From the story of the holiday
The history of the festival is traditionally connected with the name of Clara Tsetkin who had created a revolutionary women’s group. It was decided to choose a day which would be considered a birthday of women’s proletariat.
Half a century later the activists of the social-democratic organization of New York remembered the protest demonstrations of textile-workers of 1857 and on March 8,1908 they organized a demonstration for women’s rights protection.
In 1909 the social party of the USA declared the last Sunday of February the national day of women.
In 1910 in Copenhagen at the second international conference of women-socialists Clara Tsetkin suggested to make the women’s day annual however a certain day wasn’t determined. The first international women’s day was marked on march 19,1911 in four countries-Austria, Germany, Denmark and Switzerland.
In 1912 the women’s day was marked on March 12. In 1913 it was marked in Germany on March 12, in Austria, Czechia, Belgium, Holland, Switzerland-on March 9, in Russia and France-on March 2. And only in 1914 March 8 was simultaneously marked in six countries-Austria, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Russia and Switzerland as that day was a Sunday,not a working day.
Since 1965 the day has been accepted as a holiday, a non-working day in the Soviet Union.
In 1975 the Soviet ideologists managed to make the UNO recognize the year of 1975 the international women’s year, and afterward, in 1977 the same organization declared march 8 International Women’s Day.
And how is this day marked in other countries?
In 1910 in Copenhagen, at the international women’s conference Clara Tsetkin suggested accepting the 8th of March as women’s international day in honour of the events taken place New York.. For the first time the international women’s day was celebrated in 1911 in Germany, Austria, Denmark and Switzerland. In Russia this day was marked in 1913 and since then it is celebrated with big solemnity.Here, on March 8 men presented women mainly flowers and perfume. Unlike other countries March 8 is a working day in Italy.Men and women don’t celebrate this day together there: after work women go to a restaurant and in the evening bars are served only by men and women’s admission is free. In France on march 8 conferences, demonstrations,processions concerning women’s rights protection are held. In Germany the advocates of women’s rights,trade unions organize various actions.
In China they try to prove that the only way to women’s hearts is through stomach. On this day Chinese men trying to express their love for their beloved show their culinary talents. In China this day is non-working only for women. On this day Chinese women take part in Miss Beijing contest trying to prove that there are the most beautiful women in the world.
After the declaration of independence the Republic of Armenia, in 1996 March 8 was left out from the state holidays list, instead April 7 was declared the Day of Maternity and Beauty. Then in 2001 the RA law “On holidays and commemoration days” was adopted according to which March 8 again became a state holiday. And not officially the period from March 8 to April 7 is considered a women’s month