Celebrating Cultures across the University of Birmingham
75th commemoration of the Liberation of Bergen-Belsen – one man’s story, Stanley’s story Stanley, Rachel Posaner’s grandfather, was part of the British forces involved in the liberation of Bergen-Belsen. Share his story. The annual National Commemoration of Yom Hashoah was planned for the 20th of April 2020 to mark the 75th anniversary of the end … Continue reading “Stanley’s Story”
VE Day (Victory in Europe Day) is a day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War Two of Nazi Germany’s unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday 8 May 1945. The British public is being urged to share stories and memories of those who lived through the war to mark this year’s VE … Continue reading “VE Day 8 May”
In many East Asian countries, Buddha’s birthday will be celebrated on 30 April. The day commemorates the birth of the Prince Siddhartha Gautama, later the Gautuma Buddha, and the founder of Buddhism. The day is an official holiday in Hong Kong, Macau and South Korea. In South Korea, the birthday of Buddha is celebrated according to … Continue reading “Buddha’s birthday 30 April”
UNESCO International Jazz Day 2020 will take place virtually this year with a global concert hosted by Herbie Hancock to feature performances by artists across the globe. Leading up to the virtual Global Concert, there will be a free series of educational masterclasses, children’s activities and discussions via web conference featuring renowned educators and jazz … Continue reading “UNESCO International Jazz Day 30 April”
27 April is an annual celebration of the day in 1994 when the first democratic non-racial election was held in South Africa. Of South Africa’s 22.7 million eligible voters, 19.7 million voted in the 1994 national election. Today, South Africa celebrates Freedom Day to mark the liberation of its country and its people from a long period of colonialism and White … Continue reading “27 April Freedom Day – South Africa”
Tales from The Decameron (1916) John William Waterhouse Tales from Giovanni Boccaccio’s ‘The Decameron’ are being currently being recounted [in synopsis form, with link to John Payne et al’s translation] on LCAHM’s Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/LCAHM/ In Florence in 1348 the whole city hunkered down and fought its way day by day through the worst pandemic Europe … Continue reading “Tales from The Decameron”
Hanami (flower viewing) is the Japanese traditional custom of enjoying the transient beauty of flowers; flowers (hana) are in this case almost always referring to those of the cherry (sakura) or, less frequently plum(ume) trees. Cherry trees generally bloom from the end of March to early May. The blossom forecast (桜前線, sakura-zensen) is announced each … Continue reading “Hanami”
Italy’s Liberation Day, also known as the Anniversary of the Liberation, Anniversary of the Resistance or simply 25 April, is a national Italian holiday commemorating the end of Nazi occupation of the country during World War Two and the victory of the Resistance. And for those who might like to practice their Italian: L’anniversario della liberazione d’Italia (anche chiamato festa della Liberazione, anniversario della … Continue reading “25 aprile Festa della Liberazione”
St George’s Day is celebrated on 23 April by various Christian churches and by several nations, kingdoms, countries and cities of which Saint George is the patron saint, including England and regions of Spain and Portugal in particular. From the early 15th century St. George’s Day was a major feast and national holiday in England … Continue reading “23 April St George’s Day”
Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (22 April 1870– 21 January 1924), better known as Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist who served as head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1924 and of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1924. Under his administration, Russia and then the wider Soviet Union became a one-party communist … Continue reading “Sesquicentennial anniversary of the birth of Lenin”
