Jamaica

Did you know that in Jamaica, they have a super fun birthday tradition called “antiquing.”? It’s where the guest of honor gets covered in flour, unexpectedly, of course! After the “antiquing” surprise, there’s usually either a planned or surprise party to celebrate the special day. Delicious Jamaican food and cake are served, and everyone sings a Jamaican version of “Happy Birthday” to the lucky person. And in Brazil, they take “antiquing” to the next level by throwing eggs! How hilarious is that?

Ireland

In Ireland, there are many fun traditions! One of them includes “bumping” the birthday child. There are a few variations of this. In one variation, an adult turns the child upside down and bumps their head very lightly on the floor. The number of bumps equals the age of the child, sometimes with an extra bump for good luck in the coming year. During the celebration, many friends and family members gather to enjoy delicious Irish dishes and treats. When someone turns 21, they are given the “key of the house,” which symbolizes their transition into adulthood and the freedom to come and go as they please.

Norway

Norwegians know how to throw a party. Birthdays are a big deal in Norway, and if a child’s birthday falls on a school day, they get to celebrate in class! It’s a time for food, dance, music, and all sorts of fun. Seafood, fresh fruit, and sweet treats are just some of the yummy treats you’ll find at a Norwegian birthday bash. And let’s not forget the cake — it’s usually either chocolate or vanilla or a delicious fruit-and-cream creation. When Norwegians turn 18, it’s a really big deal, marking the transition into adulthood. And the best part? Everyone gets to sing the Norwegian birthday song, “Hurra for Deg“!

Canada

When a child celebrates their special day in provinces like Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland, their nose gets greased for good luck! Yes, you heard it right! The birthday child’s nose is greased to make them too slippery for bad luck to catch them. This awesome tradition is believed to have originated in Scotland and was brought over to Eastern Canada.

It’s never too late to adopt birthday traditions in your own family.! Your child can grow, have their own children, and pass on a tradition that you started this year. Doesn’t that sound wonderful? For more awesome birthday ideas, check out www.pumpitupparty.com/blog/.

We’ve done some research on the history of this famous tune and here’s what we’ve found out.

Where it Began

The beginning of the happy birthday song has a bit of controversy behind it, with more than one artist being credited with its existence.

The song’s melody originated from a school teachers’ greeting song titled “Good Morning to All”, composed by American sisters Mildred and Patty Hill in 1893, although this accreditation has been questioned.

The first time the combination of the “Happy Birthday to You” lyrics and melody appeared was in 1912. These first appearances did not include any credits. Updated lyrics that make up the popular tune we sing today was published in a songbook by Robert Coleman in 1924.

Then in 1935, The Summy Company registered a copyright for the song, crediting the Hill sisters as the authors. The value of the birthday song at the time was $5 million.

What About Before the Song?

There is no record of any other specific songs being used at birthday parties or celebrations before the classic “Happy Birthday to You”, but plenty other traditions were celebrated! The Germans created the traditional birthday cake as we know it today in the late 18th century and it became popularized around the world during the American Industrial Revolution.

The entire idea of birthdays started with the Egyptians after they noticed the effects of aging. From celebrating the birth of powerful religious figures, it grew into celebrating “the common man” and we now celebrate our birthdays with gifts, cake, song, and sometimes special birthday party venues!

Are We Allowed to Sing it?

Many people may not have realized that up until the year 2016, “Happy Birthday to You” was actually illegal to sing publicly unless you paid a hefty fee. Singing it publicly could include on T.V., radio or just at a party place. This was due to the copyright that was registered in 1935 and not set to expire until 2030. This changed though once a U.S federal judge ruled that the copyright claim was not valid and the song had no other claim to copyright, placing it in the public domain, and making it free to sing for all.

Celebrating Across the Globe

The traditional way “Happy Birthday to You” is used is by the song being sung to the birthday boy/girl by other guests at the celebration while they present a birthday cake. This tradition has reached across the globe and the recognizable tune has been officially translated into 18 different languages!

Now it’s Your Turn!

The great thing about the birthday song, besides that it usually means the cake is coming, is that it is also very easy to memorize and learn on almost any instrument. Most people will sing the catchy tune at their home or at a kid’s party venue if they have rented a great spot for friends and family to celebrate together. But you don’t just have to sing! You can learn “Happy Birthday to You” by knowing just a few simple notes, on piano, guitar, violin, or any instrument.

The party pros at Pump It Up have seen some amazing renditions during birthday parties and can’t wait to see more. If you would like to share your version of the birthday song with us, connect with us on Facebook or email us today!

But there’s so much more to it than that.

It’s been constantly evolving throughout, turning into what we know it to be today. This widely used tradition started somewhere and that’s what we are looking to uncover here today.

We’ve pieced together the hypotheses of several historians, making this one huge piece of our culture a little bit more comprehensible.

Here’s what we know:

1. Birthdays didn’t begin until calendars were created.

Early civilizations had no way to keep track of time other than by using the moon, sun, or some other important event. This made it difficult for them to pay attention to the anniversary of a person’s birth.

As time went on, everyone realized that they all experienced the effects of aging, they just didn’t have a means to mark a special milestone for it.

It wasn’t until ancient people began taking note of the moon’s cycles that they began paying attention to the change in seasons as well. They also noticed this pattern repeated itself over and over again. They began marking these changes in time.

This is what bore the first calendars, which marked time changes and other special days. From this type of tracking system came the ability to celebrate birthdays and other significant events and anniversaries each year.

2. It all started with the Egyptians.

Scholars who study the Bible say that the earliest mention of a birthday was around 3,000 B.C.E. and was in reference to a Pharaoh’s birthday. But further study implies that this was not their birth into the world, but their “birth” as a god.

When Egyptian pharaohs were crowned in ancient Egypt, they were considered to have transformed into gods. This was a moment in their lives that became more important than even their physical birth.

Pagans, such as the ancient Greeks, believed that each person had a spirit that was present on the day of his or her birth. This spirit kept watch and had a mystic relation with the god on whose birthday that particular individual was born.

3. You can thank Greeks for all those birthday candles.

Gods and goddesses were a huge part of Greek culture. Greeks offered many tributes and sacrifices to appease these gods. The lunar goddess, Artemis, was no different.

As a tribute to her, the Greeks would offer up moon-shaped cakes adorned with lit candles to recreate the glowing radiance of the moon and Artemis’ perceived beauty. The candles also symbolized the sending of a signal or prayer. Blowing out the candles with a wish is another way of sending that message to the gods.

4. Birthdays first started as a form of protection.

It is assumed that the Greeks adopted the Egyptian tradition of celebrating the “birth” of a god. They, like many other pagan cultures, thought that days of major change, such as these “birth” days, welcomed evil spirits. They lit candles in response to these spirits almost as if they represented a light in the darkness. This implies that birthday celebrations started as a form of protection.

In addition to candles, friends and family would gather around the birthday person and protect them from harm with good cheers, thoughts, and wishes. They would give gifts to bring even more good cheer that would ward off evil spirits. Noisemakers were also used to scare away the unwanted evil.

5. The ancient Romans were the first to celebrate the birth of the common “man.”

This seems to be the first time in history where a civilization celebrated the birth of non-religious figures. Regular Roman citizens would celebrate the birthdays of their friends and family members. The government, however, created public holidays in honor of more famous citizens.

Any Roman turning 50 years old would receive a special cake baked with wheat flour, olive oil, grated cheese, and honey. But an important thing to note is that only men would experience this birthday celebration. Female birthdays were not celebrated until about the 12th century.

6. Birthdays were first considered to be a pagan ritual in Christian culture.

In Christianity, it is believed that all people are born with “original sin.” That, in combination with early birthdays being tied to pagan gods, led Christians to consider birthdays to be celebrations of evil. This lasted for the first few hundred years of the existence of the Christian Church.

It wasn’t until the 4th century that Christians abandoned that way of thinking and began celebrating the birth of Jesus, also know as Christmas. Celebrating the birth of Jesus was partly enacted to recruit those who already celebrated Saturnalia, the Roman holiday.

7. German bakers invented the birthday cake as we know it today.

At this point, birthdays had been celebrated around the world, even in China, where a child’s first birthday was more special than most.

Kinderfeste, which started in the late 18th century, was the name for a German birthday party that is closest to today’s style of parties. This party was held for German kids, or “kinder,” and featured a birthday cake adorned with candles.

Kids were given one candle atop the cake for each year they had been alive, plus one for the hope of living for at least one more year. Blowing out these candles while making a wish was a big part of these celebrations.

8. The Industrial Revolution made a way for everyone to enjoy sugary cakes.

Sugary cakes were a birthday commodity only wealthy people had access to for quite some time. This was because the ingredients these sugary treats required were considered to be a luxury.

Then, the time in our history known as the Industrial Revolution allowed birthday celebrations in all cultures to proliferate. The required ingredients became more widely available. This, in combination with advances in mass production, allowed bakeries the option of offering customers pre-made cakes at lower prices.

9. The tune of “Happy Birthday” was actually a remix of sorts.

Two sisters, Patty Hill and Mildred J. Hill, who happened to both be Kentucky school teachers wrote a song called “Good Morning To All” in 1893 that was published in a book for other school teachers. The original intent of this song was to be sung in class by students before starting the day.

Of course, when anything catches on, there are variations that are made. This song is no different. Robert Coleman published a songbook in 1924 that featured this song with a few extra lyrics that quickly came to overshadow the original lyrics. These new lyrics to that popular old tune became what we know as “The Birthday Song” today.

In 1933, this new version was used in an Irving Berlin musical. One of the founding Hill sisters sued on the grounds that they held the copyright to the tune. They won the case and the copyright still holds to this day. Some even believe this song is under copyright until the year 2030. Copyright proceeds are split with the copyright owner and the Hill’s estate, estimated at around $2 million a year.

A few BONUS birthday fun facts:

10. Marie Antoinette should not be credited for the quote “Let them eat cake.”

This is a quote many people today attribute to Marie Antoinette, but it wasn’t until 50 years after her death that French critic and journalist, Alphonse Karr claimed that it started with her.

Despite these sourced rumors, this phrase actually had its first appearance in Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s autobiography called “The Confessions.” The book describes Rousseau’s fear of entering a bakery due to his improper dress.

The book leads up to this famous quote like this, “Finally I recalled the stopgap solution of a great princess who was told that the peasants had no bread, and who responded: ‘Let them eat brioche.’”

At the time this book was written, Antoinette was just a little girl. It is theorized by some that she read Rousseau’s book and was quoting it, but others, like Antoinette biographer Lady Antonia Fraser, disapprove of this theory.

It was taken offensively, as if Antoinette meant it as an insult to the lower class citizens, but Fraser knew that kind of callousness and ignorance wasn’t Antoinette’s style.

11. October 5 is the most common birth date in the U.S.

If you think about it, this makes perfect sense. Nine months before October 5 is New Year’s Eve, a pretty common conception date.

On another note, May 22 is considered to be the least common birthday in the U.S.

12. The lack of history on early birthday celebrations may be due to a lack of wealth.

There is a theory that the nobles were the only people who could afford to have birthday celebrations. Anyone other than these nobles were not likely to have been written about, and thus, remembered. So it could be that many birthday celebrations were had and there was no one to document them.

It is believed by many historians that this “nobility only” result could be the reason behind the custom of wearing a birthday “crown.”

A Timeless Tradition

Today, it’s hard to imagine that our beloved birthday traditions were not always around. But it all had to begin somewhere.

The cake, the candles, the presents, and the song all evolved over time to collectively create what we know as a birthday celebration. It is almost as if thousands and thousands of years of people and cultures all decided to play a huge game of “Telephone” right up until present day.

It’s interesting to think about how this contemporary version of a birthday celebration we have today will change and evolve over the next several hundred years.

Now that’s food for thought.

Want to throw one of the most historic kids birthday parties of all-time? Make their next party a Pump It Up party and we’ll do everything!

While we won’t get into the philosophical reasons for it, like our innate desire to create milestones in our lives, we will share the history of birthdays, when they began and how they’ve evolved.

From our research, the best guess as to when birthday celebrations started was with the ancient Egyptians sometime between 2345-2185 BCE. These weren’t exactly the same celebrations we know and love today. Based on the rough description that history books and other ancient texts provide us, these were celebrations for the current Pharaoh and were not based on his actual date of birth but rather when he became ruler of Egypt. The Egyptians viewed the day they were coronated as king to be the day they were born as a god.

The ancient Greeks got in on the action too. They provided birthday celebrations for their gods and goddesses, in particular Artemis, their lunar goddess. While the tradition was likely borrowed from the Egyptians, the Greeks added the tradition of providing lunar shaped cakes to the celebration. Eventually they added candles to the cakes to simulate the glow that emanates from the moon.

It wasn’t until the Romans that the birth of a common man was celebrated, sort of. For those in the Roman Empire, birthdays were a festival of the Genius, a spirit which came into the world with a child at birth, and were celebrated with cakes. These cakes weren’t exactly your run of the mill ones you get at a grocery store nowadays. They were made of oil, wheat, honey and grated cheese. Yep, you read that right, cheese. These celebrations weren’t for everyone though. Only men celebrated the day of their birth.

The Chinese began celebrating the first anniversary of a child’s birth with a ritual they called Zhuazhou around the year 1000 AD. As part of the ritual the relatives of the baby came to the home of the child to celebrate bringing modest gifts. It wasn’t elaborate or grand. Think of it as the modern day equivalent of just having a cake with close friends over for a kid’s birthday without much pomp and circumstance.

The tradition began to spread but it wasn’t until the 18th century that the present day birthday celebration started to take shape thanks to the Germans. It came in the form of something called Kinderfeste, a celebration of a kid’s birth complete with cake — the wealthy had the sugary kinds of confections we come to think of today — and candles. Much like today, there were as many candles as the number of years the child had be alive, with one caveat. There was an additional candle to signify the hope that the child would live another year. (We’ll leave it up to you to decide if that is sweet or slightly morbid.) Oh, and the somewhat unsanitary tradition of blowing on the cake to put out the candles? We can attribute that to the Germans as well.

The industrial revolution in the 19th century brought forth sugary cakes for all thanks to bakeries being able to mass produce their goods.

So we have candles, we have cakes and celebrations for all. The last piece of the puzzle came in 1924 when Robert Coleman published a song to the tune of “Good Morning to All”, originally published in 1893, with lyrics honoring a person’s birthday. Thus, “Happy Birthday to You” was born.

So there you have it. To sum up the journey to the kids birthday party of today, to quote the Grateful Dead, what a long strange trip it’s been. From the coronation of ancient Egyptian kings to some guy named Bob writing a song, it may have taken thousands of years to get here, but the celebration of a kid’s birthday is now truly a beautiful thing.