The Persian year begins in the vernal equinox around March 20th when the daylight and night fall are the same length. The Persian Calendar is the official calendar of Iran and Friday is the weekly day of rest. A typical work week is from Saturday to Wednesday. Some of the major public holidays in Iran include Oil […]
Persian Holidays and Traditions Read More »
There are many different kinds of martial arts. Silat and Tomoi (a form of kickboxing) are traditional, popular versions. Kite flying (wau-flying) is a traditional game. Competitions take place with judges giving out awards for craftsmanship. Some kites are made to make a sound as they are pulled to fly in the air. Sepak raga
Romania is one of those countries that have it all: mountains, valleys, hills, shores, lowlands. You never get bored. Romanians themselves find their country a beauty of nature. And the tourists that visit Romania every year think so as well. The Romanian mountains are known as the Carpathians. You’re probably thinking: what do these mountains
Romanian Tourist Attractions Read More »
Before the 20th century, Malay women wore kemban. After the spread of Islam, they began to wear the baju kurung. In Malay culture, clothes and textiles are viewed as items of beauty, power, and status. Among popular Malay textiles are Songket and Batik. Men wear a baju (shirt) or Tekua (a type of long sleeve shirt), baju
Traditional Malaysian Clothing Read More »
Romanian English Ursuleţul Martinel Martinel, the little bear, A-nvăţat un cântecel Learned a little song şi îi place că-i uşor And he sings it everywhere Mor, mor, mor şi mor, mor, mor. Roaring all day long. Mămăruţă, ruţă, Lady bug of my heart Suie-mă-n căruţă, Put me in the cart, Şi mă du la vale,
The different regions are known for their dishes. However, one thing the Malay cooking has in common is the use of spices. Coconut milk is important in many of the dishes. Shrimp paste (belacan) is also used to make a condiment called sambal. The paste is added to chillies, onions, and garlic. Nearly every meal
Romanian is the official language of Romania. To you, it may sound a bit strange. But come to think about it, all languages sound strange. Let’s check Romanian out! Romanian has more letters than English. The English alphabet has 26 letters. The Romanian alphabet has 5 more. That means 31. Those are the letters that
The flag of Malaysia is known as the Jalur Gemilang (meaning Stripes of Glory). There are 14 red and white stripes to stand for the equality of the 13 member states and the federal government. A crescent moon and a 14-point star stand for the unity among them. The crescent moon represents Islam, the country’s
Before finding out the wonders of traditional Romanian music, you have to know a thing. Romania has about 9 regions. Each region has its own music. Well, they’re not that different. But the instruments and the dances are specific. First, traditional Romanian music doesn’t sound like anything you’ve heard before. It’s not pop, rock, hip-hop
Romanian kids usually have one or more names. But they only use one. For example, if a girl is called Maria Ioana (Maria Joan), her parents won’t ever call her MI (or MJ in English). Just Maria. You can usually tell if a name is for a girl because it ends in “a” in almost
Our journey begins a long time ago when Romania was known as Dacia. Tribes lived there, and their ruler was called Decebal. Still, they had a powerful enemy: the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire had plans for those tribes. It wanted to conquer them. After two big battles, the Roman Empire only managed to conquer
Romania is a beautiful European country and it is a member of the European Union. Like any other country, it has its own history and its own culture. For example, did you know that Romanians have their own traditional Valentine’s Day? It’s called “Dragobete” in Romanian and is celebrated on February 24th. Girls usually receive
Interesting Facts About Romanian Culture Read More »
The Finnish alphabet is based on the Latin script as well as on the Swedish alphabet, Swedish also being the second official language in Finland. Officially the Finnish alphabet comprises 28 letters: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, X, Y, Z, Å, Ä, Ö although the letter W is also commonly listed behind the V. The main peculiarities in the Finnish alphabets are the last letters
Finnish Alphabet and Language Read More »
In Finland a new born baby has to be given a first name within 2 months of the birth. Traditionally the name is announced by the parents during the baby’s christening which is usually held when the baby is about a month and a half old. Until then, the parents tend to use a nickname
Common Finnish Names Read More »
Finnish children stories have a long history but weren’t really distinguished from the general story-telling tradition to begin with. Storytelling has long traditions in the Finnish culture and history and stories were told for children and adults alike. Stories and myths have been told for as long as the history can look back to but
Finnish Children Stories Read More »
Having the history of being alone in the rough environment, Finns have a tradition of surviving. Hundreds of years ago the Finns already had to learn the means to cope with long, bitterly cold, and snowy winters. The only way to survive was to understand the nature, and to live in harmony with nature, instead
A Brief History of Finland Read More »
Bulgarian names usually consist of a given name, which comes first, then a second one – the father’s first name and then the third one (the family name) usually the grandfather’s first name. Traditionally Bulgarian given names might have Latin, Greek, Thracian, Bulgar or Hebrew origin. The idea of parents naming their child after an older
Common Bulgarian Children’s Names Read More »
Bulgaria is a very ancient country. Recently one of the oldest towns in the world has been found. This town dates back some 6500 years. Many tribes and people have left their mark on this Balkan country. The first people to leave lasting traces and cultural heritage throughout the Balkan region were the Thracians. Most
A Brief History of Bulgaria Read More »
The Bulgarian alphabet is called Cyrillic. The Cyrillic alphabet can trace its roots back to 886 AD. The brothers Cyril and Methodius have created it. By creating this alphabet they were trying to get rid of Latin alphabet from Rome. Initially the alphabet was rejected and accepted later after the Byzantines attack Bulgaria and forces
The Bulgarian Alphabet Read More »
The Bulgarian culture has been formed over many centuries. Bulgarian traditions root into the distant past and are connected with the history and the Orthodox Christian religion. Fire dancing is Old Bulgarian custom, which has been practiced in Strandja Mountain. Fire-dancers are getting ready all day for that dancing by staying closed in a chapel,
All About Bulgaria Read More »
A Brief Vietnamese History Vietnamese history began 4000 years ago, the first King, and also the founder of the Vietnamese nation, was Hung Vuong. In their mythology, Lac Long Quan (Lac Dragon Lord) and Au Co had 100 children and Hung Vuong was the oldest son. According to tradition, The Hung dynasty ruled for eighteen
A Brief Vietnamese History Read More »
Vietnamese Language and Alphabet Vietnamese is a language spoken by about 82 million people mainly in Vietnam. There are also Vietnamese speakers in the USA, China, Cambodia, France, Australia, Laos, Canada and a number of other countries. Vietnamese was originally written with a Siniform (Chinese-like) script known as Chữ-nôm. During the 17th century, Roman Catholic
Vietnamese Language and Alphabet Read More »
Viet Nam has a rich and diversified culture with 54 local ethnicities that live across the country. After the long –term Chinese and French sway on its culture, Vietnamese culture made it possible to localize and make use of the foreign culture in their efforts to enrich their national culture. They include the culture that
All About Vietnamese Culture Read More »
People usually do not shake hands when greeting. Instead, the custom is to “wai”. Usually the younger person “wais” the older person by placing his/her palms together and bowing slightly. If the hands are high, the person is greatly respected. The older person then returns the gesture. This greeting is done while standing, sitting or
