| Black
History Month and, more importantly, the study of black history
owe a great debt to Dr. Carter G. Woodson, who first launched Negro
History Week in 1926. Woodson chose February because it marks
the birthdays of two men who greatly impacted the American black population — Abraham
Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. The purpose of Black History Month is
to recognize the contributions of black Americans and develop a better
understanding of the black experience.
In December 1995, the Parliament of Canada recognized
February as Black History Month following a motion introduced
by the first African-Canadian woman elected to Parliament, Jean Augustine.
The presence of peoples of African descent in Canada dates back farther
than Samuel de Champlain’s (a French explorer and navigator in
the early 1600s) first voyage down the St. Lawrence River.
• Learn about Dominion's Strong
Men & Women Program.
 February
3:
Setsunbun-sai (Japan) - Known as Bean Throwing
Night, beans are thrown to protect against demons with shouts of "Devil
out, Good Fortune in."
Tu Bishvat (Jewish) - The new year for trees.
This day was set aside in the Mishnah as the day on which to bring fruit
tithes.
February
6:
Ash Wednesday (USA) - The first day of Lent.
In Western Christianity, Lent is the period before the Christian holy
day of Easter. The central symbol of that day is the ash with which Catholics
mark foreheads of people. Ash is a traditional symbol of mourning.
Tet Festival (Vietnam) - Celebrates the New
Year.
Waitangi Day (New Zealand) - Commemorates
the signing of a treaty at Waitangi on February 6, 1840, by a group of
Maori chiefs and the British
government.
February
7:
Chinese New Year - Also known as the Lunar
New Year or the Spring Festival, this is the most important of the traditional
Chinese holidays. It also is a major holiday for Mongolians, Koreans,
the Miao (Chinese Hmong) and the Vietnamese, who were influenced by Chinese
culture in terms of religious and philosophical worldview, language and
culture.
Losar (Tibet) - The Tibetan New Year is called
Losar and is celebrated for three days by visiting, feasting and relaxation
of the monastic discipline.
Chinese Valentine’s Day - People go
to the temple of MatchMaker and pray for love.
The Daughter’s Festival (Chinese).
Seollal (Korea) - Lunar New Year's Day. This
is the largest event of the year, celebrated on the first full-moon by
eating a five-grain meal and praying for a bountiful harvest. An ancestral
service is offered before the grave of the ancestors, and New Year's
greetings are exchanged with family, relatives and neighbors.
February
11:
*Basant Panchami (India) - In Northern India
it heralds the approach of spring and yellow-colored clothes are symbolically
worn.
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Richard Kumi,
Africa (Ghana)
Richard Kumi’s native Republic of Ghana is a West African
nation of diverse ethnic cultures, religions and languages and
cultures, united by a common devotion to family.
"In Ghana, the family bond is very strong," says Kumi,
a Lineman, Electric Distribution Construction, Alexandria.
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In his
birthplace, Kumi notes that families mark significant milestones
with ceremonies, such as naming ceremonies, puberty initiations,
marriages and deaths.
Besides
English, the official language, 36 local languages are spoken in
Ghana. "The most widely spoken of these is Akan, of which
I am a member," Kumi says. The Akan account for nearly half
of the nation’s population of 20 million.
Ghana, located on the coast of the Gulf of Guinea, "is
endowed with many natural resources, including: undisturbed virgin
rain forest with plants, birds and animals; gold; diamonds; and
timber," Kumi says. Ghana also is a major cocoa producing
country.
Kumi notes that while Ghana and the United States do share some
common attributes, such as Democratic government, freedom of speech
and a majority Christian population, he has noticed a “vast
difference” in culture.
"In Ghana, religion is very strong," says Kumi, a
Christian, who shares that faith with two-thirds of Ghana’s
population. One sixth of Ghana’s people are Muslim and about
one-third of the people participate in indigenous tribal religions.
"The United States has a lot of opportunity," while
in Ghana, "united family life, lots of festivals and durbars
(chief installation ceremonies celebrated by each tribe), are very
colorful and vibrant parts of the culture," Kumi says.
Every two years the people of Ghana host Panafest,
which Kumi describes as "a cultural event dedicated to ehanhancing
the ideals of pan-Africanism and the development of the African
continent." Panafest attracts thousands of visitors
from other African countries, along with people of African descent
from all over the world. "The goals of Panafest are "to
establish the truth about African history and the experiences of
the African people, using the vehicle of African arts and culture."
Ghana celebrates as public holidays the Christian feasts of Christmas,
Good Friday and Easter Monday, and Muslim feasts of Eid as-Adha (Feast
of Sacrifice) and Eid al-Fitr (End of Ramadan).
Other major holidays in Ghana include:
- New Year’s Day, January 1.
- Independence Day, celebrated
March 6 to mark Ghana’s
independence from Great Britain in 1957.
- Africa Unity Day, May
25.
- Republic Day celebrated July 1, to mark Ghana’s becoming
a republic in 1960.
- Farmers’ Day, celebrated on the first
Friday of December each year to honor Ghana’s farmers.
- Boxing
Day, December 26.
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February
14:
Valentine's Day (International) - The traditional
day on which lovers in certain cultures let each other know about their
love, commonly by sending Valentine's cards.
February
17:
Random Acts of Kindness Day (International)
- Celebrates selfless acts performed by kind people to either help or
cheer up a random stranger, for no reason other than to make people happier.
February
18:
President's Day (USA) - A holiday held to
honor former presidents of the United States; celebrated on the third
Monday of February.
February
19:
Losar (Tibet) - The Tibetan New Year is called
Losar and is celebrated for three days by visiting, feasting and relaxation
of the monastic discipline.
February
22:
*Abu Simbel Festival (Egypt) - Built by Ramses
II, his temple is angled so that the inner sanctum lights up twice a
year: once on the anniversary of his rise to the throne and once on his
birthday.
February
27:
Carnival (Dominican Republic) - Celebration
of independence and Passover. Also celebrated is Dia de la Altagracia,
or the day of the Virgin of the High Grace.
February
28:
Kalevala Day (Finland) - Elias Lonnrot, a
country doctor, folklorist and philologist compiled the Kalevala,
Finland’s national epic, in 1835. This day is observed countrywide
with lectures, parades and recitations to honor him.
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