Holidays and traditions in Great Britain and Belarus

What are the major holidays in Great Britain and which is the favorite one?

There are 8 public holidays or bank holidays in a year in Great Britain. They are: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, Easter Monday, May Day, Spring Bank Holiday and Late Summer Bank Holiday. Public Holidays in Great Britain are called bank holidays because banks as well as most of offices and shops are closed. Christmas is the most popular holiday. Children enjoy receiving presents which are traditionally put into the stocking. Most houses are decorated with holly and there is usually a Christmas tree in the corner of the living room. The traditional Christmas dinner includes roast turkey or goose with potatoes, peas and carrots and pudding for dessert. An important part of Christmas is carol singing.

What can you tell me about your favorite holiday in Belarus?

Many great holidays and anniversaries are celebrated in our country. On the 1^st of May there is May Day-the holiday of spring and labor. On the 8^th of March there is Women’s Day. We also celebrate the Day of Independence of Belarus on the 3^rd of July and Victory Day on the 9^th of May. Nowadays people celebrate some religious holidays such as Christmas and Easter. But my favorite holiday is New Year’s Day. It’s a really wonderful time of the year. People get ready for this day long before it. They buy New Year trees and decorate them. Children and even grown-ups wait for New Year’s Eve because they believe that all their wishes come true on that day.

Do you know any old Belarusian customs?

Let me tell you a few words about Kalyady. During this holiday groups of merry young boys and girls go from house to house in Belarusian villages and towns. They dress as animals and carry the goat’s head on a stick. Hosts usually give them tasty things and thank them for well-wishing and carol-singing. Kalyady is the time when special food is cooked. For example “ Kalyaddaya Kuttzya” is a sort of porridge which is believed to protect people. The main idea of this holiday is to get rid of everything bad in one’s life and to begin a new life cycle with optimism.

Youth and Society.

Belarusian Republican Youth Union

The Belarusian Republican Youth Union is a youth organization in Belarus. Its goals are to promote patriotism and to instill moral values into the youth of Belarus, using activities such as camping, sporting events and visiting memorials. The BRSM is the largest youth group in Belarus and is supported by the Belarusian government.

The BRSM was created on 6 September 2002, after the merger of two Belarusian youth organizations, the Belarusian Youth Union and the Belarusian Patriotic Youth Union.

The BRSM national headquarters is located in Minsk, the national capital of Belarus. Each voblast of Belarus—Minsk, Brest, Vitsebsk, Homiel, Grodno and Mogilev—has its own branches of the BRSM. The BRSM has estimated that it has 6803 branches located inside Belarus.

The national leadership of the BRSM is controlled by the central committee, which is headed by the first secretary of the central committee.The current first secretary is Leonid Kovalev

The BRSM has two official symbols: an emblem and a flag. The emblem, which is based on the Komsomol badge and modeled on the Belarusian national flag, has a red bar bearing the initials of the BRSM, written in gold in Cyrillic, over a green bar bearing a golden olive branch.The flag of the BRSM has the same elements as the emblem, but the reverse of the flag bears the organization's full name in gold (in Russian) in the red section, with the green section unemblazoned.

In order to join the BRSM, the applicant must be between the ages of 14 and 31 and must send a photo of him or herself. If the applicant is between the ages of 14 and 16 written permission from a parent or legal guardian must be granted. A person must also pay a one-time fee of 1,400 Belarusian rubles and a mid-year fee to continue membership in the BRSM.

Most of the BRSM's activities are similar to those that were performed by the Soviet Komsomol. The main activities of the BRSM involve the promotion of Belarusian patriotism. This is accomplished by participating in wreath-laying ceremonies at various memorials around the country. BRSM members also pass out flowers to veterans of the Great Patriotic War (World War II) to honor their service during the national holiday Den Pobedy (Day of Victory). Both the memorial visits and the flowers for the veterans give BRSM members an idea of what sacrifices their ancestors made. During other national holidays, the BRSM passes out a ribbon that resembles the national flag of Belarus, to be worn on a shirt or jacket. This program, along with other events, is part of its "For Belarus!" (Belarussian: За Беларусь!) campaign.^[12]

The BRSM participates in outdoor activities and sports, including football, running, swimming and hockey. Some of these athletic events involve different groups from inside Belarus or from neighboring countries, such as Russia, Ukraine or Latvia. BRSM members also participate in competitions amongst themselves or with other foreign groups that are similar to the BRSM.

The main activities of the BRSM involve the promotion of Belarusian patriotism. This is accomplished by participating in wreath-laying ceremonies at various memorials around the country. BRSM members also pass out flowers to veterans of the Geat Patriotic War to honour their service during the national holiday (Day of Victory). The brsm participates in outdoor activities and sports, including football, running, swimming and hockey. Some of these athletic events involve different groups from inside Belarus or from neighbouring countries, such as Russia, Ukraine or Latvia. BRSM organizes student construction brigades, a practice also originated in the Soviet Union.