January 1 is usually accepted as “New Year’s Day”.
Some countries celebrate it as a holiday.
December 31 is “New Year’s Eve”.
Some sing “Auld Lang Syne” to usher in the New Year.
Old Calendars
The old Roman Calendar has only 10 months starting with March So, March signified the New Year
Some civilizations celebrate Vernal equinox or First Day of Spring e.g. Persian New Year So, the New Year will fall around 20th – 22nd March
Lunar New Year
Falls around end of January or beginning of February
Celebrated by Chinese and Vietnamese
Luni-solar New Year
Falls in mid-April
Celebrated by Burmese / Myanmar, Thai, Cambodia, Laos
Burmese New Year followsThingyan (which means change) Maha Thingyan means Great Change (from one year to the next). Cula Thingyan means Small Change (from one month/yathi to another month/yathi)
3 or 4 days of Thingyan (also known as Water Throwing Festival)
Miscellaneous
New Year of the indigenous people e.g. Karen New Year
8th month of the old Roman calendar. Oct means Eight.
10th month of the Gregorian calendar.
It has 31 days.
October 1
Dr. Aung Gyi
Dr. Aung Gyi’s birthday
U Myo Myint Sein
U Myo Myint Sein’s birthday
October 2
U Ba Than
U Ba Than’s birthday. Says offered soon dana for his birthday on or around October 2 at Yaw Sayadaw’s Kyaung. Sayas, former students and friends were invited to the soon kway. 69ers usually offered Garawa at Sayagyi’s place on or around his birthday.
Mini-gathering put on hold due to pandemic in 2020 & 2021. Zoom meetings were held on sayas’s birthday.
In 2020, Saya received 90th Birthday Present. Photo Album Book was compiled by U Tin Htoon and U Htaik San (Henry Kao). DHL Delivery was paid by Saya U Tin Htut
In 2021, Saya received a Photo Card present by U Tin Htoon
October 5
International Teachers’ Day
Celebrated annually since October 5, 1994
Some countries have local Teachers’ Day
Halloween
October 31 (i.e. the day before “All Saint’s Day” which falls on November 1).
Celebrated with “Trick or Treat” by the children and optional “Halloween Costume Party” by young and old adults.
End of Buddhist Lent
Full Moon Day of Thadinkyut usually falls in October.
Phaung daw-u festival (in Inle Lake) is held on the Full Moon Day of Thadinkyut.
Deepavali / Diwali
Celebrated by the Hindus around October.
Known as the “Festival of Lights”.
October Revolution
Due to differences in Julian & Gregorian calendars, the Bolshevik Revolution is wrongly referred to as the “October Revolution”.
Festivals
Ocktoberfest is a festival held in October.
The Annual Pumpkin Festival with the bragging rights to the “heaviest” Pumpkin is held along Highway 92 in Half Moon Bay in Northern California. The traffic is really bad in the area for most of October. The 7-mile strip takes an hour or more during the Festival period.
October 2000
The First RIT Grand Reunion and Saya Pu Zaw Pwe (SPZP-2000) was held in October 2000.
I wrote 64 “Countdown to the Reunion” and 36 “Post Reunion” (news & articles) for SPZP-2000 in my Newsletter and the ex-rit.org website.
I wrote a poem “SAYA PU ZAW PWE”. It was published in the Commemorative Issue of “RIT Alumni Newsletter”.
Newsletter
October 2021
In October 2021, Covid-19 vaccines were offered. Many had at least one dose. Some had two or three doses (including Booster). However, there were mutations & variations of Covid spreading around the globe.
Phaungdaw-u
Working People’s Daily (WPD) used to publish Supplements.
I wrote “Phaungdaw-u Festival” poem for the Thadinkyut Supplement.
Phaung Daw-u Festival (Poem by Hla Min)
Phaung Daw-u, oh Burma’s grandeur Can truly make our hearts sublime Its mystic charm and rhyme-less splendor Have firmly stood the test of time
It lies deep in the heart of people It gives them courage and inspiration No wonder this festival has no equal It promises joy and veneration
On board the r so scintillating Stood the four images of Lord Buddha For the Noble Truth are we vindicating? What lies deep under the completed tour?
But one statue was left behind Because in writings we do find That should it ever leave the shrine There will be thunder and storm Thus a happy reunion on the morn of the full moon of Thadinkyut
From floating islands the leg rowers came To take part in the race With their muscular frame, with might and main Their oars flashing at a rapid pace
Festivities last all night long Dances to the company of ozi and gong Oh, prayers that fill the cool evening air May loving kindness prevail everywhere
Early civilizations celebrate seasonal changes such as the Winter Solstice and the Vernal Equinox.
Stonehenge, Yule Tide, and the sighting of Sirius (in conjunction with the floods of River Nile) have fascinated a wide spectrum of people.
December
December used to be the 10th (and not the 12th and last) month as implied by “Dec”. It has its fair share of religious and social events. It is time for some companies to have the annual shut down. It is time for classic and new stories about Christmas.
‘White Christmas” by Bing Crosby was the best selling single for many years.
“Blue Christmas” by Elvis Presley has been digitally manipulated to feature a duet with Lisa Marie.
Ma Khin Khin Kyu (Ann, A67) e-mailed me with a YouTube link to “iPhones & IPads sending Merry Christmas”.
Thanks to Sayas and alums for sending e-greetings.
Feedback
Roman Year
U Zaw Min (Standing 2nd from Right)
Dear Ko HM,
Happy holidays to you and your family.
Keep up your good work. We never cease to learn something new from our writings.
Latest one being December from the Latin “Dec” for December. To quote a Burmese saying, “Tha De Ma Mu, Gu Ma Myin”. It never crossed my mind to connect the Latin ‘Dec’ for 10 to December. Now that you got me thinking, Latin Sept (7), Oct (8) and Nov (9) stood for September, October and November.
I have read that the Roman year used to start in March (spring time), when the Roman Senate completed the budget for the year and the legions were sent out to fight the enemy. Someone got the bright idea to send the legions out in January to catch the barbarians in their winter camps. The senate completed the budget by January so that the legions could march out during the winter and January became the start of the year.
It is named after Janus, two-faced God to symbolizetwo tasks : bid farewell to the old year and usher in the new year
It has 31 days.
Events
January 1
New Year’s Day (Start of the New Year). For most people, it is a holiday. In most parts of the world, New Year’s Eve is celebrated on 31st December.
Annual Soon Kyway at Panditarama (Shwe Taung Gone) by Ye Than (Winner Inn)
Birthday Soon Kyway by Ye Than
Peasant’s Day in the Union of Burma. It was a holiday. It was moved to 2nd March by the Revolutionary Council.
Sometimes : Lunar (Chinese) New Year
Sometimes : Sar So Daw Nay
January 4
Burma gained Independence on January 4, 1948 at 4:20AM
Grapevine : Burma was given a choice: “January 4th or January 6th”
In Lighter Vein : A British Official said, “We would have to get up early once on January 4, 1948. The Burmese will have to get up early January 4th of the following years.”
Unsolved Mystery : Who chose 4:20AM? Why?
Third Monday in USA
Martin Luther King’s Day
Birthdays
Saya U Than Lwin (Eric Lwin, my cousin uncle, GBNF) celebrated his birthday on January 1st.
Dr. Khin Kyi Nyunt (Cherry Tin Gyi, GBNF) and her elder Dr. Khin Tun (Peter Tin U, GBNF) celebrated their birthdays together on or around January 12. They offer requisites to the monks at Chan Myei Yeik Tha.
Ma Cherry’s 87th Birthday with family and friends (Jan 12, 2018)
Independence Day Regatta at Kandawgyi in 1948
U Tin U, Dr. Pe Nyun (Dick San Pe), Dr. Pe Thein (Tom San Pe) and Bobby Tin rowed for RUBC against the Burmese Laung at the Independence Day Regatta.
A solar calendar is based on the orbit of the earth around the sun. Typically, it takes 365.2422 solar days to complete the orbit. A leap year attempts to adjust the calendar by adding an extra day every four years.
A lunar calendar is based on the orbit of the moon around the earth. Typically, it takes 29.6 days to complete a cycle.
A luni-solar calendar is a “hybrid” calendar that uses “lunar” month and “solar” year. The calendars used by Chinese and Vietnamese have 12 months in a year and an extra month in the year in which the Lunar and Solar Calendars are synchronized. The CNY (Chinese New Year) and Tet (Vietnamese New Year) occur in late January or early February.
Julian Calendar Leap year : if a year is divisible by 4
Gregorian Calendar Leap year : if a Century year is divisible by 400 Other years if divisible by 4
Burmese Calendar The Burmese use a Luni-Solar-Socio-Religious Calendar. It is used for social and religious events. There are 12 lunar months with a total of 355 days in a Common Burmese Year. There is a difference of 10 days with a Common Year in the Gregorian Calendar. An inter-calary month named “Second Waso” is usually added every three years to sync again with the Solar Calendar. It is known as “Wah Htutt”. If needed, an additional day is added in “Wah Gyi Htutt”.
Feb 13 : Children’s Day (Bogyoke Aung San’s birthday)
Feb 14 : Valentine’s Day
US Presidents’ Day
Occasionally : Lunar New Year
Occasionally : Full Moon Day of Tabodwe — Htamane Pwe & [Buddha’s] Exhortation Day
March
Mar 2 : Peasant’s Day was moved from Jan 1 in order to celebrate the Coup D’eat
Phone Maw Day
Burma’s Human Rights Day (celebrated by Berkeley)
Mar 27 : Resistance Day was renamed as Armed Forces Day
First Day of Spring : Persian New Year
April
Thingyan : Three or four days of Water Festival
Myanmar New Year
May
May 1 : May Day in some countries
May 5 : Cinco de Mayo
Mother’s Day in the US
June
Jun 6 : D Day
Jun 6 : Ah Loke Thamar Ah Yay Ah Khinn
Father’s Day in the US
July
Jul 4 : Independence Day in the US
Jul 7 : Students’ protest that was brutally crushed
Jul 8 : Demolition of the Rangoon University Student’s Union
Jul 19 : Arzani Nay
Apollo 11 landed in Tranquility Bay on the Moon in July 1969
My poem “Men on the Moon” was sent to NASA via USIS. A copy was published in the Guardian.
August
8-8-88 : start of a long struggle to restore Democracy in Myanmar
Several birthdays in my extended family
September
Crushing the hopes of Multi-party Democracy
Occasionally : End of Burmese Buddhist Lent
October
Occasionally : End of Burmese Buddhist Lent (Thadinkyut)
“Deepavali” or “Diwali” celebrations are also celebrated around October. It is known as the “Festival of Lights”.
“Halloween” occurs every year on October 31 with “Trick or
Treat” by the children and [optional] “Halloween Costume Party” by young and old adults.
November
Elections in the US (Local races & Resolutions every year, House of Representatives every two years, One third of Senators every two years, President every four years)
Nov 22 : JFK assassinated (Conspiracy Theory survives)
Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday in the US
December
U Thant Ah Yay Ah Khinn : dark day in the history of Burma
Apollo 8 orbited the Moon in December 1968
Dec 25 : Christmas
Dec 31 : New Year’s Eve
Grapevine says that some holy days are preceded by some “fun events”.
Academic calendar: It may span two years. For example, the Class of 1958 has to attend classes in 1957 and 1958.
Civil calendar : It is used for Civil or Administrative purposes. It is also used for general purpose by people and organizations
Early Roman calendar : It covered only 10 months. September, October, November and December were 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th months. Note that “Sept” stands for 7, “Oct” for 8, “Nov” for 9, and “Dec” for 10.
Fiscal calendar : Usually has four Quarters: Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4
Gregorian calendar : Named after Pope Gregory. It has “leap year” correction for century years. A century year is considered a leap year if it is divisible by 400. e.g. 1900 is not a leap year, but 2000 is a leap year
Julian calendar : Named after Julius Caesar. It is a revised Roman calendar with 12 months. December is the 12th month.
Lunar calendar : It is based on the monthly cycles of the moon. A lunar year usually has 355 days. Some lunar calendars are “pure” (e.g. Islamic calendar). Some lunar calendars are luni-solar calendars.
Luni-solar calendar : It syncs up with the solar calendar by adding a month every three years.
Mayan calendar : It is a “long count” calendar used by the Mayan civilization. It is made up of 260 days (13 x 20 day group). nThe great cycle used by the calendar ended in December 2012 causing doomsday proponents to raise alarm about the “end of the world”.
Myanmar calendar : It is a luni-solar, socio-religious calendar. Many festivals are celebrated on the Full Moon day of selected months (e.g. Kason)The extra month used for synchronization is called “Second Waso”.
Religious calendar : It is used to celebrate religious events. The Islamic calendar is a purely lunar calendar. Hence, the holy month of Ramadan falls in different months of the Gregorian calendar.
Solar calendar : A solar year usually has 365 days. It takes about 365.2422 days for the earth to orbit the sun. The difference is adjusted by adding a day to February in a leap year.
Shortest month. It has 28 days in a Common Year and 29 days in a Leap Year.
Burma/Myanmar
February 12
Pyidaungsu Nay (ပြည်ထောင်စုနေ့ Union Day) is a public holiday in the Union of Burma. It commemorates the signing of the Pinlong Sar Choke (ပင်လုံစာချုပ် Panglong Agreement) on February 12, 1947.
Poem
Wrote a poem “Our Unity” with the pen name Maung Hlaing Phyo for publication in the Working People’s Daily. Received K15 for the poem.
February 13
Bogyoke Aung San was born on February 13, 1915.
Zartar name : Htain Lin
Changed name to rhyme with that of Aung Than (his elder brother).
Centennial celebrations for Bogyoke were held in 2015.
February 13 is also as Khalay Myar Nay (Children’s Day).
Tabodwe Festival
The Full Moon of Tabodwe often falls in February. Two celebrations are held.
Htamane Pwe (ထမနဲပွဲ Sticky Rice Festival)
Ovada Partimauk Day (ဩဝါဒပါတိမောက်Exhortation)
USA
February 14
Valentine’s Day (Chit Thu Myar Nay ချစ်သူများနေ့) is not a public holiday
Many people send greeting cards and presents.
Presidents’ Day
In the early days, there were two holidays. One to celebrate George Washington’s birthday. Another to celebrate Abraham Lincoln’s birthday.
Later a single holiday in February to honor all US Presidents was proposed.
Some states continue to celebrate the birthdays of Washington and Lincoln.
Canada
“Family Day” (holiday) is observed on the 2nd Monday of February in Ontario.
Family Day is observed on the 3rd Monday of February in British Columbia.
Lunar New Year
Some countries (including China and Vietnam) observe the Lunar Year.
Lunar Calendar is based on the Chinese Zodiac consisting of Twelve signs staring with Rat and ending with Pig.
Lunar New Year occurs at the end of January or the beginning of February. The date is not fixed in the Gregorian Calendar.
Our Unity (Poem)
My poem was published in WPD (Working People’s Daily)
HlaMin 