April 21
What April 20 lacks in holidays, April 21 more than makes up for.
In the Bahai calendar, it marks the beginning of Rivdan, the feast that celebrates Bahá’u’lláh’s pilgrimage from Baghdad to the Garden of Najibiyyih. Bahá’u’lláh is the Bahai Faith’s greatest prophet, and the date essentially marks the beginning of the Bahai religion as distinct from the earlier movement known as Babism.
In Indonesia it’s Kartini Day — in honor of the birthday of Raden Ajeng Kartini, the young woman who came to symbolize the struggle for women’s rights and equal education in the early 20th century.
In Brazil April 21 is called Tiradentes, also known as “Day of the Indian”. It “commemorates the 1792 execution of Joaquim Jose da Silva Xavier, also known as Tiradentes (Tooth Puller), the leader of the first organized movement against Portuguese rule in Brazil.” (Today’s Zaman – Every Day is Special)
The are over half a dozen Christian feasts celebrated on April 21, including
- Conrad of Parzham
- Wolbodo,
- Beuno
- and the Infant of Good Health.
It’s Grounation Day in the Rastafarian movement, celebrating the day Emperor Haile Selassie I visited the island of the Jamaica.
Texans celebrate the Battle of San Jacinto today.
It’s the birthday of Queen Elizabeth II of England, one of the longest reigning monarchs in European history.
It’s Kindergarten Day in Germany.
In the U.S. it’s the birthday of John Muir.
Today is also the original Roman holiday. April 21 marks the birth of Rome. Traditionally, the city-state was said to have been founded by Romulus, one of two brothers raised by a she-wolf. Historians don’t know the year—sometime in the 8th century BC—but most agree on the date: April 21. Don’t ask how.
So you have your pick of holidays to celebrate, and if you run out, don’t forget to mark your calendar for the holiday formerly known as Secretary’s Day — Administrative Professionals Day. You can thank New York publicist Harry F. Klemfuss for that. Reminds me, I’ve got to have my assistant send him a card…