Mother's Day

The earliest traces of this celebration go back to Ancient Greece. In fact, the first to dedicate a day to mothers were the Greeks and the Romans, who held a springtime ceremony each year in honor of Rhea and Cybele, the mother goddesses of the Gods. Rhea is best known as the mother of Zeus and Poseidon and is associated with motherhood.

Later, in the Middle Ages, it’s possible that early Christians venerated the Virgin Mary by assimilating the cults of these pagan goddesses. In this devout era, it was customary to dedicate spring—especially the month of May—to Mary, the mother of Jesus.

In the 15th century, the English celebrated Mothering Sunday, first at the beginning of Lent and then on the fourth Sunday of Lent.

In 1907, the United States developed the modern Mother’s Day as we know it today by establishing Mother’s Day in memory of the mother of schoolteacher Anna Jarvis. On May 12, 1907, two years after her mother’s passing and to honor her, she launched a campaign to create an official Mother’s Day. Her efforts paid off in 1914 when the U.S. government approved it. Every year since, the second Sunday of May has been a public holiday in the United States.

In Europe, the origin of Mother’s Day as we know it today can be linked to World War II. When American troops arrived in France in April 1917, the tradition of Mother’s Day became part of French culture. A “Mother’s Day” was held in some cities after the war to honor women who lost children in combat. Later, when it came time to repopulate France, a “day for mothers of large families” was introduced to encourage women to have more children.