Sweden has so many public holidays to give its residents the opportunities to rest after several days of work. The series of public holidays given to the people by the government is one of the many factors that make Sweden a country with some of the happiest people on earth. As of today, Sweden occupies the 5th position on the list of the happiest countries on earth. The government, rather than remove some of the public holidays now help them add more fun to it so that many more people will enjoy the times they spend on holidaying. Many of the public holidays declared by the government allow the people to celebrate church-related special days. There are some other ones dedicated to celebrating important national days. One of the many public holidays declared in Sweden is the Midsommar’s Day.
What makes this public holiday to stand out? We will provide you with helpful answers below.
Unique features of the public holiday
The public holiday falls between 20th and 26th of June. The holiday remains one of the most outstanding in the country today. Despite its importance, it is not as well celebrated as Christmas. Most people love to celebrate Christmas with their family members, but Midsommar can be celebrated with your friends and loved ones. So, it opens the door to enable you bring in more people into your circle and celebrate life together. You can even invite the family members of your friends for the celebration since it is open to all. It is one unique holiday celebration that has become written into the structure of the country, giving everyone the opportunity to fellowship with other people, including Christians and non-Christians.
Purpose of the celebration
The celebration is primarily for the commemoration of John the Baptist’s birthday. The holiday has the May pole as one of its important symbols the May pole could be found in the possession of deacons between the 17th and 18th centuries as they moved from one town to another and one village to another, begging and singing. The general belief is that the May pole originated from Germany.
Some people may think the word maypole has something to do with the month of May, but this is not so at all. Rather, the word is actually “maying” the pole. Nevertheless, series of disagreements greet the real meaning of the maypole as explained by the church. Some claimed it is the symbol of a phallus and some other people see it as a depiction of the cross.
