmony in the family. The family rises early to perform the "Grand Puja" which evokes the spirit of Pancha Ganapti, Lord Ganesha. The family then sits together to ease any strained relationships, make amends and offer forgiveness. Gifts are shared.
December 22: Royal Blue - To create love & harmony among neighbors, relatives and close friends. Appoligies are offered and misunderstandings are cleared up. Gifts are shared.
December 23: Ruby Red - To create love & harmony with merchants, businesses & society. Gifts are exchanged between coworkers, employees and employers to settle debts and disputes.
December 24: Emerald Green - To bring harmony through art, music, drama and dance. The family gathers to share these gifts.
December 25: Brilliant Orange - To bring love & harmony throughout the 3 worlds. The family hopes to experience the love of Lord Ganesh. Gifts that have been placed before him are opened and feasting ensues.
Soyal
A ceremony of the Hopi Indians of the South-Western United States. This is a sacred ceremony celebrated on the winter solstice to honor the sun god and bid him to return to in spring to provide light and nourishment to the earth. The ceremony enacts a drama between the sun and the dark forces that drive him away (represented by a black snake).
World Christmas Traditions-
Mexico - Las Posadas - Prcessions that begin nine days before Chistmas day in honor of the time it took Joseph and Mary to travel to Bethlahem. Locals divide into two groups, innkeepers and pilgrims. The pilgrims go from house to house seeking shelter and are denied over and over until they reach the house where the Nativity Scence has been erected. Here they are admitted and after a traditional prayer there is a lively fiesta complete with a pinata for the children.
Iran (Persia)-
The land of the Magi (the 3 wise men). Christians do the "little fast" in which no meat is consumed until after holy communion on Christmas Eve. Then they have a feast, "the little feast". Traditionally gifts are not exchanged but children are given new clothes which they don happily for Christmas Day.
Russia - Babouschka, a woman, who after refusing food and shelter to the three wise men, began to repent of her selfish ways. She roams the countryside visiting the homes of little children, leaving gifts for them and searching for the christ child.
France -
Le Creche or Nativity scene is prominetly displayed in the home. Great artinship goes into the creation of these scenes.
Le Reveillon is the feast which takes place after midnight mass in Christmas Eve (think 2am). Traditional Fare varies by region but can include goose, oysters and a Broche de Noel - a yule log cake.
French children leave their shoes out on Christmas Eve in hopes they recieve gifts from Pere Noel. Pere Fouetard reminds Pere Noel of childrens behavior over the past year.
-3000 B.C.
Ancient Egypt
The first documented evidence of Interpreting as a profession is in the Heiroglyphs.
-95 B.C.
Pharoh Psamtik II created an interpreter class
Sending significant numbers of boys to Greece
to be trained in that language.
-405 C.E.
St. Jerome, fluent in Hebrew, Greek and Latin translates The Bible into Latin.
-1496 C.E. Doña Marina, La Malinche a Mexican native fluent in Mayan and Nahuatl also learned Spanish and became
his trusted interpreter and lover. She bore him the first mestizo (of Spanish and native ancestry), a son Martín.
-1804
Sacagawea a Lemhi Shoshone woman, who spoke Shoshone, Hidasta, French and English became Merriweather Lewis & William Clark’s interpreter and guide while pregnant with her first son, Jean Baptiste, who was born on the famous Lewis & Clark Expedition. She traveled all the way to the Pacific coast and back with her infant.
-1945
Nuremburg Trials, Interpreter Andre Kaminker devised a method of using equipment to provide “real time” or simultaneous interpreting for the first time. Simultaneous interpreting is now the standard in international proceedings.
-1979
The Court Interpreters Act established the right of anyone involved in a federal proceeding, to a certified interpreter if communication is impaired by a language barrier or a hearing impairment.
-1990
The Americans with Disabilities Act - The ADA is a wide-ranging civil rightslaw that prohibits discrimination based ondisability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which made discrimination based on race, religion, sex, national origin, and other characteristics illegal. It Requires Public Services/State & Local to make their services accessible to deaf/hard of hearing persons. Some examples include but are not limited to the Governor’s Office, State Legislators, State and City Parks, Airports and Bus Terminals, State and city Police Stations, School Systems, City and Township Governments and State and City Libraries. It also applies to, Public Accommodations including but not limited to doctor’s offices, hotel, movie theaters, restaurants, day care centers, banks, dentists office, museums and private schools may not discriminate against people with disabilities. This means that all of these entities must make reasonable accommodations, for deaf and hard of hearing individuals this often means a Sign Language Interpreter is required.
-2010 to the Future.
Employment of interpreters and translators is projected to increase 22 percent over the 2008–18 decade, which is much faster than the average for all occupations. Higher demand for interpreters and translators results directly from the broadening of international ties and the large increases in the number of non-English speaking people in the United States. Both of these trends are expected to continue throughout the projections period, contributing to relatively rapid growth in the number of jobs for interpreters and translators across all industries in the economy.
Demand will remain strong for translators of frequently translated languages, such as Portuguese, French, Italian, German, and Spanish. Demand should also be strong for translators of Arabic and other Middle Eastern languages and for the principal East Asian languages Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.
Urban areas, especially Washington, DC, New York, and cities in California, provide the largest numbers of employment possibilities, especially for interpreters; however, as the immigrant population spreads into more rural areas, jobs in smaller communities will become more widely available.
Job prospects for interpreters and translators vary by specialty and language. For example, interpreters and translators of Spanish should have job opportunities because of expected increases in the Hispanic population in the United States. Demand is expected to be strong for interpreters and translators specializing in healthcare and law because it is critical that information be fully understood among all parties in these areas.
Finding His Beat
Detroit native Sean Forbes didn’t let being deaf stop him from a career in music.
By Mitch Albom (Reposted from Parade.com)
In Rap music, “Def” is what you want to be. “Deaf” is another matter.
Sean Forbes is both. As an infant, Sean lost nearly all his hearing. He grew up in suburban Detroit the way many deaf children do. Special classes. Sign language. Constant tussles with kids making fun of him. But music. There was always music. At a very early age, Sean made his mother play Mitch Ryder’s “Devil With a Blue Dress On” over and over – he could feel the thumping drums that launch the song. She even taught him the opening words until he could “sing” along: “fe-fe, fi-fi,fo-fo-fum,” he recalls now, laughing. That, in a way, was his first rap. Although it’s impossible for Sean to distinguish, say, soft violins or classic guitar, he can sense low and percussive tones, especially the bass and drum so prevalent in rap music. As he absorbed the beat, he says, “I’d have a hearing friend point to the words.”
Eventually , Sean learned to play the drums and bass himself. He wrote lyrics and made videos in his basement. While attending a special college program at Rochester Institute of Technology, he was surprised one night with a guitar from his father. He played it so screamingly loud that the next day he was yanked into the school office. But his jot could not be contained. It is rare to meet a rapper as upbeat as Sean Forbes. His energy nearly explodes from his spikey hair and constant smile. You might think he would be withdrawn or self-pitying. You’d be wrong.
“Once, as a teenager, I was playing hockey, and this kid kept skating behind me yelling, “Hey, deaf boy! Until one of my teammates started a fight with him. I asked, “What’s going on? When they told me, I said, ‘Wow, someone is standing up for me? And I figured I can do that, too. I mean, I’m going to be like this the rest of my life, so why not be positive about it?”
Today, Sean, 28, doesn’t fight to prove himself. He records. He helped form D-PAN (Deaf Professional Arts Network), which brings the same entertainment that hearing people enjoy to the deaf community, including “signed” video remakes of famous songs.
Oh, and Sean laughs. A lot. When you note how well he speaks he says, “Yeah, I sound like a French guy, right? When you ask about what artist he can “hear,” he says, “Eminem is easy, but Whitney Houston is way over my head.” When you ask about the life of a deaf rapper, he recalls once running into a drugstore five minutes before he hit the stage, “because the batteries for my hearing aid were dead.” Sean’s songs are edged but positive. No killing. No disrespecting women. He’s recently signed major recording and publishing deals and works with the same team that launched Eminem. He’s performed all over the U.S., and new release - fittingly titled I’m Deaf – is out now.
I got deaf tones But I aint tone deaf I’ll stop stating the obvious But I aint done yet
In May, Sean did a concert back home in Detroit. The club was jammed. People roared. But because he couldn’t hear the applause, he asked everyone to sway back and forth so he could witness the effect his music was having. Wait a moment: a child once made fun of now leading a crowd swaying to his beat. Maybe “def” and “deaf” really can be one in the same. After all Music isn’t in the ears, it’s in the soul.
We love them, we appreciate them and we celebrate them.
Although, we all realize how important Mother’s Day is, this story will only create a greater appreciation of love. Thank you Julia for bringing our families together!
Julia Ward Howe’s Proclamation of Mother’s Day
Most countries already had existing celebrations honoring motherhood but it wasn’t always to Mothers, it was to honor their Gods and symbols. It wasn’t until Julia Ward Howe, the first North American woman, who saw the distraught amongst families due to the mass extermination of husbands and sons during the Civil War. She wanted mothers to come together and celebrate honor, national peace and motherhood. It was the perfect excuse for families to come together. The proclamation of Mothers Day started in 1870. Julia suggested a celebration date of July 4th but eventually led to an agreed date of June 2nd. After Howe’s death people thought Mother’s Day would die along with her but according to a West Virginia women’s group led by Anna Reeves Jarvis continue the celebrate of the informal adaptation of Howe’s holiday. Mother’s Day didn’t become a nationally recognized holiday easily. It was over four decades later, after Anna died her daughter, Anna M. Jarvis, was determine to make it a national holiday. She quit her job and dedicated her life to petitioning state governments, business leaders, women groups, churches and other institutions and organizations. She finally convinced the World's Sunday School Association to back her, a key influence over state legislators and congress. Finally, in 1914, Woodrow Wilson signed it into national observance, declaring the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day.
The extent of the celebrations varies greatly; we tend to adore our mothers with flowers, cards and gifts. In some countries, families may attend church or share a family meal. In others, festivals are hosted. For example; in India the Hindus have long celebrated a 10 day festival in October called Durga Puja.
Mother's Day, the concept as celebrated today, does have origins in Mothering Sunday (a Christian festival celebrated throughout Europe-during the sixteenth century. It honored of the mother goddess Cybele), however, Europe no longer celebrates Mothering Sunday in that fashion. The idea of celebrating Mother’s Day in the way we Americans do today weaved its way into other cultures around the world, it is a global wide phenomenon. As a result people have intertwined the old with the new customs.
Dates around the world:
February 14 – Norway
March 14 - Ireland, Nigeria, United Kingdom
March 3 – Georgia
March 8 - Afghanistan, Bulgaria, Laos, Macedonia, Mongolia, Montenegro, Romania, Russia, Albania, Armenia, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Ukraine. The date coincides with the International Women's Day.
March 21 (first day of spring) - Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Syria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Palestinian Territories, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Sudan, Saudi Arabia
March 25 - Slovenia
April 7 - Armenia
May 2 (first Sunday in May) - Hungary, Lithuania, Portugal, Spain
May 8 - South Korea, Albania (Parents' Day)
May 10 - Anguilla, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Bermuda, Bonaire, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Canada, Slovakia, South Africa, St. Lucia, Suriname, Switzerland, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Ukraine, United States, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Cuba, Curaçao, Cyprus, Uruguay, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Latvia, Malta, Malaysia, Myanmar, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Venezuela, Zimbabwe. El Salvador, Guatemala, and Mexico
May 30 (last Sunday in May) - Algeria, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mauritius, Morocco, Nicaragua, Sweden, Tunisia, France(France is the last Sunday in May except if it coincides with Pentecost day [50th day after lent] , in which case it is shifted to the first Sunday in June)
May 26 – Poland
May 27 - Bolivia
June 13 (second Sunday in June) - Luxembourg
June 27 (last Sunday in June) - Kenya
August 12 - Thailand (Queen Sirikit Kitiyakara's birthday)
August 15 - Costa Rica, Antwerp (Belgium)
October 11 (second Monday in October) - Malawi
October 14 - Belarus
October 17 (third Sunday in October) - Argentina
November 28 (last Sunday in November) – Russia
December 8 – Panama
December 22 - Indonedia
Happy Mothers' day to all the women, whether you are rich or poor, whether they are from the countryside, from the cities or from the mountains. Each and every one of you worked courageously to give life to your beloved children.
Please let your mother how much you care. Comments will be greatly appreciated.
In the late 18th Century, the South Carolina House of Representatives decided that Moroccan Arabs (similar to those pictured above) living in the state should be treated according to the laws for whites, not the laws for blacks from Africa.
(Source: Arab American National Museum Website)
Facts:
The majority of Arab Americans, around 62%, originate from the region of the Levant, which includes Syria, Lebanon, Palestine/Israel and Jordan, although overwhelmingly from Lebanon.
(Photo credit: www.levanttech.com)
There are approximately 3.5 million Arab Americans in the United States according to The Arab American Institute. Arab-Americans live in all 50 states and Washington, DC - and 94% reside in the metropolitan areas of major cities.
According to the 2000 U.S. Census, the city with the largest percentage of Arab Americans is Dearborn, Michigan (southwestern suburb of Detroit) at nearly 30%.
Famous Arab Americans Steve Jobs – Apple CEO John Abizhad – General US Army Ralph Nader – Green Party Presidential Candidate & Consumer Protection Crusader Frank Zappa – Legendary Rock Star Kahlil Gibran – Poet DJ Khaled – Rapper, Music Producer Casey Kasem: Radio Show Host / Top 40 John Elway: Quarterback / Denver Broncos Paula Abdul: TV Personality - American Idol / Singer
I came across this poem by my personal favorite author and Arab American. I found it to be a very fitting way to simultaneously celebrate Arab American Heritage and to acknowledge the tremendous contribution they make to the richness of America.
I Believe in You
(to the Americans of Lebanese origin)
Kahlil Gibran
I believe in you, and I believe in your destiny.
I believe that you are contributors to this new civilization.
I believe that you have inherited from your forefathers an ancient dream, a song, a prophecy, which you can proudly lay as a gift of gratitude upon the lap of America.
I believe that you can say to the founders of this great nation, "Here I am, a youth, a young tree whose roots were plucked from the hills of Lebanon, yet I am deeply rooted here, and I would be fruitful."
And I believe that you can say to Abraham Lincoln, the blessed, "Jesus of Nazareth touched your lips when you spoke, and guided your hand when you wrote; and I shall uphold all that you have said and all that you have written."
I believe that you can say to Emerson and Whitman and James, "In my veins runs the blood of the poets and wise men of old, and it is my desire to come to you and receive, but I shall not come with empty hands."
I believe that even as your fathers came to this land to produce riches, you were born here to produce riches by intelligence, by labor.
I believe that it is in you to be good citizens.
And what is it to be a good citizen?
It is to acknowledge the other person's rights before asserting your own, but always to be conscious of your own.
It is to be free in word and deed, but it is also to know that your freedom is subject to the other person's freedom.
It is to create the useful and the beautiful with your own hands, and to admire what others have created in love and with faith.
It is to produce by labor and only by labor, and to spend less than you have produced that your children may not be dependent upon the state for support when you are no more.
It is to stand before the towers of New York and Washington, Chicago and San Francisco saying in your heart, "I am the descendant of a people that built Damascus and Byblos, and Tyre and Sidon and Antioch, and now I am here to build with you, and with a will."
You should be proud of being an American, but you should also be proud that your fathers and mothers came from a land upon which God laid His gracious hand and raised His messengers.
Young Americans of Syrian origin, I believe in you.
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“St. Patrick, he is a good one, definitely more than parades and green beer.
In fact he has nothing to do with all that. He is all about nonviolence, as one who suffered terribly at the hands of his Celtic captors. His, is a story of conversion and transformation something awful into fiercely beautiful.”Clare, 49 Irish American Peace Activist
“It’s a holiday celebrated by Irish people. I think it has to do with this guy, his name was St. Patrick. People dress in green and if you wear orange people get mad.” Solana, 19 Cornell University Undergraduate studying Food Science
“People wear green that is all I know.”Leila, 19 Cornell University Undergraduate studying Civil Engineering
“It’s a good day to wear green and it would be nice if we had more green, as in green backs. So go out and win the Irish sweepstakes.” Mark Savage, Director of Career Services, Cornell Engineering College
Be in the Know! Fun Facts:
Chicago dyes their river GREEN
The first St. Patricks Parade was in Manhattan in 1776!
St. Patrick used the Shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity
According to legend St. Patrick banished all snakes from Ireland
Here is a great website that lists St. Patty’s Day Events worldwide:
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who saw the distraught amongst families due to the mass extermination of husbands and sons during the Civil War. She wanted mothers to come together and celebrate honor, national peace and motherhood. It was the perfect excuse for families to come together. The proclamation of Mothers Day started in 1870. Julia suggested a celebration date of July 4th but eventually led to an agreed date of June 2nd. After Howe’s death people thought Mother’s Day would die along with her but according to a West Virginia women’s group led by Anna Reeves Jarvis continue the celebrate of the informal adaptation of Howe’s holiday. Mother’s Day didn’t become a nationally recognized holiday easily. It was over four decades later, after Anna died her daughter, Anna M. Jarvis, was determine to make it a national holiday. She quit her job and dedicated her life to petitioning state governments, business leaders, women groups, churches and other institutions and organizations. She finally convinced the World's Sunday School Association to back her, a key influence over state legislators and congress. Finally, in 1914, Woodrow Wilson signed it into national observance, declaring the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day.
The extent of the celebrations varies greatly; we tend to adore our mothers with flowers, cards and gifts. In some countries, families may attend church or share a family meal. In others, festivals are hosted. For example; in India the Hindus have long celebrated a 10 day festival in October called Durga Puja. 
