There are plenty of national holidays here in the United States: Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, Valentine's Day, Halloween, Mothers' Day, Fathers' Day, etc. The list goes on and on, and we all know why we celebrate those days (or most of us, anyways), but what about the national holidays that are overlooked? For example, Columbus Day. Does anyone know what this day is for or why it's technically a holiday even though no one actually celebrates it? Well, I am here to answer these questions.
Columbus Day, which is on Monday, October 10th this year, is a day to celebrate the day Italian-born Christoper Columbus who, backed by the Spanish king and queen, accidentally sailed right into the Americas on October 12th, 1492. We all know the story, yes? Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492? He was actually sailing to chart a western sea route to China and India when he discovered the "New World" or in reality, the Bahamas. He and his crew then traveled further inland to Cuba and Hispaniola, which they thought were Japan and China. There, he and 39 of his men established the first Spanish colony.
People have been celebrating Columbus Day since as early as 1792 when the first official Columbus Day celebration took place at New York's Columbian Order, or what is better known as Tammany Hall, to celebrate the 300 years since Columbus' landing. Then, in 1892, President Benjamin Harrison encouraged Americans to mark the 400th anniversary of the voyage with patriotic festivities. It wasn't until 1937 that Columbus Day became an official holiday thanks to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. His decision was mainly due to lobbying by the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal benefits organization, but hey, at least he did something about it. The holiday was originally set to be every October 12th but then was changed to the second Monday in October in 1971.
So how do Americans actually celebrate this now? I've never seen anyone celebrate it nor have I celebrated it on my own. Apparently, though, across the country, cities throw festivals for it. It's now more of a way to celebrate Italian-American heritage than it is to celebrate Columbus. There are parades, street fairs, colorful costumes, music and Italian food. Some cities even celebrate Native American culture during this time with pow-wows and lessons about the culture.
Maybe you should try it out this year; invite your friends over to have a Columbus Day celebration with traditional food and dancing. Maybe even make it into a costume party and see what their reaction is!
