MINI CALENDAR:
December 2008
6 - St. Nicholas Day (International)
8 - Bodhi Day (Buddhist)
8 - Hajj (Muslim)
8 - Martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji (Sikh)
11 - Eid Al Adha (Muslim)
12 - Virgin of Guadalupe (Mexico)
13 - Santa Lucia Day (Sweden)
16-25 - Las Posadas (Mexico)
21 - Litha - Summer Solstice (Pagan, Southern Hemisphere)
21 - Yule - Winter Solstice (Pagan, Northern Hemisphere)
22 - Hanukkah (Jewish) (begins at sundown the day before)
25 - Christmas (Christian, Roman Catholic, International)
26 - Boxing Day (Canada, United Kingdom)
26 - Kwanzaa (African-American) (until Jan. 1)
29 - Last day of Hanukkah (Jewish)
29 - Al Hijra - Muslim New Year
31 - Omisoka (Shinto)
Also: December is Safe Toys and Gifts Month, National Stress-Free Family Holiday Month and Universal Human Rights Month. The first week of December is Aplastic Anemia Awareness Week, and the third week is Human Rights Week, as well as International Language Week.
January 2009
1 - Feast of St. Basil (Christian, Orthodox)
1 - Japanese New Year
1 - Ganjitsu / Oshogatsu - New Year (Shinto)
5 - Guru Gobind Singh's Birthday (Sikh)
6 - Epiphany (Christian)
6 - Fast of 10th Tevet (Jewish)
6 - Three Kings' Day (Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic)
7 - Christmas (Orthodox)
7 - Ashura (Islamic, Muslim)
7 - The Nativity of Jesus Christ (Christian, Orthodox)
13 - Lohri (Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh)
14 - Pongal / Makar Sankranti (Hindu)
16 - Religious Freedom Day
20 - World Religion Day (Baha'i)
26 - Chinese Lunar New Year (China, Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam)
26 - India Republic Day
26 - Tet Nguyen Dan (Vietnam) "Year of the Buffalo"
27 - Losar (Buddhist)
Also: January is National Glaucoma Awareness Month, Hot Tea Month, Oatmeal Month, Prune Breakfast Month, Retail Bakers Month, Soup Month, National Radon Action Month, and Adopt a Rescued Bird Month, among others. International Printing Week, World Kiwanis Week and National Handwriting Analysis Week are in January also.
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Question: In Islam, what is the most significant holiday in December?
"Eid Al Adha is a Muslim festival which commemorates the willingness of Prophet Ibrahim to sacrifice his son, Ishmael, as an act of obedience to God. When Prophet Ibrahim was about to sacrifice his son, God intervened and instead provided a lamb as the sacrifice. This is why today Muslims all over the world celebrate by usually sacrificing a goat or a sheep, as a reminder to Prophet Ibrahim's obedience to God. This happens during the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca for Hajj. For the Muslims who don't go for Hajj, we all dress up in our best clothes on Eid, have an Eid prayer in the morning in the mosque, after which we head off to a place where we can sacrifice an animal. Later we have lunches and dinners with family and friends and spend quality time with them to enjoy one of our happiest days of the year."
-Obair Siddiqui, junior in industrial engineering and president of Muslim Student Association
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FUN FACTS
-If you received all the gifts in "The 12 Days of Christmas," you would have 364 presents.
-Internationally, there is a wide variety of holiday gift givers:
England: Father Christmas
France: Pere Noel (Father Christmas)
Germany: Christkind, an angelic messenger from Jesus, who is a beautiful fair-haired girl with a shining crown of candles
Holland: St Nicholas
Russia: In some parts, Babouschka (a grandmotherly figure); other parts, Grandfather Frost
Scandinavia: a variety of Christmas gnomes, one is called Julenisse
Spain and South America: the Three Kings
Italy: La Befana, a kindly old witch
-Many retailers make up to 70 percent of their annual revenue in the month preceding Christmas.
-Christmas trees grow in all 50 states, including Hawaii.
-Kwanzaa was developed by Maulana Karenga in 1966.
-In Mexico, where the poinsettia flower originated, it is known as the "flower of the holy night."
-U.S. scientists calculated Santa would have to visit 822 homes a second, traveling at 650 miles a second, to deliver all the world's presents in one night.
-Hanukkah means "dedication" in Hebrew.
-The world's tallest Christmas tree was 221 feet tall and set up in a Washington shopping mall in 1950.
-Residents in Maine built the world's biggest snow man in 1999. It was 113 feet tall.
-The needles from a Christmas tree are a good source of Vitamin C.
-"Jingle Bells" was the first song broadcast from space on Dec. 16, 1965.
-In Greece, Italy, Spain and Germany, workers get a Christmas bonus of one month's salary by law.
-Candy canes were created by a candymaker in Indiana who wanted to spread the name of Jesus. The candy was white, symbolizing the virgin birth; in the shape of a "J" for Jesus (or a shepherd's staff); and stained red to symbolize the blood of Christ.
-The original menorah had just seven lamps.
-Kwanzaa means "first fruits."
-Santa comes down chimneys because of the poem, "The Night Before Christmas," written by Clement C. Moore in 1822.
-The names of Santa's reindeer came from a book by Clement C. Moore. "A Visit from St. Nicholas." (Rudolph's came from "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.")
-Before a Festivus party is over, the guests must tackle and pin the host or hostess.
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QUIZ
1. Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" single — the bestselling holiday single — has sold _____ copies worldwide since 1942.
a. 10 million
b. 25 million
c. 50 million
d. 100 million
2. __________ is the highest-grossing holiday movie to date.
a. "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" (2000)
b. "It's a Wonderful Life" (1946)
c. "Home Alone" (1990)
d. "Elf" (2003)
3. The earliest known reference to a Christmas tree was in _________.
a. the Bible.
b. a poem written in 1678.
c. a book written in 1802.
d. a pamphlet printed in 1570.
4. ___________ hold(s) the record for the most No. 1 Christmas singles.
a. Gene Autry
b. The Beatles
c. Celine Dion
d. *NSYNC
5. England had only ___ white Christmases in the 20th century.
a. two
b. seven
c. 19
d. 30
6. Electric Christmas lights were invented in 1882 by __________.
a. Thomas Edison.
b. Thomas Edison's assistant.
c. the founder of General Electric.
d. Nikola Tesla.
7. Hanukkah can be spelled ___ different ways.
a. three
b. four
c. 17
d. 24
8. The first postage stamp to commemorate Christmas was issued in _____.
a. 1910
b. 1937
c. 1948
d. 1974
9. The first Christmas card was designed in _____.
a. 1797
b. 1843
c. 1894
d. 1996
10. To celebrate Kwanzaa, candles in a ______ are lit for each day of the celebration.
a. candelabra
b. menorah
c. kinara
d. septora
Answers: 1. C, 2. A, 3. D, 4. B, 5. B, 6. B, 7. C, 8. B, 9. B, 10. C
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