ANSWERS to Around the World Quiz!

1. c) Costa Rica
Christmas decorations in Costa Rica consist of bright tropical flowers. Wild orchids are gathered from the jungle areas to decorate the portal (manger scene) in the home. Wreaths are popular, though they are not made from pine or holly. Instead Costa Ricans use cypress leaves and red coffee berries. Following Midnight Mass, there is a festive meal of tamales and other local dishes.
Source: http://www.cuentoseningles.com.ar/articles/features/christmas.html AND
http://www.homestead.com/santalives1/christmasaroundworld.html

2. c) 8
Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, is a celebration of the victory of the Maccabees and the rededication of the Jerusalem Temple. When the Jews were preparing to rededicate the Temple, they only found enough oil for the Temple lamp for one day. According to legend, the oil lasted for eight days. The lighting of candles for eight consecutive nights has become the traditional way to celebrate Hanukkah. Every year between the end of November and the end of December, Jewish people around the world celebrate this holiday.

3. a) Hinduism
The sound of firecrackers announces the start of the celebration of Diwali (or Deepawali or Deepavali). Homes are decorated, sweets are eaten, and thousands of lamps are lit. Of all the festivals celebrated in India, Diwali is by far the most glamorous and important. The ancient story of how Diwali evolved into such a widely celebrated festival is different in various regions and states of India. In the north, particularly in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Bihar and the surrounding areas, Diwali is the day when King Rama’s coronation was celebrated in Ayodhya after his epic war with Ravana, the demon king of Lanka. By order of the royal families of Ayodhya and Mithila, the cities and far-flung boundaries of these kingdoms were lit up with rows of lamps, glittering on dark nights to welcome home King Rama after 14 years of exile.
Source: http://www.ruchiskitchen.com/festivals/deeplegend.htm

4. d) Ramadan
During this holy time, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar year, Muslims do not eat, drink, or smoke from sunrise to sunset for an entire month. Muslims see Ramadan as a time for cleansing and renewing the body and spirit, and refocusing on the worship of Allah. At the end of Ramadan, each Muslim family gives a special donation of food to the poor, so that everyone can have a holiday meal and participate in the celebration of Eid al-Fitr (“The Festival of Fast-Breaking”). On the day of Eid, Muslims gather early in the morning in outdoor locations or mosques for the Eid prayer. After the prayer, Muslims usually visit family and friends, give gifts (especially to children), and make phone calls to distant relatives to give well-wishes for the holiday (“Eid Mubarak!”).

5. b) Dog
There are 12 animals in the Chinese calendar, and each year is designated with an animal according to a repeating cycle: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Boar. Chinese New Year starts with the New Moon on the first day of the new year and ends on the full moon 15 days later. The 15th day of the new year is called the Lantern Festival, which is celebrated at night with lantern displays and children carrying lanterns in a parade.
Source: http://www.123chinesenewyear.com/chinesenewyear/ritual

6. d) Thailand
The Songkran Festival, April 12-15, is the traditional Thai New Year. This is the time for Thais to pay homage to Buddha images, clean their houses, and sprinkle water on their elders in a show of respect. Parades feature huge statues of Buddha that spray water on passersby. Anyone who ventures out on the streets is likely to get a thorough dousing of water, all in good fun, but also quite welcome at the peak of the hot season. People also release fish into rivers as an act of kindness.
Source: http://www.sriwittayapaknam.ac.th/songkran.html

7. b) Grafton, West Virginia
The International Mother’s Day Shrine built in Grafton was the site of the first unofficial Mother’s Day celebration as created by Anna Jarvis, May 10, 1907. Mother’s Day in Britain or Mothering Sunday came to be celebrated again after World War II, when American servicemen introduced the custom and other commercial enterprises. The second Sunday in May is Mother’s Day not only in the United States, but also in other countries including Denmark, Finland, Italy, Turkey, Australia, and Belgium. By the end of Anna Jarvis’ life, Mother’s Day was celebrated in more than 40 countries.
Source: http://womenshistory.about.com/od/mothersday

8. d) Camping and barbeque and celebrating twice a year
Sometimes the traditional dinner is cooked on the barbecue outside and may include a whole variety of typical Kiwi treats, such as lamb chops, along with the usual Christmas fare. Because so many people from the Northern hemisphere now live in New Zealand, it has become the tradition to have two Christmases, one on the 25th of December and the other in July, which is mid-winter. Many hotels, restaurants and homes put on the full Christmas celebration, complete with tree, gifts and of course all the foods which were just too heavy to serve in the heat of summer.

9. a) Each April 23, Turkey celebrates Çocuk Bayrami, or Children’s Day
Turkish leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk declared the holiday in 1920, as Turkey was becoming an independent nation after the fall of the Ottoman Empire, to illustrate that children were the future of the new nation. Children all over Turkey dress up in special outfits or the national costume for Çocuk Bayrami. Boys who dress in the national costume typically wear baggy silk pants, a colorful vest, a white shirt and a sequined hat, called a tepelik. Girls wear a long colorful gown called a kaftan and an ornate veil. Many children perform in plays or musicals. The centerpiece of Çocuk Bayrami takes place in Turkey’s capital, Ankara, where children from all over the world sing and dance in a spectacular pageant.
Source: http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0909585.html

10. c) German settlers brought the tradition to the United States in the 18th century
The Easter Basket tradition has its roots in the German folklore of the Easter Hare. Germans believed a white hare would leave brightly colored eggs for all good children on Easter morning. By the 19th century in the U.S., the Easter hare had become the Easter bunny delighting children with baskets of eggs, chocolates, candy, jelly beans and other gifts on Easter morning.
Source: http://www.candyusa.org/Media/Seasonal/Easter/pr_2005.asp

Reprinted with permission from World View. World View is a public service program of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill providing professional development, outreach, and curriculum development for K-12 and community college educators. World View helps educators prepare students to succeed in an interconnected world by integrating global studies into every area of the curriculum, supporting English as a Second Language and other programs for newly arrived immigrant students, and promoting foreign language training. For more information, please visit the World View website at: www.unc.edu/world/

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