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History of celebration of birthdays
It is thought that the large-scale celebration of birthdays in Europe began with the oriental cult of Mithraism in the Roman Empire. Prior to this such celebrations were not common, and hence practices from other contexts, such as the Saturnalia, were adapted for birthdays. Because many Roman soldiers took up Mithraism, it had a wide distribution and influence throughout the empire, until it was supplanted by Christianity. Birthday celebrations were rare during the Middle Ages , but saw a resurgence with the advent of the Reformation. During this period, they were seen as a good way to transfer customs from the saint's days to other dates not linked to the newly repudiated veneration of saints.
Even today, the celebration of birthdays is not universal in the West; in addition to those people preferring name day celebrations, Jehovah's Witnesses do not celebrate either, considering them to be pagan festivals, along with Christmas and Easter.
The birthdays of historically significant people, like Jesus Christ, the Prophet Muhammad, or the father of the fatherland, are often commemorated by an official holiday, some saints are remembered by a liturgical feast (sometimes on a presumed birthday). By analogy, the Latin term Dies natalis 'birthday' is applied to the anniversary of an institution (such as a university).
Official/Alternativ e birthdays and name day
Some notables, particularly Monarchs, have on a fixed day of the year an official birthday which do not match their actual birthday, but on which celebrations are held. Examples are:
* King's or Queen's Birthday in the UK and other countries under the British crown
* Commonwealth Day, originally called Empire's Day, is on the Queen-Empress Victoria's birthday: May 24
* in Luxemburg, the national holiday: 23 June
* in Malaysia, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (federal King, elected for 5 years) on 3 June
* Koningsdag or Koninginnedag in the Kingdom of the Netherlands is fixed on 30 April (Queen's Day; celebration of the reigning Queen's accession) to avoid winter weather (born in January).
In some Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox countries such as France, Hungary, or Greece, it is common also to have a 'name day'/'Saint's day'. This is celebrated in much the same way as a birthday, but is held on the official day of a saint with the same Christian name as the birthday boy/girl; the difference being that one may look up a person's nameday in a calendar, or easily remember common namedays (e.pergi. John or Mary); however in pious traditions, the two were often made to concur by giving a newborn the name of a saint celebrated on its birthday, or even the name of a feast, e.pergi. Noel or Pascal (French for Christmas viz. Easter). In some countries, name days are celebrated with much more elaborate festivities than birthdays; in the past, birthdays often weren't celebrated at all in those countries.
Festive
In most English-speaking countries it is traditional to sing the song Happy Birthday to You to the honored person celebrating their birthday. Similar songs exist in other languages, such as "Lang zal hij/zij leven" in Dutch or "Sto lat" in Polish. This happens traditionally at a birthday party while someone brings a birthday cake into the (often darkened) room.
The birthday cake is traditionally a highly decorated cake, and is typically covered with lit candles when presented; the number of candles often equals the age of the person (this tradition becomes very difficult for people of roughly 40 years or older, and is often abandoned far earlier, as it can feel a bit childish or just isn't worth the fuss among adults; sometimes alternatively, the candles used to decorate the cake come in two sizes: the bigger candles each represent 10 years, while the smaller ones each represent one). The person whose birthday it is makes a silent wish and then blows out the candles; if done in one breath, the wish is supposed to come true. Another common superstition is that if you reveal your birthday wish, it won't come true. Except in the case of young children, it is also very common for the "birthday boy" or "birthday girl" to cut the initial piece of the cake like the couple does with a wedding cake.