Interesting Info - The Origin of Celebrating Birthdays

Birthdays have been celebrated for many thousands of years. In early civilizations, where the development of a calendar made an organized reckoning of birth dates possible, the horoscopes of ruling monarchs , their successors and rivals had to be cast with care and birthday omens meticulously examined, for the prospects of the mighty would affect the prospects of the entire society.

By the time of Ptolemy V, an Egyptian Pharoah, the practice was well established: 'Ptolemy, the ever living, the beloved of Ptah, the son of the two Brother-Gods, was born on the fifth day of the month DIOS, and this day was, in consequence, the beginning of great prosperity and happiness of all living men and women."

The German periodical "Schwäbische Zeitung" (magazine supplement Zeit und Welt) of April 3/4, 1981 on page 4 stated: "The various customs with which people today celebrate their birthdays have a long history. Their origins lie in the realm of magic and religion. The customs of offering congratulations, presenting gifts and celebrating - complete with lighted candles - in ancient times were meant to protect the birthday celebrant from the demons and to ensure his security for the coming year. . . . Down to the 4h century Christianity rejected the birthday celebration as a pagan custom."

The "traditional" birthday greeting song 'Happy birthday to you,' with the person's name inserted in the third line after 'Dear,' was originally 'Good Morning to All,' written in 1893, with words by the American educator Patty Smith Hill and music by her sister, Mildred J. Hill. The present words by Clayton F. Summy were substituted in 1935. From "Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable" revised by Adrian Room (HarperCollinsPublishers, New York, 1999, Sixteenth Edition).

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