Spring day is a
holiday marking the coming of the
spring season, which takes place in different countries, on varying dates.
Northern Hemisphere
Albania
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
celebrates the lunar Spring Day, the so-called ''Summer Day'' (), on 14 March, and in 2004 it became a national holiday. It is an old pagan practice, particularly popular in the city of
Elbasan
Elbasan ( ; sq-definite, Elbasani ) is the fourth most populous city of Albania and seat of Elbasan County and Elbasan Municipality. It lies to the north of the river Shkumbin between the Skanderbeg Mountains and the Myzeqe Plain in central ...
, Central Albania.
According to some sources, Dita e Verës derives from the
Arbëreshë Arbën/Arbër, from which derived Arbënesh/Arbëresh originally meant all Albanians, until the 18th century. Today it is used for different groups of Albanian origin, including:
* Arbër (given name), an Albanian masculine given name
* Arbëresh ...
, an Albanian community that lives in
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
since the fifteenth century. On 14 March, the Arbëreshë of the Italian coast, collect a tuft of grass roots and soil, bringing it home to commemorate the anniversary of their emigration from Albania. In fact, some sources date back this celebration to the ancient Illyria. At that time, the feast was celebrated on 1 March, which according to the
Julian calendar
The Julian calendar, proposed by Roman consul Julius Caesar in 46 BC, was a reform of the Roman calendar. It took effect on , by edict. It was designed with the aid of Greek mathematicians and astronomers such as Sosigenes of Alexandr ...
, corresponded to the first day of the year.
Pilgrimages were made to the highest peaks in the Albanian mountains to be as close as possible to the Sun God and pray for the goodness and prosperity of the new year. The great fire crossed by men and young people symbolized the end of winter. Instead, wreaths and garlands on the doors of the houses wished good luck. The purity of the celebration has weakened over the centuries but came to this day thanks to the tradition preserved in the city of Elbasan.
The ritual of the Dita e Verës begins on the previous day with the preparation of sweets: the
revani
Basbousa () is a sweet, syrup-soaked semolina cake that originated in Egypt. The semolina batter is baked in a sheet pan, then sweetened with orange flower water, rose water or simple syrup, and typically cut into diamond (lozenge) shapes or squa ...
and ballakume, the blended butter, sugar, corn flour and egg yolks cooked in a wood oven.
During the evening ballakume, dried
fig
The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...
s,
walnut
A walnut is the edible seed of a drupe of any tree of the genus ''Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''.
Although culinarily considered a "nut" and used as such, it is not a true ...
s, turkey legs, boiled eggs, Simit (a typical sandwich of the city) are distributed to members of the family. The oldest woman of the house remains awake at night and goes from room to room to put down grass on the cushions of couples, young people and children, a ritual that symbolizes the regeneration and quickening.
On the morning of 14 March, the elderly leave the door open as a sign of generosity, a pitcher filled with fresh water and take home a clump of green grass. The youngest fertilizes the orange and olive trees, but the smaller ones are the first to make the "lucky" visits to neighbors and relatives who give them turkey legs, dried figs and nuts. Finally lunch on 14 March, should be eaten outdoors in the company of friends and relatives.
Estonia
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
celebrates Spring Day on 1 May.
Iran
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
celebrates Spring day at 21 March as its only new year celebration. This national celebration is called
Nowruz
Nowruz ( fa, نوروز, ; ), zh, 诺鲁孜节, ug, نەۋروز, ka, ნოვრუზ, ku, Newroz, he, נורוז, kk, Наурыз, ky, Нооруз, mn, Наурыз, ur, نوروز, tg, Наврӯз, tr, Nevruz, tk, Nowruz, ...
in Iran.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
celebrates Spring day on 13 February as the first of the month of
Falgun
Falgun or Phalgun (; ne, फाल्गुण) or Phagun ( as, ফাগুন) is the eleventh month of the year in the Bengali calendar, the Assamese calendar, and the Nepali calendar. In the revision of the Bengali calendar used in Banglades ...
. It is the beginning of the
Boshonto, the Spring season for
Bengalis
Bengalis (singular Bengali bn, বাঙ্গালী/বাঙালি ), also rendered as Bangalee or the Bengali people, are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the Bengal region of ...
.
Southern Hemisphere
Argentina
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
celebrates the beginning of spring, conventionally, on 21 September, one or two days before the actual spring
equinox
A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun crosses the Earth's equator, which is to say, appears directly above the equator, rather than north or south of the equator. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise "due east" and se ...
. This day also marks Students' Day.
Though this is not a work-free public holiday, it coincides with Students' Day, which is a no-school day for students on all the levels of the
education system
The educational system generally refers to the structure of all institutions and the opportunities for obtaining education within a country. It includes all pre-school institutions, starting from family education, and/or early childhood education ...
. The holiday is therefore mostly observed and dominated by
teenagers
Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the t ...
and
young adult
A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...
s, who massively take over public
parks,
beach
A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc sh ...
es and other outdoor venues in the larger cities, and enjoy
sport
Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...
s or
picnics.
Local administrations usually offer the public a number of entertainment shows, such as free rock
concert
A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variet ...
s. In recent years security operations have been staged to avoid incidents such as fights and vandalism, as well as controls to curb the consumption of
alcoholic beverages.
Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
celebrates the beginning of spring on 21 September, one or two days before the actual spring
equinox
A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun crosses the Earth's equator, which is to say, appears directly above the equator, rather than north or south of the equator. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise "due east" and se ...
. This day also marks Youth Day.
Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
celebrates the beginning of spring, on 21 September, one or two days before the actual spring
equinox
A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun crosses the Earth's equator, which is to say, appears directly above the equator, rather than north or south of the equator. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise "due east" and se ...
.
Bolivia
Bolivia celebrates the beginning of spring, on 21 September, it is also Students' day and "día del amor", on this day youth will send cards, chocolates and flowers to their friends, mates, or lovers.
South Africa
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
Celebrates spring Day on the 1 September. Spring day traditions in South Africa range from having a traditional braai to shaving your head and beard. In many townships, children celebrate Spring Day by spraying each other with water. However, in some urban settlements everyone participates.
{{Use dmy dates, date=May 2020
Types of secular holidays
Spring holidays
es:Primavera#Festividades