by Sydney Meyer, KETC Public Insight Network analyst
Using our Public Insight Network, I recently asked if anyone would be willing to share an interesting custom hiding in their ethnic background that they still practiced or at least remembered from their childhood.
Responses were few, but very informative, nevertheless. They made for wonderful reading on a rainy afternoon as I sat at my computer!
I learned some Scottish history from PIN source Mark Sutherland (even though I am Irish through and through I feel a kinship with the Scots). He explained the background surrounding their annual Robert Burns dinner. Burns lived in the 1700’s and is Scotland’s national poet. On January 25, a few hundred Scottish people living in St. Louis (plus millions around the world), get together for poetry, bagpipes, toasts, haggis and scotch. Haggis is the traditional Scottish dish that is accompanied by a good single malt scotch. According to some Scots, most of their events are accompanied by a good single malt scotch!
(Just on a side note: if you like cultural events, the Scottish games are coming up October 1 and 2 in Forest Park. To read more about the Scottish culture and how it is celebrated in St. Louis, click here: Scottish St. Andrew’s Society of Greater St. Louis)
Not too far away in England, Carol Wright shared that at Christmas time the Christmas tree was put up at the very last minute! The influence is Christian in nature in that they wait for the arrival of the Christ Child; the tree is a symbol of His coming. After Christmas, the tree is left up until the arrival of the wise men at the feast of the Epiphany. Carol did note that on one particularly bitter, cold Christmas Eve they had trouble even finding a tree lot open and so now they usually put the tree up a few days earlier!
Then on the other side of the globe, PIN source Anna Crosslin, wrote about an interesting Japanese custom. Sometimes when you see one person peeking at the second person during a bowing process it is for a good reason. The peeking is to see how low the other person is bowing to ensure that the first person is bowing at the correct level. It is also somewhat embarrassing not to present a “meishi”(business card) when one business person is being presented to another. It helps each person determine the relative status of the other, so that bowing protocol can be observed!
Goodness! We certainly have a lot to learn in America about the customs of other cultures. This blog is just a start. If you know any more unique customs consider letting us know by sharing: What interesting custom is found in your ethnic background? or just leave us a comment.
