Poland’s Day of Remembrance

November 1st, All Saints Day, is Poland’s Day of Remembrance. It is a national holiday and throughout Poland, families travel to rural and city cemeteries to honor those who have died. Preparations begin with the gathering of buckets, brooms, cleaning supplies, some garden tools and most importantly, flowers and votive candles for the graves. Refreshments are also taken for it will be a long day.

10 Rules When Displaying The U.S. Flag

While every American citizen should know the proper methods of handling and displaying “Old Glory”, as a timely reminder we offer the following:

Independence Days in October

The day of Independence for a nation is one of great celebration, pride and culture. Yesterday the small African Kingdom of Lesotho celebrated its Independence. Two days from now it will be Croatia’s turn to celebrate. In fact, 9 nations will toast their Independence celebrations in the month of October!
Which countries are we talking about? In true Spartan Opinion tradition we compiled a list of all the nations celebrating this month. How many counties did you know about ?

Heritage Day Celebration in South Africa

Nobel Prize nobel prize laureate Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu has called it the Rainbow Nation for the rich variety of cultures it shelters. African blacks, whites, coloureds, Indian and Asian sum up the demographics, out of which the African blacks make up 80% of the population.

World Culture Spotlight: Mexican Independence Day

The 16th of September is Mexican Independence day or as they say in Spanish, El Grito de Independencia!

The day of Independence of a Nation is one of great pride and celebration. In Mexico, when the 16 de Septiembre (16th of September) comes around, one cannot miss the joy of its people. You will see it from the national colors that blanket the already vibrant landscapes, smell it from the fresh food intoxicating the air and hear it from smiling faces on their way to celebration parties.

Independence Day in September

The day of Independence for a nation is one of great celebration, pride and culture. Yesterday Brazil celebrated its independence from Portugal. Tomorrow North Korea and Bulgaria will be toasting in celebration for their national holiday. In fact, 20 nations are celebrating in the month of September.
In true Spartan Opinion tradition we have once again compiled a list of all the nations celebrating this month. How many of the following celebrations were you aware of ?

Dozynki: The Harvest Celebration

In August and September, the harvesting of wheat and other grains begins in Poland. After enduring the vagaries of weather and months of continuous labor, workers are ready to celebrate the harvesting of an abundant crop. The Polish word dozynki means to reap; to mow, so inevitably the harvesting celebration became known as Dozynki.

Cultural Website Spotlight: Polishsite.us

Spartan Opinion puts forth a significant effort to spread knowledge about world culture to the masses. In the spirit of that pursuit I stumbled upon a fantastic website that is all about the Polish Culture, called polishsite.us

TSO Culture Trivia: World Celebrations In September

This week’s TSO trivia focuses on celebrations from around the world in the month of September. How well do you know holidays from around the world?

KAPLICZKI : The Wayside Shrines of Poland

Wayside shrines have always been prevalent in Poland. Before Poland became a nation the early Slavic tribes, who occupied the area, practiced a Naturalistic religion with a hierarchy of gods, both good and evil.