各国节日8
2008-05-12 23:35:31
Constitution Day in Norway（挪威宪法日）
After being under Danish rule for some 400 years Norway had her own revolution in 1814. A very peaceful revolution consisted of calling a constitutional convention which declared that Norway is a free kingdom.
The constitution of the Kingdom of Norway proclaimed by the Constituent Assembly at Eidsvold on the 17th of May 1814. The Constitution day is still the most celebrated in the nation. But it is not celebrated - as independence day in other nations - with large military parades with arms and weapons. Norway's birthday is celebrated with party-clothed children and adults who walk in a parade singing. Songs, Banners & Parades Children march down the streets singing national songs. On the morning of May 17th children meet at the school early in the morning and march down to a specific place. While they march, they sing the national songs. They also make banners which are called faner in Norwegian. Graduating Students Celebrate The "Russ" are students who are just about to graduate from secondary school, so they are about 17/18 years old. The "Russ" stay up all night and wear funny hats and red and blue outfits. They drive around in a red or blue bus, which they have bought themselves. Unfortunately there's a lot of drinking during this celebration. The "Russ" also make something called "Russekort". "Russekort" are cards on which there is a picture of them, and they have written something like a joke, their biggest accomplishment or something they want to achieve. Some print thousands of cards which they pass out to children or anyone who wants them. Shavuot（五旬节） The Yom Tov begins at sundown of the 5th day of Sivan (息汪月, 即犹太教历3月,犹太国历9月,在公历5、6月间,共30天), exactly fifty days after Passover (犹太教的逾越节). Shavuot also commemorates the anniversary of the giving of the Ten Commandments to Moses (十诫, 犹太教、基督教的诫条) and the Israelites at Mount Sinai (西奈山,基督教《圣经》中记载的上帝授予摩西十诫之处). Many of the traditions and customs of Shavuot have evolved from the legends and stories describing the experiences of the Israelites at Mount Sinai. According to tradition the Israelites actually overslept on the morning of God's visit. To compensate for this negligence, Jews hold a vigil on the eve of Shavuot. They stay awake from dusk to dawn, keeping themselves busy with the readings of the Torah (律法，圣经旧约之首五卷) and the Talmud (犹太法典). A digest of readings has evolved called Tikkun Leil Shavuot, the "Restoration of Shavuot Eve," which includes selections from the Torah, the Prophets, the Talmud, and the Zohar (《光明篇》,犹太教神秘主义对摩西五书的注疏). Another Shavuot custom is the eating of dairy foods. One explanation states that this comes from a passage in the Torah which reads: "And He gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey". Another explanation comes from a legend stating that before the visit from God the Jews did not keep kosher (指食物、饮食店等合礼的,符合犹太教规戒律的) or follow the Kashrut (dietary) laws. It was on this first Shavuot that they found out that their utensils were nonkosher and thus unfit for use. So finding themselves without kosher meats or utensils the Israelites were forced to eat only dairy foods. Today Jews celebrate Shavuot by eating blintzes, cheesecake, and other dairy dishes. Another legend tells the story of the Israelites finding Mount Sinai blooming and lush with greenery and flowers. From this legend grew the custom to decorate the Jewish home and synagogue with tree branches and flowers. Some temples decorate the Torah scrolls with wreaths of roses. Earth Day（世界地球日） Earth Day was first observed in Spring of 1970. An estimated 20 million people nationwide attended festivities out of which came the largest grassroots environmental movement in U.S. history, and the impetus for national legislation like the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts. By the twentieth anniversary of that event, April 22, 1990, more than 200 million people in 141 countries participated in Earth Day celebrations.
Since the first Earth Day, however, the environmental movement has increasingly transformed itself from a largely grassroots, citizen crusade to a professionally-organized, established special interest. Arbor Day（植树节） In many countries it has long been the tradition to hold an annual tree or forest festival. The origin of such celebrations dates back to antiquity and is in the dawn of religious feeling and awe for what trees represented. However, Arbor Day, as it is commonly known today, is of American origin and evolved from conditions peculiar to the Great Plains. It was first observed in Nebraska in 1872.
THE IMPORTANCE OF ARBOR DAY On Arbor Day, particular attention is drawn to the part trees play in our lives. It's not just a day to plant trees and then forget the gesture for another twelve months. Planting a tree one day is no credit to us if, during the rest of the year, we neglect to care for it and those already growing. Our thought on Arbor Day should be an expression of enduring feeling, thought and action and not just one single, isolated flame of interest. In schools and other community groups, this day can be celebrated in many different ways. ·By planting trees or shrubs in school grounds, along neighbouring streets or in civic parks. Trees and shrubs, whether native or introduced to WA, provide opportunities for the interest and study by the whole community, and when we walk around our own neighbourhood or drive through the countryside, we can appreciate the importance of such a diversity of plants to the well being of humanity. Easter Day（复活节） The meaning of many different customs observed during Easter Sunday have been buried with time. Their origins lie in pre-Christian religions and Christianity. All in some way or another are a "salute to spring," marking re-birth. The white Easter lily has come to capture the glory of the holiday. The word "Easter" is named after Eastre, the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring. A festival was held in her honor every year at the vernal equinox （春分）.
People celebrate the holiday according to their beliefs and their religious denominations （命名）. Christians commemorate Good Friday as the day that Jesus Christ died and Easter Sunday as the day that He was resurrected （复活）. Protestant settlers brought the custom of a sunrise service, a religious gathering at dawn, to the United States. This year Easter will be celebrated on Sunday April 11, 2004. On Easter Sunday children wake up to find that the Easter Bunny has left them baskets of candy. He has also hidden the eggs that they decorated earlier that week. Children hunt for the eggs all around the house. Neighborhoods and organizations hold Easter egg hunts, and the child who finds the most eggs wins a prize. The Easter Bunny is a rabbit-spirit. Long ago, he was called the" Easter Hare." Hares and rabbits have frequent multiple births so they became a symbol of fertility. The custom of an Easter egg hunt began because children believed that hares laid eggs in the grass. The Romans believed that "All life comes from an egg." Christians consider eggs to be "the seed of life" and so they are symbolic of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Why we dye, or color, and decorate eggs is not certain. In ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome and Persia eggs were dyed for spring festivals. In medieval Europe, beautifully decorated eggs were given as gifts. Egg Rolling In England, Germany and some other countries, children rolled eggs down hills on Easter morning, a game which has been connected to the rolling away of the rock from Jesus Christ's tomb when he was resurrected. British settlers brought this custom to the New World. In the United States in the early nineteenth century, Dolly Madison, the wife of the fourth American President, organized an egg roll in Washington, D.C. She had been told that Egyptian children used to roll eggs against the pyramids so she invited the children of Washington to roll hard-boiled eggs down the hilly lawn of the new Capitol building! The custom continued, except for the years during the Civil War. In 1880, the First Lady invited children to the White House for the Egg Roll because officials had complained that they were ruining the Capitol lawn. It has been held there ever since then, only canceled during times of war. The event has grown, and today Easter Monday is the only day of the year when tourists are allowed to wander over the White House lawn. The wife of the President sponsors it for the children of the entire country. The egg rolling event is open to children twelve years old and under. Adults are allowed only when accompanied by children! Traditionally, many celebrants （司仪神父） bought new clothes for Easter which they wore to church. After church services, everyone went for a walk around the town. This led to the American custom of Easter parades all over the country. Perhaps the most famous is along Fifth Avenue in New York City. Good Friday is a federal holiday in 16 states and many schools and businesses throughout the U.S. are closed on this Friday.
Shavuot, the Feast of the Weeks, is the Jewish holiday celebrating the harvest season in Israel. Shavuot, which means "weeks", refers to the timing of the festival which is held exactly 7 weeks after Passover. Shavuot is known also as Yom Habikkurim, or "the Day of the First Fruits", because it is the time the farmers of Israel would bring their first harvest to Jerusalem as a token of thanksgiving.
Former U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson, Earth Day's co-founder, modeled Earth Day on anti-Vietnam War demonstrations, called "teach-ins," that were common on college campuses. "At a conference in Seattle in September 1969, I announced that in the spring of 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on behalf of the environment," says Nelson. "The response was electric. Telegrams, letters, and telephone inquiries poured in from all across the country." As many as 20 million Americans participated in environmental rallies, demonstrations and other activities in the 1970 Earth Day.
The idea, conceived by J.S. Morton, then a member of the Nebraska State Board of Agriculture, was one of forest conservation. It was a move to promote replanting, following deforestation, and to plant up treeless areas. The idea has spread widely to other lands where it is variously celebrated as the 'Festival of Trees', 'Greening Week' of Japan, 'The New Year's Days of Trees' in Israel, 'The Tree-loving Week' of Korea, 'The Reforestation Week' of Yugoslavia, 'The Students' Afforestation Day' of Iceland and 'The National Festival of Tree Planting' in India. Arbor Day in its various forms is now recognised in more than fifty countries.
·By 'adopting' a patch of bush, with the landowner's consent, and caring for it by removal of weeds, rubbish, etc, by preparing firebreaks and by fencing and making paths to reduce trampling.
·By presenting a play or mime about trees in the history of Australia.
·By completing a project about certain types of trees (eg. jarrah, boab, karri) or a famous tree like the Gloucester Tree near Pemberton.
·As a class activity or common interest group go on a visit to a bush area with a spokesperson to explain the characteristics of plant species and their niche in the natural environment.
·Collect some tree seeds, germinate them in a classroom, and plant out the seedling.
·Carry out identification of trees in a specific part of your school or neighbourhood. A tree labelling ceremony could also be arranged.
·Compile a list of everyday objects that are made of wood or wood-based materials, and find out how the wood was processed, where it came from and whatever else you can.
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