8. Unique characteristics of anglo-american culture

Housing:

• Most Americans live in large houses with yards in the front and back

  • Usually two or three stories tall

  • Affordable thanks to mortgage

• Apartments are almost always rented by the people living in them, not owned

  • Bigger than in Europe

• Second house (cabin) in the countryside = only rich American families

  • In the woods, on a like

  • Used for vacations

  • Typical for writers – time for writing in isolation

Holidays:

• General holiday (Christimas) x unique/ federal (Thanksgiving, Independence day, Veterans day

• Individual states and territories Martin Luther Kings day, New Year

• President’s Day: 3rd Monday in February

  • Formerly the birthday of the first president was celebrated, since the 70s it’s the day to honour all the past presidents

• Memorial Day: 4th Monday in May

  • Honouring the dead of all wars

• Independence Day: 4th of July

  • Declaration of Independence of USA, 4/1776

• Labour Day: 1st Monday in September

  • Honour of the nation’s working people

  • Kids don’t go to school

• Columbus Day: 2nd Monday in October

  • Commemorating Columbus’ landing in the New World

• Veteran’s Day: November 11th

  • Honouring Americans serving in WW1

• Thanksgiving Day: last Thursday - Thursday in November then black friday

  • Remembering the first settlers – Pilgrim Fathers 1620

  • Family holiday - feast – traditional dinner: roast turkey, apple/pumpkin pie

  • Day of charities, gifts, food for poor people

  • Celebrates help from natives and first harvest – tribe Squanto

• Easter:

  • Easter egg hunt

• Christmas:

  • Santa Claus visits homes of good kids on the night before Christmas and leaves them gifts

  • Derived from age-old stories about an early Christian saint named Nicholas known for his giving gifts

    • Living at the North Pole, he makes toys during a year

  • Tradition of leaving a glass of milk and cookies for his youngest reindeer Rudolph

• Valentine’s Day: February 14th

  • Lovers’ feast, saint Valentine married people in the cave when it was forbidden

• Halloween: the last day of October

  • Children dress in funny/ghostly costumes and knock at neighborhood doors, shouting “Trick or Treat!”, getting gifts/candy.