Which festivals and traditions should you know for the Life in the UK test?

Which festivals and traditions should you know for the Life in the UK test?

Learn the main Christian festivals, the four patron saints' days, the festivals of other faiths, and the dates of the other customs. The easiest way is to follow the calendar from January to December.

First, a short picture of religion. The UK has a Christian history, and in the 2011 census 59 percent of people said they were Christian. About 25 percent said they had no religion. Smaller groups were Muslim (4.8 percent), Hindu (1.5), Sikh (0.8), and Jewish or Buddhist (each under 0.5). Everyone has the legal right to choose a religion or none.

Which churches are linked to the state?

In England the Church of England is the state church. It is Protestant, and it dates from the 1530s. The monarch is its head and the Archbishop of Canterbury is its spiritual leader. Some bishops sit in the House of Lords.

In Scotland the national church is the Church of Scotland, which is Presbyterian. Its chairperson, the Moderator, serves for one year. Wales and Northern Ireland have no established church. The biggest Christian group outside the Protestant churches is Roman Catholic.

Which days belong to the four nations?

Each nation has a patron saint with a special day: 1 March for St David (Wales), 17 March for St Patrick (Northern Ireland), 23 April for St George (England) and 30 November for St Andrew (Scotland). Remember them in calendar order as Wales, Northern Ireland, England, Scotland. Only Scotland and Northern Ireland have a public holiday for their saint.

What are the Christian festivals?

Christmas Day is on 25 December and marks the birth of Jesus Christ. Boxing Day, the day after, is also a public holiday. Many families eat roast turkey, Christmas pudding and mince pies.

Easter falls in March or April. Good Friday marks the death of Jesus, and Easter Sunday his rising from the dead. Good Friday and Easter Monday are public holidays. Lent lasts 40 days before Easter. It begins on Ash Wednesday. The day before is Shrove Tuesday, or Pancake Day, when people used up eggs, fat and milk before fasting. Easter eggs are a sign of new life. Mothering Sunday falls three weeks before Easter.

What are the festivals of other faiths?

• Diwali, in October or November, lasts five days. Hindus and Sikhs celebrate it as the Festival of Lights. Leicester has a famous celebration.
• Hannukah, in November or December, lasts eight days, with a candle lit each day on a menorah. It remembers the struggle of the Jews for religious freedom.
• Eid al-Fitr marks the end of Ramadan, a month of fasting. Eid ul Adha remembers that Ibrahim was ready to sacrifice his son. The dates change each year.
• Vaisakhi, on 14 April, is the Sikh festival for the founding of the Khalsa.

What are the other customs, month by month?

• 1 January: New Year. In Scotland 31 December is Hogmanay and 2 January is also a holiday.
• 14 February: Valentine's Day, for cards between lovers.
• 1 April: April Fool's Day, with jokes until midday.
• Third Sunday in June: Father's Day.
• 31 October: Halloween, from an ancient festival marking the start of winter. People carve pumpkin lanterns and children go "trick or treat".
• 5 November: Bonfire Night, from the 1605 plot of Guy Fawkes against the king.
• 11 November: Remembrance Day. The First World War ended on 11 November 1918. People wear red poppies. At 11.00 am there is a two-minute silence and wreaths are laid at the Cenotaph in Whitehall.

Bank holidays have no religious meaning. They fall in early May, late May or early June, and August. In Northern Ireland there is one more in July, for the Battle of the Boyne.

How can you remember it all?

Two dates are only a few days apart and easy to mix up: Bonfire Night on 5 November and Remembrance Day on 11 November. One is about a plot in 1605, the other about a war that ended in 1918.

Sort the festivals into three boxes: those with a holiday, those with food or costumes, and those of other faiths. For each festival, say what it remembers in one sentence.

For the saints' days, read patron saints and national days. For more on culture, read arts, music and literature. The modern society chapter page has the full topic, and the free practice test shows what you still mix up.

Check yourself

Write the four patron saints with their dates, in calendar order.

Explain in your own words the difference between Bonfire Night and Remembrance Day.

List the festivals of other faiths and one fact about each.