Birthday
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A child on her first birthday |
For other uses of the term, see Birthday (disambiguation).A
birthday is the date on which a person is
born, marking the day a life outside the womb begins. It is customary in many cultures to
celebrate the
anniversary of one's birthday, for example by having a birthday
party with family and/or friends. Gifts are often given to the person celebrating the birthday. It is also customary to treat people specially on their birthday, either generally acceding to their wishes, or subjecting them to a rite of transition.
History of celebration of birthdays in the West
It is thought that the large-scale celebration of birthdays in Europe began with the cult of
Mithras, which originated in
Persia but was spread by soldiers troughout the
Roman Empire. Before this, such celebrations were not common; and, hence, practices from other contexts such as the
Saturnalia were adapted for birthdays. Because many Roman soldiers took up
Mithraism, it had a wide distribution and influence throughout the empire until it was supplanted by
Christianity.
Birthday celebrations were rare during the
Middle Ages but saw a resurgence with the advent of the
Reformation. During this period, they were seen as a good way to transfer customs from the
saint's days to other dates not linked to the newly repudiated
veneration of saints.
Even today, the celebration of birthdays is not universal in the West; in addition to those people preferring name day celebrations,
Jehovah's Witnesses do not celebrate either, considering them to be
pagan festivals along with
Christmas and
Easter.
Festive
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Birthday Cake |
In most
English-speaking countries it is traditional to sing the
song Happy Birthday to You to the honored person celebrating his birthday. Similar songs exist in other languages such as "Lang zal hij/zij leven" in Dutch, "Zum Geburstag Viel Glück" in German, "Cumpleaños Feliz" in Spanish, or "Sto lat" in Polish. This happens traditionally at a birthday party while someone brings a birthday
cake into the (often darkened) room.
*The
birthday cake is traditionally highly decorated, and typically covered with lit
candles when presented; the number of candles often equals the age of the person. The person whose birthday it is makes a silent
wish and then blows out the candles; if done in one
breath, the wish is supposed to come true. It is also common for the "birthday boy" or "birthday girl" to cut the initial piece of the cake like as a newlywed couple might with a
wedding cake.
Typical birthday party decorations include balloons, streamers and confetti.
For special birthdays and for when the number of candles might be considered impractical or a
fire hazard, special candles might be substituted for the many individual candles. These candles are in the shape of a
numeral; for example, on the fifth birthday there may be one candle on the cake in the shape of the numeral 5, and on the fiftieth birthday there may be two candles on the cake, one in the shape of the numeral 5 followed by the other in the shape of the numeral 0.
*A birthday is considered a special day for the person, and so the person will often get special treatment from friends and family. This is especially true for children who cannot wait for their own special day. In addition to parties, people often get
gifts on their birthday.
*Birthday parties for children often include fun games like
Pin the Tail on the Donkey,
musical chairs, and hitting
piñatas.
*There are also traditions of
surprise parties.
*Not all traditions are equally generous. In certain circles the birthday boy or girl is expected to treat the fellows, often by shouting one or more round of drinks.
*Another tradition enjoyed by girls that was popularized in the 1950s and 60s: receiving a special
corsage (or several) that was decorated with candy or another inexpensive item that corresponded to age. The items were priced within reach of the peer group, and all were light enough so they could fasten easily to curly ribbons and be worn throughout the school day without problem.
10th birthday - lollipops:11th birthday - gum drops:12th birthday - tootsie rolls:13th birthday - bubble gum:14th birthday - dog biscuits:15th birthday - life savers:16th birthday - sugar cubes:17th birthday - lemon drops:18th birthday - cigarettes
Testing
Since every year of age can be seen as a minor transition, this can be accompanied by some traditional
initiation rite such as a
birthday spanking, after which the honoree may in some traditions receive a "pinch to grow an inch."It is also traditional in schools in some areas of Britain to 'bump' people on their birthday. This involves them being hoisted face up by arms and legs and allowed to fall; pulling on the limbs restrains the fall so that the victim does not quite hit the ground. This is repeated for the number of times equal to their birthday age. On one last hoist the celebrant is often allowed to fall to the ground with a bump. A less painful way is to be lifted in the air while sitting on a chair. Then the last lift is usually made higher than the others.
A similar tradition in schools are 'birthday beats' or 'birthday bashings' in which the birthday child receives a number of punches on his arm that equals his age (e.g. 14 punches on the arm for a 14-year-old). Usually it is followed with a 'one for luck' punch which tends to be harder than the rest. Birthday beats are not often malicious but sometimes can be considered bullying and may ruin a child's special day.
Special birthdays
Notable birthdays can include:
* When the most significant digit changes, for example one's 1st, 10th, 30th, 50th, or 100th birthdays.
* One's
golden birthday, also called a
champagne birthday, is the day when the age one turns and the date of birth coincide (e.g. someone turning 20 on September 20th celebrates his golden birthday).
* In most legal systems, one becomes a legal
adult on a particular birthday, and at different ages gain different rights and responsibilities â€"
voting, certain
drug use (e.g.
alcohol,
tobacco), eligibility for
military draft or voluntary enlistment,
driving etc.
* Most cultures have one or more
coming of age birthdays:
** Jewish boys have a
bar mitzvah on or around their 13th birthday. In
Reform and
Conservative Judaism,
Jewish girls observe a
bat mitzvah on or around their 12th or 13th birthday while in
Orthodox Judaism, girls observe it on or around their 12th birthday.
**In some Christian traditions, generally
Catholic and
Anglican,
Confirmation is the ritual by which a young person becomes an official member of the Church. This sometimes includes the bestowal of a 'Confirmation name,' generally the name of a
saint, which is often worn as a second middle name. Confirmation also bestows the
Holy Spirit upon the confirmand, and in some churches is received concurrent with baptism or first communion.
** In
Latin America the
quinceañera celebration traditionally marks a girl's 15th birthday.
** Some girls in the
United States have "
sweet sixteen" birthday parties.
*The birthdays of historically significant people, like
Jesus Christ, the Prophet
Muhammad, or the father of the fatherland, are often commemorated by an official
holiday, some saints are remembered by a liturgical feast (sometimes on a presumed birthday). By analogy, the Latin term
Dies natalis 'birthday' is applied to the anniversary of an institution (such as a university)
Some notables, particularly Monarchs, have on a fixed day of the year an
official birthday which do not match their actual birthday, but on which celebrations are held.Examples are:
*King's or
Queen's Official Birthday in
Australia,
Canada,
Fiji,
New Zealand, and the
United Kingdom.
*
Commonwealth Day, originally called Empire's Day, is on the Queen-Empress Victoria's birthday:
May 24*The
Grand Duke's Official Birthday in
Luxembourg:
23 June*King's birthday in
Belgium: 15th of November
*in
Malaysia, the
Yang di-Pertuan Agong (federal King, elected for 5 years) on
3 June*Koningsdag or Koninginnedag in the Kingdom of the
Netherlands is fixed on
30 April (Queen's Day; celebration of the reigning Queen's accession; birthday of former queen Juliana) to avoid winter weather (born in January).
While it is uncommon to have an official holiday for a republican
head of state's birthday, this can become a permanent posthumous honour, especially in the case of a so-called
father of the fatherland, e.g. George Washington (best known as
Presidents' Day, which sounds like the incumbent's party; also celebrated in the US is
Lincoln's Birthday)
In cases where a historical figure's actual birthday is unknown, e.g.
Jesus, it is common for a particular date to be substituted.
People who are born on the
leap day 29 February, which only occurs during
leap years, often celebrate their birthday in other years on the 28th (the last day of February), or
1 March (the first day they have, measured in whole years, a new
age).
In some
Roman Catholic and
Eastern Orthodox countries such as
France,
Hungary, or
Greece, it is common also to have a '
name day'/'Saint's day'. This is celebrated in much the same way as a birthday, but is held on the official day of a saint with the same Christian name as the birthday boy/girl; the difference being that one may look up a person's nameday in a calendar, or easily remember common namedays (e.g.
John or
Mary); however in pious traditions, the two were often made to concur by giving a newborn the name of a saint celebrated on its birthday, or even the name of a feast, e.g.
Noel or
Pascal (French for Christmas viz. Easter). In some countries, name days are celebrated with much more elaborate festivities than birthdays; in the past, birthdays often weren't celebrated at all in those countries.
In school, a
half-birthday or other
unbirthday is sometimes celebrated for those whose birthdays do not fall on a school day (especially for birthdays falling during holiday and vacation periods).
All
racehorses traditionally celebrate their birthday on (i.e. calculate their age in years from)
1 August in the Southern Hemisphere, and on
1 January in the Northern Hemisphere.
Birthstones
A birthstone is a gift of a precious material (jewelry, mainly
gemstones; themselves traditionally associated with various qualities) that symbolizes the
month of birth (in the
Gregorian Calendar).
It is sometimes also called
birthday stone (cf. infra; but that word is, confusingly, sometimes used as a synonym for an
anniversary gift, which is related to the recipient's age, i.e. year of birth).
There have been many different sets of birthstones used throughout history and in different cultures, but in
1912 the American national association of jewelers,
Jewelers of America, officially adopted the following list; it is currently the most widely used list in the
United States and many other places, including Australia (a jeweler's 'modern' list states they are selected for bright colors) and Thailand; some alternatives are added:
Tanzanite was added to December by the American Gem Trade Association in 2002.
Some alternates have been adopted to be a less expensive substitute or a cut
stone.
The birthstone seems to originate from Biblical times. The Breastplate of Aaron, referred to in Exodus 39:10-14:
10 Then they mounted four rows of precious stones on it. In the first row there was a ruby, a topaz and a beryl; :11 in the second row a turquoise, a sapphire and an emerald; :12 in the third row a jacinth, an agate and an amethyst; :13 in the fourth row a chrysolite, an onyx and a jasper. They were mounted in gold filigree settings. :14 There were twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes.
The precise list of birthstones however can be found in Revelation 21:19-20 where the foundation stones of the new Jerusalem are listed, in the order of the Roman calendar:
19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;:20 The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
The Twelve Tribes of Israel will be the "foundation" of the new Jerusalem.
Zodiac stones
There is an astrological version of the birthstones using the twelve
zodiac signs instead of the twelve calendar months. Listed below are the corresponding dates for the
tropical sun signs and their associated birthstone.
*
Aries (
March 21 -
April 20)
Diamond*
Taurus (
April 20 -
May 20)
opal*
Gemini (
May 21 -
June 20)
Spinel*
Cancer (
June 21 -
July 22)
Pearl*
Leo (
July 23 -
August 23)
Ruby*
Virgo (
August 24 -
September 22)
Sapphire*
Libra (
September 23 -
October 23)
Peridot*
Scorpio (
October 24 -
November 21)
Aquamarine*
Sagittarius (
November 22 -
December 21)
Topaz*
Capricorn (
December 22 -
January 21)
Garnet*
Aquarius (
January 20 -
February 18)
Amethyst and
moonstone*
Pisces (
February 19 -
March 20)
DiamondBirthday stones
While this word has also been used as synonym of Birth stone (see above), there is a separate list of assignment according to the day of the week of the recipient's birth:
* Monday :
Pearl (the only non-gem)
* Tuesday :
Garnet* Wednesday : Cat's eye (
Chatoyant Chrysoberyl)
* Thursday :
Emerald* Friday :
Topaz* Saturday :
Sapphire* Sunday :
RubyA person's birthday is usually recorded according to the time zone of the place of birth. Thus people born in
Samoa at 11:30pm will record their birthdate as one day before
UTC and those born in the
Line Islands will record their birthdate one day after UTC. They will apparently be born two days apart, while some of the apparently older ones may be younger in hours.
* Various birthdays are mentioned on the pages devoted to each day of the year, from
January 1 to
December 31*
Birthday paradox*
Birthday attack*
East Asian age reckoning - a different method of age reckoning to birthdays that is used in some Asian countries.
*
Half-birthday*
Natal chart*
Unbirthday
