Romania Edition
Looking Back at 1900 Day leads today's complete edition for Romania.
Daily Edition
Official observances, world days, local context, and everyday celebrations for people who need something worth reading, sharing, or talking about today.
Bengal is the heart of the nationalist movement. The British partition of Bengal in 1905 has inflamed Hindu-Muslim tensions. The jute mills of Calcutta employ thousands. The countryside is poor and getting poorer. The monsoon still decides who eats and who does not.
The most beloved tradition in Romania, celebrated on March 1st with the giving of a martenisor : a small red and white amulet worn on the chest. The martenisor is made from a red and white string with a small charm (a flower, a heart, or a horseshoe), and the tradition is to give it to every woman in your life: your mother, your wife, your daughter, and your colleagues. The martenisor is not just a gift : it is a symbol of spring, and the belief is that wearing it will bring good luck, good health, and a good harvest. The tradition is to wear the martenisor for the entire month of March, and then to tie it to a blossoming tree. The red and white threads symbolize the intertwining of winter and summer, and the legend says that the sun was once held captive by a dragon, and a brave young man freed it : the red is his blood, the white is the snow that melted.