We hope everyone who is reading this article is enjoying a nice spring season. We are going to talk about spring in March’s newsletter. The temperature goes up, snow and ice starts melting down, and buds of plants start to grow. Animals become active, insects come out of the ground, and flowers bloom. Everything starts moving and growing in this season and the atmosphere changes significantly. Even though weather in Vancouver is still chilly, warm and comfortable weather will be coming soon. With a nice atmosphere and lots of events, people have fun during this season. But the impression of this season may differ depending on the country because of many reasons. Not all countries have four seasons. It can be divided by wet season and dry season, or some countries have a different concept of seasons altogether. Or some cultural differences may influence the impression of the seasons. How’s this season treating you? We are going to introduce the differences between countries.
* Canada
Spring comes slowly in most of the places in Canada. We can occasionally enjoy favorable weather in March in Canada, but especially in the West Coast area such as Vancouver or Victoria, people can enjoy nice spring weather compared to other areas in Canada. The Tulip festival in Ottawa takes place in May, hence spring comes later there. In other countries the Saint Patrick’s Day Parade and Easter holiday occur in this season. In late May, there is Victoria Day to celebrate the honor of Queen Victoria’s birthday. Then people in Canada welcome Summer time.
* Europe
As you see a prefix ”pri-” in some Europeans languages such as Primavera (Italian), Printemps (French), it is assumed that spring is deserved as the first season of the year. It derives from the Roman calendar which starts a year from March. After a long, dark winter, people can enjoy various kinds of flowers in full bloom. For example, sunflower fields in Andalusia in Spain, or Keukenhof in the Netherlands, which is the world’s largest garden, or a rose festival in Bulgaria. Easter is the most significant event in the Christian countries in this season. Christians celebrate the day of the resurrection of Jesus on Easter Day.
* Asian Countries
Among the majority of the countries, a new school year starts from September. But for some Asian countries such as South Korea (March), Japan (April), Thailand (May), spring is the season of a new school year. Graduation ceremonies and entrance ceremonies take place in this season, therefore lots of new encounters and separations happen in this year, and it makes peoples’ lives more dramatic. In Japan, cherry blossoms (Sakura) are the flowers which represent the spring season. There is a Japanese traditional custom called Hanami (flower viewing). In this season, cherry blossoms bloom all over Japan, and people enjoy the beauty of flowers with food and alcohol. This custom spread towards several countries such as South Korea, and Taiwan. There are some festivals occurring to celebrate the coming of spring. In India or Nepal, there is a Holi festival. In this festival, everyone colors each other with colored water by using water guns or color water-filled balloons.
* The Tropics
Countries in the tropics area rarely have four seasons. Instead, there are Wet seasons and Dry seasons. For example, in the south part of Vietnam, this season is between Wet season and Dry season. The temperature is always hot in this area, but the quantity of rainfall differs a lot between those two seasons. In Vietnam, the lunar calendar is used as well as the solar calendar. Vietnamese New Year is celebrated in late January or early February, and it is also known as the beginning of spring. People celebrate New Year as well as welcoming spring in Vietnam.
* Australia
Countries which are in the southern hemisphere have opposite seasons compared to countries in the Northern Hemisphere. Australia, most of Latin America, and the south half of Africa are in the Southern Hemisphere. In those countries, March is the season of late summer or fall, so the impression of March is totally different in those countries. In Australia, people can enjoy swimming, surfing, or any other sports in March. Because the “Spring Racing Carnival” takes place in October and November, spring comes in October and November in Australia.
As you see, there are so many differences of this season depending on the individual countries. Cultures, customs, and climates make huge differences between them. But it is common that all of the countries enjoy spring time as the season of “beginning”, or “flourishing”.
If you would like to launch a new project or anything related to a language, at LingoStar we can initiate it for you. Feel free to give us a call or send us an e-mail for a free quote! Spring has just begun, and we hope that everyone will have a nice time and succeed in this season.
