Mother’s Day in the United States is recognized as a day to celebrate our mothers and all that they do and have done for us. When considering the commercial aspect of the holiday today, it is fun to take a look back and discover the way that it all started.

Greeks and Romans

The history of Mothers Day celebrations date back to Greece as many of our holidays and traditions do. The Greeks had an annual spring festival that was dedicated to the maternal goddesses. This was used as a celebration to honor the wife of Cronus, Rhea, who was the mother of many gods and goddesses found in Greek mythology.

The Ancient Romans also held a festival in the spring that was called Hilaria and was dedicated to the mother goddess, Cybele. These ceremonies began approximately 250 years prior to Christ being born. Hilaria began on the 15th of March and lasted for a period of three days. During that time there were games, masquerades, and parades held.

Mothering Sunday

In the 1600s in England a holiday known as Mothering Sunday would be celebrated each year. The celebration took place on the last Sunday of Lent and was held in honor of mothers. A prayer service was held to honor the Virgin Mary and then the children would give their own mothers flowers and small gifts. This yearly celebration almost completely died out, but the holiday started to be celebrated once again after WWII. The serviceman from America brought the custom back to England and the commercial enterprises of the country began to use the occasion to generate sales.

Julia Howe and Anna Jarvis

In 1872, the idea to have a celebration of mothers in the United States was recommended by Julia Howe. Howe was a poet, writer, and an activist. She is most well known for her song from the civil war, “Battle Hymn of the Republic.” She suggested that a celebration of mothers should be held on the second of June and wrote many articles championing the cause. While her idea spread, it was replaced by the current celebration in May that we have today.

Anna Jarvis is considered to be the founder of Mother’s Day in the United States. Anna Jarvis was single and did not have any children, but came up with the idea for Mothers Day from her mom, Anna Marie. Her mother expressed her desire that there should be a day to celebrate mothers. Anna never forgot what her mother had said and made the decision to fulfill her mother’s wishes.

She began by sending carnations to a church service in West Virginia in honor of her mother. She then began to write letters to individuals in powerful positions to lobby an official declaration of a day to celebrate mothers. By 1911, Mother’s Day was celebrated throughout the United States and in 1914 on May 8th, President Woodrow Wilson designated the second Sunday of every may as Mother’s Day.

Present Day Mother’s Day Celebrations

There are several countries throughout the world that celebrate Mother’s Day today. They include Belgium, Japan, China, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Italy, Finland, Denmark, India, the United Kingdom, and of course the United States. The holiday is quite popular and has become quite commercialized. Cards, flowers, and other small gifts are popular on this day.