Belgium Holidays - 1999

New Year's Day is the first day of the year. On the modern Gregorian calendar, it is celebrated on January 1.In Belgium the New Year's Day is called Nieuwjaarsdag. The natives of Belgium regard the New Year to be the perfect time to celebrate and have fun. The children save money for the New Year to buy decorated paper.The farmers in Belgium wish their animals on New Year and bless them. The preparations for the New Year in Belgium begin a few days ahead of New Year. Exchanging gifts on New Year form an important part of the celebrations. The people in Belgium feel happy in doing so and wish for the coming year to be full of joy and surprises.

Easter is a two day holiday in France and Belgium, covering Easter Sunday and Easter Monday.According to Christian scripture, Jesus was resurrected from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. Some Christians celebrate this resurrection on Easter Day or Easter Sunday (also Resurrection Day or Resurrection Sunday), two days after Good Friday and three days after Maundy Thursday. Church bells are silent as a sign of mourning for one or more days before Easter in Belgium. This has led to an Easter tradition that says the bells fly out of their steeples to go to Rome (explaining their silence), and return on Easter morning bringing both colored eggs and hollow chocolate shaped like eggs or rabbits.

Easter Monday is the day after Easter Sunday and is celebrated as a holiday in some largely Christian cultures, especially Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox cultures. Easter Monday in the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar is the second day of the octave of Easter Week. Easter is a two day holiday in France and Belgium, covering Easter Sunday and Easter Monday.

Labour Day or Labor Day is an annual holiday to celebrate the economic and social achievements of workers. Labour Day has its origins in the labour union movement, specifically the eight-hour day movement, which advocated eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation, and eight hours for rest.

Ascension Day is the 40th day of Easter. It occurs 39 days after Easter Sunday. It is a Christian holiday that commemorates Jesus Christ's ascension into heaven according to Christian belief. Government offices, schools, banks and many businesses are usually closed.

Pentecost is one of the prominent feasts in the Christian liturgical year commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of Christ after the Resurrection. The feast is also called Whitsunday especially in the United Kingdom. Pentecost is celebrated seven wee.ks (50 days) after Easter Sunday, hence its name. Pentecost falls on the tenth day after Ascension Thursday.

National Day is celebrated on July 21. Its commemorates the day on which Leopold I took the constitutional oath as the first King of Belgium, on July 21st 1831.Belgium is an ancient and yet still young nation. Belgians were first mentioned about 2,000 years ago (by Julius Caesar in his book on the Gallic Wars).The independant State of Belgium was born on October 4, 1830.

The feast day of the Assumption of Mary, also known as Assumption Day, celebrates the day that the Virgin Mary ascended into Heaven following her death, according to popular Christian belief. It is the principal feast day of the Virgin Mother. Assumption Day is a public holiday in Belgium.

All Saints' Day is a celebration of all Christian saints, particularly those who have no special feast days of their own, in many Roman Catholic, Anglican and Protestant churches. In many western churches it is annually held November 1 and in many eastern churches it is celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost.In countries such as Belgium, Hungary and Italy people bring flowers to the graves of dead relatives. Halloween's festivities began in great cities such as Brussels, Liege, etc. Small cities followed and villages have now also their Halloween parade.

Armistice Day (also known as Remembrance Day) is on November 11 and commemorates the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany.The date was declared a national holiday in many allied nations, to commemorate those members of the armed forces who were killed during war.11th November is a public holiday in Belgium. A number of commemorative events are held in Ieper (Ypres) to mark the anniversary of Armistice Day on 11th November 1918.

Christmas is considered as the arrival of holiday season. Christmas gifts are one of their major attractions. Homemade Christmas gifts are one of the best ways to show your love. You can also send beautiful Christmas greeting cards to your loved ones. People decorate their homes with beautiful Christmas tree. Bells, stars, candies are also added on the Christmas tree to make it more attractive. During Christmas celebrations, people sing Christmas carols. Christmas recipes are another major attraction of Christmas celebrations.During Christmas celebrations, there are two Santa Claus figures in Belgium. One is St. Nicholas and other is Pere Noel. St. Nicholas pays visit to Waloon language speaking people during Christmas celebrations. It is quite interesting to know that St. Nicholas visits twice during Christmas celebrations.