May Day 2014 Today, Twitter Flooded With Springtime Celebrations
May Day arrives each year on May 1 with people everywhere celebrating the official arrival of springtime, and this year is no exception.
After a harsh winter ravaged the parts of the U.S., Facebook and Twitter were flooded with users posting about their May Day celebrations on Thursday. However, many people are wondering what May Day commemorates.
May Day officially rings in the start of spring and the coming of warmer temperatures. The day is considered a public holiday in many cultures in the Northern Hemisphere where many traditional events and activities are observed. For example, in the U.S. as well as the U.K., May Day customs include children dancing and singing around a maypole, which has ribbons tied to it.
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The maypole is a longstanding tradition that originated in Europe where is it known as a May Tree, as real trees are used instead of poles. It is said that many villages would compete with one another for the tallest May Tree.
On May Day in Ireland and Scotland, a festival known as Beltane is held honoring the beginning of summer and open pasturing for cattle. Activities at Beltane also include Maypole dances and cutting of green boughs and flowers, according to Britannica.com.
Also on May Day, many towns select a May queen and hang baskets on doorknobs of homes that contain sweets and flowers. This year, Martha Stewart Living shared a how-to on May Day baskets.
"Happy May Day! Learn how to make a May Day basket in 5 simple steps," the magazine posted to Twitter on Thursday.
Other May Day revelers shared photos such as flowering trees and tulips as "May Day" became a trending topic on Twitter. Actress Victoria Justice also joined in on the fun, posting, "MAY DAY MAY DAY! Hehe. It's the 1st of an exciting beautiful new month. Let's make is awesome!"
Meanwhile, the holiday marks one of the year's four cross-quarter days, or day that falls more or less midway between an equinox and solstice. In this case, the it is between the March and June soltice. Other cross-quarter holidays include Groundhog Day and Halloween.
May Day also marks International Worker's Day as well as Law Day in the U.S.
