Why Do We Celebrate What We Celebrate? The History Behind the Dates That Mark Our Year
Have you ever wondered why we receive gifts on Christmas, kiss someone at the turn of the year, or why Mother’s Day is always on the second Sunday of May? Celebratory dates are so ingrained in our daily lives that we rarely question their origins. They simply exist — and we follow them with flowers, chocolates, fireworks, or a day off work.
But each of these dates has a story. Some originated from religious rituals with millennia of existence. Others were created by governments to reinforce national identities. And there are those that, let’s face it, had a good dose of commercial push throughout the 20th century. Understanding where these celebrations come from doesn’t diminish the pleasure of celebrating — on the contrary, it makes everything richer and more meaningful.
In this article, we will explore the origins of the main celebratory dates in the Brazilian and global calendar, separating legend from historical fact and revealing curiosities that will likely surprise you.
Christmas: Long Before Santa Claus
Christmas, celebrated on December 25th, is one of the most well-known dates in the world. For Christians, it marks the birth of Jesus Christ. But the choice of December 25th is, in itself, the result of a long historical process.
The first records of celebrating Christ’s birth date back to the 4th century. The date was officially adopted by the Church of Rome around 336 AD. Researchers suggest that the choice may have been strategic: on December 25th, the Roman Empire celebrated Sol Invictus (Unconquered Sun), a pagan festival related to the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere. By associating Christ’s birth with this period, the Church facilitated the incorporation of new believers.
The figure of Santa Claus as we know him today — chubby, in red clothes, and with a white beard — was widely popularized in the 19th and early 20th centuries, heavily influenced by North American advertising campaigns and illustrations by artists like Thomas Nast. The folkloric base, however, comes from Saint Nicholas of Myra, a 4th-century Turkish bishop famous for his generosity.
Carnival: A Festival From Afar
The Brazilian Carnival is recognized worldwide, but its roots lie in medieval Europe. The word “carnival” likely derives from the Latin carne vale, meaning “farewell to meat” — a reference to the fasting period of Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday.
The pre-Lenten festivities existed in various ancient cultures and were incorporated into the Christian calendar over the centuries. In Brazil, Carnival arrived with Portuguese colonizers in the 17th century in the form of the entrudo, a popular festivity where people threw water, flour, and various substances at each other in the streets — very different from the samba school parades we know today.
The transformation of Brazilian Carnival into an organized event with its current characteristics was gradual, consolidating throughout the 20th century with the creation of samba schools in Rio de Janeiro in the 1920s.
Mother’s Day: A Date with Social Roots
Mother’s Day is celebrated on the second Sunday of May in Brazil and many other countries. Contrary to popular belief, this date does not have religious origins — it was born from a social movement in the United States.
Anna Jarvis, an American from West Virginia, was the main force behind the creation of the modern Mother’s Day. After her mother’s death in 1905, she began a campaign for an official day to honor mothers. In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson signed the decree making the second Sunday of May the official Mother’s Day in the US.
It’s worth noting a historical irony: Anna Jarvis herself became disillusioned with the rapid commercialization of the date and spent her later years trying to abolish the holiday she had created. In Brazil, the date was adopted in 1932 and quickly became one of the most important for national retail.
Valentine’s Day: Brazil Did It Differently
While much of the world celebrates love on February 14th (Valentine’s Day), Brazil has its own date: June 12th, the eve of Saint Anthony’s Day — the matchmaker saint.
The choice of date in Brazil is attributed to advertiser João Dória (not to be confused with the politician of the same name), who in the 1940s allegedly created the date as a marketing strategy for Mappin, a department store in São Paulo, taking advantage of the low sales period between Mother’s Day and Christmas.
The American Valentine’s Day has medieval origins. The English poet Geoffrey Chaucer, in the 14th century, was one of the first to associate February 14th with romantic love in his writings. The tradition of exchanging letters and gifts between couples became popular in England and was exported to other countries over the centuries.
Independence Day: National Identity on a Fixed Date
September 7th, Brazil’s Independence Day, commemorates the proclamation made by Dom Pedro I on the banks of the Ipiranga Stream in São Paulo in 1822. The “Cry of Ipiranga,” as it became known, declared Brazil’s separation from Portugal.
National independence dates are classic examples of how governments use the calendar to build collective identity. The American July 4th, marking the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, is perhaps the most famous example worldwide. The French July 14th (Bastille Day) celebrates the storming of the Bastille prison in 1789, a symbol of the French Revolution.
These national holidays share the function of bringing citizens together around a shared historical narrative — whether with military parades, fireworks, or simply a day of family rest. To better understand how Brazil’s history materializes in its places and monuments, it’s worth visiting the historical cities of Brazil that are worth every trip.
New Year: A Spin Through Humanity’s Calendar
Few events are as universal as the turn of the year — but not everyone rings in the new year on the same day. January 1st as the start of the civil year is a relatively recent convention, based on the Gregorian calendar, reformed by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582.
Before that, different cultures had their own turning points:
- The Romans originally started the year in March (hence the names September, October, November, and December, which mean 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th months)
- The Chinese New Year (Chūnjié) occurs between January and February, following the lunisolar calendar, and is one of the oldest festivals still celebrated worldwide
- The Jewish Rosh Hashanah marks the Hebrew New Year, usually in September or October
- Nowruz, celebrated by Persians and other peoples, coincides with the March equinox and has over 3,000 years of history
The Brazilian tradition of wearing white on New Year’s Eve and jumping seven waves in the sea has roots in Afro-Brazilian religions, especially in the worship of Iemanjá, queen of the sea. The New Year’s Eve celebration in Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro, has become one of the largest New Year events in the world.
Easter: Between the Sacred and the Chocolate Bunny
The Christian Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ and is considered the most important festival in the Christian calendar. Unlike Christmas, Easter does not have a fixed date: it occurs on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the March equinox (between March 22 and April 25).
The name “Easter” comes from the Hebrew Pesach, which celebrates the liberation of the Jews from Egypt — an event narrated in the book of Exodus. The Christian Easter was established in relation to this Jewish festival, as Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection occurred during the Pesach period.
And what about the Easter bunny and eggs? These symbols have Germanic origins and are associated with the spring goddess Eostre (or Ostara), whose rituals celebrated fertility and the renewal of nature. As Christianity spread across Europe, many elements of these pagan festivals were incorporated into the Christian calendar. Chocolate eggs, specifically, are an invention of the European confectionery industry in the 19th century.
What All These Dates Have in Common
Looking at so many different origins, a pattern emerges: celebratory dates are bridges between the past and the present. They carry layers of meaning — religious, political, cultural, and yes, commercial — that have accumulated over centuries.
Some conclusions worth noting:
- Almost no celebratory date has a single origin; all have undergone transformations over time
- Many were influenced by pagan rituals that predated the Christian calendar
- Governments and merchants played an active role in consolidating various dates throughout the 20th century
- Globalization has brought different calendars closer, but each culture still maintains its own unique celebrations
Understanding these origins is not an exercise in skepticism — it is, in fact, an invitation to curiosity. Every time we light a candle at Christmas, eat a chocolate egg at Easter, or send a message on Mother’s Day, we are participating in a tradition that connects generations, continents, and centuries of human history. And that, in itself, is reason to celebrate.
