All over the world, people are celebrating the season. And here at Play for Peace, we're all celebrating with you. Whatever you choose to celebrate, we hope that our list of some of the most celebrated winter holidays inspires you to learn about the many others that exist. Eid-al-Adha (Sunday, September 11, 2016 - Thursday, September 15, 2016) Also referred to as the Feast of the Sacrifice, Eid-al-Adha is an important Islamic holiday celebrated worldwide to honor the willingness of the prophet Abraham to sacrifice his first-born, Ishmael, on God’s command. The date varies depending on the Islamic lunar calendar. To celebrate, families traditionally dress in their finest clothing to perform prayer in a large congregation or mosque and sacrifice their best halal domestic animals as a symbol of Abraham’s sacrifice. Ultimately, most of the meat is shared with friends, neighbors, and the poor, to ensure that none are without a chance to partake in the holiday feast.
Diwali (Saturday, October 29, 2016, OR Sunday, October 30, 2016) This five-day Hindu festival is an official holiday in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar, among others. The festival is also referred to as the “festival of lights” and celebrates both the attainment of nirvana by Mahavira (an Indian Sage), as well as a Death Anniversary of Swami Dayanand (Hindu religious leader). The word “Diwali” is a contraction of a word translating to “row of lamps,” as the holiday involves the lighting of small clay lamps to symbolize the victory of good over evil. Firecrackers are burst and, during the festival, all those celebrating wear new clothes and share sweets with family and friends.
St. Lucia Day (Tuesday, December 13, 2016) St. Lucia (Lucy's) Day is a Christian feast day celebrated on 13 December in Advent, commemorating Saint Lucy, a 3rd-century martyr under the Diocletianic Persecution, who according to legend brought "food and aid to Christians hiding in the catacombs" using a candle-lit wreath to "light her way and leave her hands free to carry as much food as possible." To honor this third-century saint, many girls in Sweden dress up as "Lucia brides" in long white gowns with red sashes, and a wreath of burning candles on their heads. They wake up their families by singing songs and bringing them coffee and twisted saffron buns called "Lucia cats."
Las Posadas (Friday, December 16, 2016 - Saturday, December 24, 2016) With its origins in Spain, Las Posadas is a nine-day celebration that is now primarily celebrated in Mexico, Guatemala, and parts of the Southwestern United States. The roots of this holiday are in Catholicism but several different branches of Christian Latinos follow the tradition. During the celebration, a procession moves from house to house with a candle inside a paper lampshade, stopping at each home to sign and pray. Eventually, the procession ends at a home or church, and the celebration continues with caroling, feasting, and pinata breaking.
Hanukkah (Saturday, December 24, 2016 - Sunday, January 1, 2017) Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire. For eight days each November or December, Jews light a special candleholder called a menorah. They do it to remember an ancient miracle in which one day's worth of oil burned for eight days in their temple. On Hanukkah, many Jews also eat special potato pancakes called latkes, sing songs, and spin a top called a dreidel to win chocolate coins, nuts, or raisins.
Christmas (Sunday, December 25, 2016) Christmas is an annual holiday commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ. People celebrate this Christian holiday by going to church, giving gifts, and sharing the day with their families. Christmas Day is a public holiday in many of the world's nations, is celebrated religiously by the vast majority of Christians, as well as culturally by many non-Christian people, and is an integral part of the holiday season, while some Christian groups reject the celebration. In several countries, celebrating Christmas Eve on December 24 has the main focus rather than December 25, with gift giving and sharing a traditional meal with the family.
Kwanzaa (Monday, December 26, 2016 - Sunday, January 1, 2017) Kwanzaa, which means "First Fruits," is based on ancient African harvest festivals and celebrates ideals such as family life and unity. During this spiritual holiday, millions of African Americans dress in special clothes, decorate their homes with fruits and vegetables, and light a candleholder called a kinara to celebrate African heritage. It was first celebrated in 1966-1967 and has seven core principles: Unity, Self-Determination, Collective Work and Responsibility, Cooperative Economics, Purpose, Creativity, and Faith.
New Year (Saturday, December 31, 2016 - Sunday, January 1, 2017) January 1 is the first day of the Gregorian Calendar, which is used by most countries. In many places, people stay up late to see the old year out and the new year in. Almost everywhere in the world church bells ring, horns toot, whistles blow, sirens shriek. London's Trafalgar Square and New York City's Times Square swarm with crowds of happy, noisy people. The hullabaloo expresses people's high spirits at holiday time.
Chinese New Year (Saturday, January 28, 2017) Chinese New Year is celebrated at the turn of the traditional lunisolar Chinese Calendar. Many Chinese children dress in new clothes to celebrate. People carry lanterns and join in a huge parade led by a silk dragon, the Chinese symbol of strength. According to legend, the dragon hibernates most of the year, so people throw firecrackers to keep the dragon awake.
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Whatever you choose to celebrate, consider a contribution to our #Raise1toPlayAs1 campaign today![/caption]
