Celebrations Around the World: A Research Guide

Learn how different cultures and people celebrate holidays and festivals throughout the world. The materials listed below will get you started in your research to understand more about religious, secular, legal, public, and national celebrations and traditions around the world. The terms and phrases listed in the subject headings below can be used to search for more materials in the library's catalog and research databases. If you need further assistance, please ask a librarian.

American Book of Days, 4th ed. by Stephen G. Christianson. New York: H. W. Wilson, 2000. ISBN: 0824209540.
Essays explore significant events for each day of the year including military, scientific, ethnic, and cultural events. An appendix features historical documents.

Chase's Calendar of Events. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004– . Annual. ISBN: 0071424059.
A calendar containing over 12,000 listings including special days, weeks, and months as well as holidays, historical anniversaries, fairs, and festivals.

Encyclopedia of Christmas & New Year's Celebrations. Detroit: Omnigraphics, 2000. ISBN: 0780803876.
Over 240 entries covering Christmas, New Year's, and related days of observance, including folk and religious customs, history, legends, and symbols worldwide.

Festivals of the World: The Illustrated Guide to Celebrations, Customs, Events, and Holidays edited by Elizabeth Breuilly, et al. New York: Checkmark Books, 2002. ISBN: 0816044813.
Includes Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Taoist, Zoroastrian, Shinto, Jain, Baha'i, and Rastafarian festivals.

The Folklore of American Holidays. Gale Research, 1987. ISBN: 0810388642.
Descriptions of origin, historical background, and general characteristics of more than 125 holidays celebrated in America. Chronologically arranged, from New Year's Day through Christmas, entries include source and bibliographical information.

The Folklore of World Holidays, 2nd ed. Gale Research, 1998. ISBN: 0810389010.
Lists the date of the holiday, description of the holiday, and traditions and folklore associated with it for every country that celebrates that particular holiday.

Holidays, Festivals, and Celebrations of the World Dictionary, 3rd ed . edited by Helene Henderson and Sue Ellen Thompson. Detroit: Omnigraphics, 2004. ISBN: 0780804228.
A reference guide to popular, ethnic, religious, national, and ancient holidays including nearly 2,500 observances from all 50 states and more than 100 nations.

Junior Worldmark Encyclopedia of World Holidays by Robert H. Griffin and Ann H. Shurgin. 4 vols. Detroit: UXL, 2000. ISBN: 0787639273.
Vol. 1: Buddha's birthday, Carnival, Christmas; vol. 2: Easter, Halloween and festivals of the dead; vol. 3: Hanukkah, Independence Day, Kwanzaa; vol. 4: New Year, Ramadan and ‘Id al-Fitr, Thanksgiving and harvest festivals.

World Holiday, Festival & Calendar Books edited by Tanya Gulevich. Detroit: Omnigraphics, 1998. ISBN: 0780800737.
Features more than 1,000 holiday-related resources, including dictionaries, guidebooks and reference sources, folklore and ethnic studies, children's books, and historical background studies.

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Earth Calendar
www.earthcalendar.net
Provides easy access to holidays by date, country, and religion. Includes brief information with links to related Web sites.

HistoryChannel.com: The History of the Holidays
www.historychannel.com/exhibits/holidays/main.html
Provides history and traditions of Christmas, Kwanzaa, and Hanukkah.

Infoplease: Calendar and Holidays
www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0001832.html
Lists calendars for major holidays, both religious and secular.

Turkey for the Holidays, University of Illinois
www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/turkey/
A guide to selection, cooking, and carving Thanksgiving dinner. Includes additional Thanksgiving links.