Holidays May 16
International biographer day
The Biographer's Day holiday (or Biographer's Day) is celebrated by several countries annually on May 16. This event is dedicated to the meeting of Samuel Johnson with his biographer Boswell. The meeting of two men took place in the walls of one of the bookstores in London. As a result of a long conversation in 1791, a two-volume book was published about the life of Samuel Jackson, who was an outstanding critic and lexicographer of the 18th century. Dr. Jackson worked on his Explanatory Dictionary of English for almost ten years. His biography is still being read.
In general, the word "biography" was formed by the merger of two Greek words - life and writing, that is, in fact, a biography is a description of the life of a particular person and, as a rule, is created by another person. Thanks to the painstaking work of many biographers, today there are thousands of information about the lives of great people. These sources tell us a lot, allowing us to draw certain conclusions about the mores and customs of the past.
One of the first outstanding biographers in history was the great ancient Greek philosopher Plutarch. Today, many names of biographers, unfortunately, are forgotten. However, the memory of them will always “live” in the biographies that they left - the most valuable literary heritage of all countries of the world!
May 16 in the folk calendar
Martha - Nursery, Martha - Green cabbage soup
On the day of May 16, peasants in Russia honored the memory of the holy saint Mary Martha. According to legend, the saint was the wife of the myrrh-bearing woman - one of those who came to anoint the body of Christ after execution by perfumed oils.
The people of Martha have been credited with many nicknames, the most common of which are Nursery and Green Cabbage Soup. The first nickname, in principle, speaks for itself. On Marfa, peasants planted cabbage, pumpkins, and also sowed land with seeds of various vegetables. Often, before planting, seeds, seedlings and soil were sprinkled with holy water. This ritual was carried out in order to protect plants from harmful insects (caterpillars, aphids, cabbage, etc.). There were beliefs for this day: for example, planting cabbage on Thursday was strictly forbidden, even if the day of the week coincided with the commemoration of St. Martha. Those who ignored the simple rule lost all the cabbage - it was simply eaten by worms. Also, before transplanting plants, women could not eat food for six hours, so that the chickens would not glue the young tops with leaves.
The second nickname - Green Cabbage Soup - Martha received due to the fact that since mid-May many housewives began to cook delicious cabbage soup, which was cooked not with sauerkraut, but with fresh herbs: nettle, sorrel and quinoa. And stocks of fresh and sauerkraut by this time had already been depleted. Sometimes the saint was also called the Thrush, because the cows were released on Martha to the meadows so that they could taste fresh grass, and in the evening the nurse brought the most delicious thick milk.
Historical events of May 16
May 16, 1920 - Canonization of the Vatican by Joan of Arc
In 1431, Joan of Arc was publicly burned at the stake on charges of witchcraft and the spread of heresy. Prior to this, the girl, on the orders of Dauphin Karl, led the army. Eyewitnesses claimed that several months before the bloody events, Jeanne had divine foresight, which clearly showed how she led the struggle of the French people against England (in the Hundred Years War). Her successes were overwhelming: the heroine managed to free Orleans, as well as help the Dauphin to receive the crown and become king Charles VII.
The popularity of the girl grew, the ruling elite did not like it, and as a result, d'Arc was removed from command. Soon she was captured by the Burgundians - the allies of the British. They were handed over to enemies, accused of heresy by the church and publicly burned. A quarter of a century later, a new trial took place in her case, which rehabilitated Jeanne, and at the beginning of the twentieth century the Vatican ranked the heroine as a saint.
May 16, 1924 - The first issue of Murzilka in the USSR
More than one generation of children grew up in the Soviet popular magazine Murzilka. A yellow funny character in a scarf and beret conducted various “excursions” with the children. Many probably remember him from childhood. It is interesting to note that the fabulous Murzilka was not originally from the Soviet Union, but was coined by the American writer and illustrator of children's comics, Palmer Cox, in the mid-nineteenth century. In those days, Murzilka looked a bit different: he was wearing a black tailcoat, complemented by a large flower in his buttonhole, and a thin cane was in his hands. True, Soviet illustrators considered this image completely "not childish" and transformed it at their own discretion in order to encourage the younger generation of the country to read the magazine.
May 16, 1985 - A large-scale anti-alcohol campaign has begun in the USSR
In 1985, the leadership of the Soviet Union decided to "sober up" the country and instill in the population a desire for an alcohol-free lifestyle. In this regard, the country launched the largest anti-alcohol campaign. First, the Council of Ministers adopted a decree "On measures to overcome drunkenness, alcoholism and the eradication of home-brewing", a few days later a decree was issued "On strengthening the fight against alcoholism." These documents gave impetus to the largest anti-alcohol campaign in the USSR. Only the authorities, seeking to impose healthy principles on society, did not take into account political and economic factors. Measures to combat alcoholism were limited only to fines and mass intimidation of the population, which was contrary to moral principles. But, as you know, the forbidden fruit is sweet, and instead of not drinking, people began to buy alcohol surrogates, the home brewing business flourished. As a result, people did not drink less, and the authorities suffered huge losses. The anti-alcohol campaign in the USSR did not lead to anything sensible, except for billions of dollars in losses!
May 16 were born
Ivan Tsvetaev (1847 - 1913) - Russian historian, art critic, father of the poetess Marina Tsvetaeva. He was the founder and first director of the Moscow Museum of Fine Arts (now it is called the Alexander Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts).
Henry Fonda (1905 - 1982) - a talented actor, the founder of the largest Hollywood dynasty, the owner of the most gorgeous blue eyes in the world. Parish Funds in the cinema took place in 1935. He always got courageous, honest, laconic and mysterious characters. As a mature man, Fonda was able to show the world the versatility of his acting talent, which appeared in the film Once Upon a Time in the Wild West, where he played one of the most sinister characters in the history of world cinema.
Yuri Shevchuk(born in 1957) - Russian singer, producer, leader of the famous DDT group. As a child, Shevchuk never imagined that fate would ever connect him with music. The singer was born in a small forgotten village, which was located on the territory of the Magadan region. Being a boy, he was very fond of drawing. When the family moved to the city, parents gave Yuri to the art studio. Drawings of young talent have repeatedly received awards at various exhibitions and competitions.
Name Day May 16
Name day celebrated on May 16: Moor, Anton, Timothy, Peter, Nikolai, Theodosius, Vyacheslav, Simeon, Andrei, Martha.
