The origin of the holiday on March 8. Versions of the origin of International Women's Day

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Without which holiday is it difficult to imagine the beginning of spring? Of course, without March 8. The history of the creation of the holiday on March 8 has already been forgotten by many of us. Over time, it lost its social and political significance. Now this day simply symbolizes respect, love and tenderness, which, undoubtedly, all the fair sex on the planet deserve: mothers, grandmothers, daughters, wives and sisters.

The origin of the holiday on March 8 is not known to everyone. Most of us only know about the official version. However, there is more than one story of the creation of the holiday on March 8. And each of them has a right to exist. In which of these versions to believe, everyone decides for himself.

Official version

According to the official version of the USSR, the origin of the March 8 holiday is associated with a protest march organized by textile factory workers. Women came out to protest against harsh working conditions and low wages.

It is noteworthy that the newspapers of those years did not print a single article about such strikes. Later, historians managed to find out that in 1857, March 8 fell onSunday. It may seem strange that the women went on strike on the day off.

There is another story. On March 8, Clara Zetkin spoke at the Women's Forum in Copenhagen calling for the establishment of an International Women's Day. The German communist meant that on March 8, women would be able to organize processions and rallies, thereby drawing public attention to their own problems. The date was set up for a strike by the same textile workers, which in reality never happened.

In the USSR, this holiday appeared thanks to the friend of Clara Zetkin, the fiery revolutionary Alexandra Kollontai. So in 1921 in our country Women's Day for the first time became an official holiday.

Legend of the Queen of Judah

The opinions of historians about the origin of Clara Zetkin are divided. No one can say for sure whether she was Jewish. Some sources say that Clara was born into a Jewish family. Others claim her father was German.

Clara Zetkin's desire to associate the holiday with the date of March 8 ambiguously indicates that she still had Jewish roots, since March 8 is the ancient Jewish holiday - Purim.

What other versions of the creation of the holiday on March 8 are there? The history of the holiday may be connected with the history of the Jewish people. According to legend, Queen Esther, who was the beloved of King Xerxes, saved the Jews from extermination with the help of her charms. The Persian king intended to kill all the Jews, but the beautiful Esther was able to convince him not to kill the Jewishpeople, but, on the contrary, to exterminate all enemies, including the Persians.

Praising the queen, the Jews began to celebrate Purim. The date of the celebration was always different and fell on the end of February - the beginning of March. However, in 1910, this day fell on March 8.

Women of the ancient profession

According to the third version, the origin of the March 8 holiday is scandalous and unpleasant for women who look forward to this day.

According to some reports, in 1857, the women of New York did organize a protest, but they were not textile workers, but representatives of an ancient profession who demanded payment of wages to sailors who used their services, since the latter could not pay them.

March 8, 1894 women of easy virtue again held a demonstration, but in Paris. They demanded recognition of their rights on an equal basis with other workers who are engaged in sewing clothes and baking bread, and also asked to organize trade unions for them. The following year, rallies were held in Chicago and New York.

It is noteworthy that Clara Zetkin herself participated in such actions. For example, in 1910, she and her friend, Rosa Luxembourg, took prostitutes to the streets of Germany demanding to stop the excesses of the police. In the Soviet version, public women had to be replaced with "workers".

Why was it necessary to implement March 8?

The history of International Women's Day in Russia is political. March 8 is essentially an ordinary political campaign carried out by the Social Democrats. At the beginning of the 20th century, Europeanwomen actively protested to gain public attention. To do this, they took to the streets with posters promoting socialist appeals. This was to the advantage of the leaders of the Social Democratic Party, since progressive women were in solidarity with the party.

Probably, therefore, Stalin ordered the recognition of March 8 as Women's Day. Because it was impossible to link the date with historical events, we had to slightly correct the story. If the leader said - it was necessary to carry out.

Women from Venus

The traditions associated with International Women's Day are no less interesting than the origin of the March 8 holiday. For example, it is customary to wear purple ribbons on this day.

And this is not surprising, because this color represents Venus, who is considered the patroness of all women. That is why all famous ladies (politicians, educators, medical workers, journalists, actresses and sportswomen) wear purple ribbons when they take part in the events on March 8th. As a rule, they take part in political rallies, women's conferences or theater performances, fairs and even fashion shows.

Meaning of the holiday

There is no city where March 8 is not celebrated. The history of the origin of the holiday for many personifies the indomitable spirit of women fighting for equality and their social rights. For others, this holiday has long lost its political significance.background and became a great occasion to express love and respect for the fair sex.

On this wonderful day, words of congratulations on March 8 are heard everywhere. In any organization, company or educational institution, employees are honored, they are given flowers and gifts. Along with this, official events are held in the cities on the day of March 8. In Moscow, the Kremlin annually hosts a festive concert.

How is March 8 celebrated in Russia?

On March 8, all women forget about household chores. All housework (cleaning, cooking, laundry) is postponed. Often, men take on all the worries in order to once a year feel the full complexity of the daily tasks that our women cope with. On this day, every representative of the fair sex should hear words of congratulations on March 8.

This holiday never ceases to be the most long-awaited for all women. On March 8, it is customary to congratulate not only close people, but also colleagues, neighbors, shop employees, doctors and teachers.

Do not skimp on kind words on this wonderful day. Indeed, without women, life on Earth would have ceased to exist!