Page 45 - 樂善堂梁銶琚學校（校刊2019）

Finnish

Culture

Po Leung Kuk Leung Chow Shun Kam Primary School
Taoist Ching Chung Primary School (Wu King Estate)

Labour Day is an annual holiday to celebrate the
achievements of workers. Labour Day has its origins in the
labour union movement, specifically the eight-hour day
movement, which advocated eight hours for work, eight

hours for recreation, and eight hours for rest.

For most countries, Labour Day is synonymous with,

or linked with, International Workers’ Day on 1 May. Other
countries celebrate Labour Day on different dates, often
with special significance for the labour movement in each
country. Labour Day is a public holiday in many countries.

Every year on April 30 and May 1, Finland seems
to go crazy as people celebrate May Day. We roamed the Finnish capital to record the boisterous
celebration in pictures.

May 1 is Labour Day in Finland but the Finns also see it as a chance to celebrate the arrival of
spring. Numerous festive student traditions are also associated with this date. In fact, just about
everyone gets in on the action – May Day and the preceding evening represent the biggest party of
the year.

April 30 and May 1 are called Vappu in Finnish, which is an official language in Finland. The
English name is Walpurgis, referring to the feast of Saint Walpurga. All over Finland, people dust

off their white, secondary-school graduation caps and wear them around town, while the parks are
filled with picnicking revellers of all ages.

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