69 Fun Facts About International Holiday

Diwali is best known as the Hindu festival of what?

Diwali is the festival of lights: homes are lit with rows of diyas, small clay oil lamps, and many families worship Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth.

By popular tradition, Diwali marks whose return to Ayodhya after 14 years in exile?

Rama returned to Ayodhya with Sita and Lakshmana after defeating Ravana, and the city lit rows of lamps to welcome them home, the origin of Diwali's lights in northern Indian tradition.

What do people throw at each other during Holi?

Revellers throw coloured powder (gulal) and drench each other with water; the night before, bonfires called Holika Dahan mark the victory of good over evil.

Holi celebrates the arrival of which season?

Holi welcomes spring: it falls on the full moon of the Hindu month Phalguna, usually in March, and honours the love of Radha and Krishna.

Chinese New Year is also known by what name?

Chinese New Year is called the Spring Festival (Chunjie); it begins on the new moon between 21 January and 20 February and ends 15 days later with the Lantern Festival.

In the Chinese New Year legend, the monster Nian feared loud noises and which colour?

Red frightened Nian, which is why the season is drenched in red decorations and lit by firecrackers; villagers also learned the beast fled from loud noises.

What are the red envelopes of cash given at Chinese New Year called in Mandarin?

Hongbao (literally 'red packet') is the Mandarin term; lai see is Cantonese and angpow Hokkien, and the money inside should ideally be crisp new notes.

Songkran, celebrated with nationwide water fights, is the New Year festival of which country?

Songkran is Thailand's traditional New Year, officially 13 April; the water symbolises cleansing, and Buddha images are bathed as part of the rites.

Vietnam's Tết falls at roughly the same time as which other holiday?

Families decorate with peach blossoms or kumquat trees and eat bánh chưng, a square sticky-rice cake wrapped in leaves.

During Mexico's Day of the Dead, what do families build at home and at graves for the departed?

Ofrendas are home and graveside altars holding the departed's favourite foods and photos, filled on 1 and 2 November with pan de muerto, sugar skulls and candles to welcome returning souls.

Which flower is most associated with Day of the Dead altars and graves?

Marigolds (cempasúchil) in bright orange are said to guide spirits home with their colour and scent; petals are scattered in paths from the street to the ofrenda.

Mexico City's big Day of the Dead parade was created after it appeared in which James Bond film?

Spectre (2015) opened with a fictional Day of the Dead parade through Mexico City; the city staged a real one in 2016 to meet tourist demand.

Nowruz, the Persian New Year, is timed to what astronomical event?

Nowruz begins at the exact moment of the spring (vernal) equinox, around 20–21 March; its roots are Zoroastrian, and the UN adopted an International Day of Nowruz in 2010.

The traditional Nowruz table holds seven items whose names all begin with which letter?

The seven items all start with the Persian letter sin (S): sabze, samanu, senjed, serke, sib, sir and somāq — sprouts, pudding, oleaster, vinegar, apple, garlic and sumac.

How long do the Nowruz holidays last in Iran?

On the thirteenth day, Sizdah Bedar, everyone leaves the house to picnic outdoors.

Japan's Obon festival honours whom?

Obon welcomes the spirits of one's ancestors home each summer: families return to their hometowns to clean graves, dance the Bon Odori and float lanterns down rivers to guide the souls back.

Japan's Setsubun custom involves throwing what while shouting 'Demons out, fortune in'?

Roasted soybeans (fukumame) are thrown at the door or at a family member in a demon mask; you then eat one bean per year of your age plus one for luck, and in Kansai an uncut ehomaki sushi roll.

Japan's Golden Week begins on 29 April with which holiday?

Showa Day, marking Emperor Hirohito's birthday, has opened Golden Week on 29 April since 2007, replacing Greenery Day; the name Golden Week was coined in 1951 by a Daiei film executive after a hit release.

Korea's Chuseok, on the full moon of the eighth lunar month, is often translated into English as what?

Chuseok is often called Korean Thanksgiving because it is a harvest festival: families make songpyeon rice cakes and visit ancestral graves to tidy them and offer food.

Nyepi, the Balinese Day of Silence, is so strict that what closes for the whole day?

Even Ngurah Rai, the island's only airport, shuts for 24 hours on Nyepi; no work, travel, lights or entertainment are allowed, and the night before, demonic ogoh-ogoh effigies are paraded and burned.

Thailand's Loy Krathong festival involves floating what on rivers and ponds?

The krathong is made of folded banana leaves with three incense sticks and a candle, and it coincides with the Yi Peng sky-lantern festival in the north.

Vesak, or Buddha Day, commemorates which three events in the life of the Buddha?

It falls on the full moon of Vesākha, usually in April or May, and the UN formally recognised it in 1999.

Mongolia's Naadam festival centres on which 'three games of men'?

Naadam's 'three games of men' are wrestling, horse racing and archery; held 11–13 July, it commemorates the 1921 revolution, and its cross-country races are ridden by child jockeys.

Eid al-Fitr marks the end of what?

Eid al-Fitr, the 'festival of breaking the fast', ends the month-long fast of Ramadan; it falls on the first day of Shawwal, begins with a special prayer, and zakat al-fitr must be paid before it.

Eid al-Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice, honours which prophet's willingness to sacrifice his son?

Eid al-Adha honours Ibrahim (Abraham), who was ready to sacrifice his son at God's command before a ram was provided instead; families sacrifice an animal and share the meat with the poor.

Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the Temple after an uprising led by whom?

The Maccabees, led by Judah Maccabee, retook Jerusalem from the Seleucids and rededicated the Temple in 164 BC; a single day's oil famously burned for eight, hence eight nights.

How many branches does a Hanukkah menorah have?

Eight hold the nightly lights and the ninth, the shamash, is used to light the others.

The Jewish festival of Purim commemorates the rescue of the Jews from Haman as told in which book?

The Book of Esther, read aloud from a scroll called the Megillah, tells how Queen Esther and Mordecai foiled Haman; the congregation drowns out Haman's name with graggers.

What are the gift baskets of food that Jews send to friends on Purim called?

Mishloach manot, 'sending of portions', are baskets of at least two ready-to-eat foods delivered to friends on Purim day, one of the festival's four commandments alongside gifts to the poor.

Bastille Day, the French national day, is celebrated on which date?

It marks both the storming of the Bastille in 1789 and the Fête de la Fédération a year later; the French simply call it le 14 juillet.

The first Bastille Day military parade, in 1880, was held at which racecourse?

The first 14 July military review took place in 1880 at the Longchamp racecourse in the Bois de Boulogne, where new regimental flags were handed out; the parade moved to the Champs-Élysées after the First World War.

The first Oktoberfest, in 1810, celebrated what event?

Crown Prince Ludwig married Princess Therese, and the field it was held on is still called the Theresienwiese.

What phrase does the mayor of Munich shout after tapping the first keg at Oktoberfest?

'O'zapft is!' is Bavarian for 'It's tapped!'; the mayor has opened the festival this way since 1950, when Thomas Wimmer first tapped the keg in the Schottenhamel tent.

Only beer meeting which condition can be sold at Oktoberfest?

Only beer brewed within Munich's city limits, by the six Munich breweries such as Paulaner and Augustiner, may be served; it must also follow the Reinheitsgebot purity law.

In which Spanish town do people pelt each other with tomatoes at La Tomatina?

Buñol, a town near Valencia, has hosted La Tomatina on the last Wednesday of August since 1945; since 2013 the fight has been limited to about 20,000 ticket-holders.

What is the one rule every La Tomatina participant is told about the tomatoes?

Roughly 145 tonnes of tomatoes were thrown in 2015, all crushed first to soften the blow.

Which writer made Pamplona's Festival of San Fermín and its running of the bulls world-famous?

Ernest Hemingway's 1926 novel The Sun Also Rises sent generations of visitors to watch six bulls and six steers stampede roughly half a mile through the old town to the bullring.

Rio de Janeiro's Carnival, the world's biggest, always ends on which day?

Carnival runs from the Friday before Lent until Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent; about two million people a day take to the streets and the samba schools compete in the Sambadrome.

Midsummer in Sweden is so important that there have been proposals to do what?

Midsummer is so central to Swedish identity that there have been proposals to make it the national day instead of 6 June; since 1953 Midsummer Day has fallen on the Saturday between 20 and 26 June.

On Saint Lucy's Day, 13 December, a Swedish girl portraying Lucia traditionally wears what on her head?

Lucia wears a crown of lit candles (now often electric) on her head, with a white gown and crimson sash, and saffron lussekatter buns are served.

In Alpine folklore, who accompanies Saint Nicholas on 5 December to punish badly behaved children?

Krampus, horned and hairy with a cloven hoof, roams on Krampusnacht, 5 December, swatting children with birch rods and carrying a basket to cart off the wicked ones.

Dutch children put a shoe by the chimney for Sinterklaas — and what do they leave in it?

Sinterklaas arrives by steamboat from Spain in mid-November and rides a white horse; he is one of the sources of Santa Claus.

Sinterklaas is said to arrive in the Netherlands each November by steamboat from which country?

Dutch tradition has Sinterklaas sail from Spain each November on a steamboat, the Pakjesboot; the historical Saint Nicholas was a Greek bishop of Myra, in present-day Turkey.

Boxing Day, 26 December, coincides with the feast of which saint?

26 December is the feast of Saint Stephen, the first Christian martyr ('Good King Wenceslas looked out on the feast of Stephen'); the Boxing Day name may come from church alms boxes opened for the poor.

The Australian cricket team traditionally opens a Test match on Boxing Day in which city?

The Boxing Day Test has been played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground almost every year since 1980, with a record crowd of 91,112 in 2013; Britain's football leagues play a full programme the same day.

Guy Fawkes Night, 5 November, marks the failure of which 1605 conspiracy?

The Gunpowder Plot's collapse led Parliament to pass the Observance of 5th November Act 1605, mandating an annual thanksgiving; Guy Fawkes was caught guarding 36 barrels of gunpowder beneath the House of Lords.

What is the Scots word for New Year's Eve and the Scottish way of celebrating it?

Hogmanay in Edinburgh in 1996–97 made the Guinness book as the world's largest New Year party, with about 400,000 people.

In Scotland's first-footing tradition, the ideal first visitor after midnight is what?

The luckiest first-foot is a tall, dark-haired man, a preference said to date from Viking raids when a fair-haired stranger meant trouble; he brings coal, salt, shortbread, whisky or black bun.

Saint Patrick is said to have used which plant to explain the Holy Trinity?

Patrick is said to have held up a three-leaved shamrock to illustrate the Trinity, three persons in one God; the Lenten restrictions on drink were traditionally lifted for his feast day, 17 March.

Cinco de Mayo commemorates a Mexican victory over which country's army in 1862?

It is not Mexican Independence Day, which is 16 September, and it is far more widely celebrated in the US than in Mexico.

Kwanzaa, celebrated 26 December to 1 January, was created in 1966 by whom?

Maulana Karenga, a Black studies professor in California, created Kwanzaa in 1966; its name comes from the Swahili for 'first fruits', and seven candles in a kinara stand for its seven principles.

Timkat, the Ethiopian Orthodox celebration on 19 January, commemorates what?

Timkat is the Ethiopian Epiphany, commemorating the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan: priests carry cloth-wrapped tabots, replicas of the Ark of the Covenant, to water that is blessed; UNESCO listed it in 2019.

Peru's Inti Raymi, staged each 24 June at Sacsayhuamán near Cusco, honours which Inca deity?

Inti Raymi, 'festival of the sun', honours Inti, the Inca sun god, at the southern winter solstice; the pageant was revived in 1944 and is often called South America's second-largest festival after Rio's Carnival.

Anzac Day, 25 April, commemorates the 1915 landing at which place?

The Anzacs landed at Gallipoli, on Turkey's Dardanelles peninsula, at dawn on 25 April 1915; dawn services mark the hour, and the gambling game two-up is traditionally played that day.

Waitangi Day, 6 February, marks the signing of a treaty between Māori chiefs and which power in 1840?

The British Crown's representatives signed with Māori chiefs; New Zealand first marked the day in 1934 and made it a public holiday in 1974.

Canada Day, 1 July, was known by what name until 1982?

Dominion Day was renamed Canada Day in October 1982; it marks the 1867 union of the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick into a single dominion.

Australia Day, 26 January, marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at which spot?

On 26 January 1788 Arthur Phillip raised the Union Flag at Sydney Cove in Port Jackson, having moved the fleet from Botany Bay; many Indigenous Australians mark the date as Invasion Day or Survival Day.

In Western Christianity, Epiphany on 6 January principally commemorates what?

Western churches keep Epiphany as the visit of the Magi, the Three Kings, to the Christ Child; in Spain and Latin America children find the kings' gifts in their shoes that morning.

China's Dragon Boat Festival falls on which day of the lunar calendar?

Duanwu falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, hence its nickname the Double Fifth; that lands in late May or June, and its legends centre on the poet-minister Qu Yuan of Chu.

Mooncakes, filled with sweet bean or lotus-seed paste, are eaten during which Chinese festival?

Mid-Autumn, on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month in September or early October, celebrates the harvest moon with mooncakes and lanterns.

At China's Lantern Festival, what activity do children traditionally enjoy besides carrying paper lanterns?

Solving riddles on them is the tradition; in ancient times only the emperor and nobles had large ornate lanterns.

The Chinese Qingming Festival is known in English by what name?

Qingming is Tomb-Sweeping Day: families visit ancestral graves in early April to clean them and make offerings; it is also called Ancestors' Day or the Pure Brightness Festival.

Shetland's Up Helly Aa fire festival climaxes with the burning of what?

Up to a thousand costumed 'guizers' parade through Lerwick with torches on the last Tuesday in January.

The first supper honouring Robert Burns was held in 1801 at what location?

Nine of Burns's friends met at the poet's cottage in Alloway, Ayrshire, on 21 July 1801, the fifth anniversary of his death; suppers now cluster around his 25 January birthday.

In German folklore, witches gather on Walpurgis Night, 30 April, on which mountain?

The Brocken is the highest peak of the Harz range, and the night is also called Hexennacht.

What happens to the elaborate constructions built for Valencia's Falles festival at its climax?

La Cremà, the Burning, is why the structures are called falles, meaning torches; the main days run 15 to 19 March.

The Tamil harvest festival Pongal takes its name from a word meaning what?

Pongal means 'boiling over': the festival's ceremonial dish of rice boiled with milk and jaggery is allowed to bubble over the pot as a sign of abundance; the Mattu Pongal day honours cattle.

Which freedom fighter turned Ganesh Chaturthi into a large public celebration in Maharashtra in 1893?

Bal Gangadhar Tilak, the Lokmanya, turned the household Ganesh festival into public sarvajanik celebrations in Pune in 1893 to rally Hindus across caste lines against British rule.

Kerala's Onam festival celebrates the annual return of which legendary king to visit his people?

Mahabali, the benevolent Asura king, is welcomed with lavish Sadya feasts; Onam was declared Kerala's national festival in 1961.