International Children’s Day - 1st June
June 3rd, 2008
The International Children’s Day (ICD) is celebrated in numerous countries, usually (but not always) on June 1st each year.
The ICD had its origin in Turkey in 1920 (April 23rd) and later on the World Conference for the Well-being of Children in Geneva, Switzerland in 1925. It is not clear as to why June 1st was chosen as the ICD: one theory has it that the Chinese consul-general in San Francisco (USA) gathered a number of Chinese orphans to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival in 1925, which happened to be on June 1st that year, and also coincided with the conference in Geneva.
June 1st has since been observed as the ICD by numerous countries, especially by Communist countries; in the Western world the ICD is usually celebrated on other days of the year (if at all), and there is often little public awareness about these celebrations. Consequently there is sometimes a misperception that June 1st as the ICD was a Communist invention. Nonetheless, in recent years even some groups within the United States started observing the ICD on June 1st.
In Bulgaria, The Children’s Day is celebrated by many parties and amusements organized for the kids. Various companies, media, the municipality and many others, gather children to listen to some music, play games, have fun and refreshments. The young ones feel very excited on this day and receive all sorts of presents from family and relatives.
