Mother’s day: Canadians like their mothers; dads don’t fare as well

In Canada, and many other countries, the second Sunday in May is called “Mother’s day” a time for children to show appreciation to their mothers.

This year it occurs on May 9th.

A recent survey however has shown that mothers get more appreciation than fathers.  In fact more people participate in Canada day than “Father’s day”.   Earlier this year an online survey was conducted among 1,508 randomly selected Canadian adults age 18 to 54 who are Angus Reid Forum panelists.

Although there were Roman and Greek celebrations on the concept of mothers, modern Mother’s day as we know it goes back to the 1600’s in England where “mothering day” was celebrated on the fourth Sunday of Lent when after a church service to honour the Virgin Mary, children brought gifts and flowers to pay tribute to their own mothers. ( Unlike many other countries, Mothering Day in the UK is still celebrated on the fourth Sunday of Lent which was March 30th this year)

The tradition however, died out by the 1800’s. It began to regain headway in the US through the efforts of two American women , one in the late 1800’s and the other in the early 1900’s. It was given “official” recognition by Presidential decree in 1914 declaring the second Sunday in May as “Mother’s Day”. It has since caught on in dozens of countries around the world.

It showed that 71 percent plan to celebrate Mother’s Day, while on 57 percent observe Father’s Day, which is less than the 61 percent who commemorate Canada Day.

The survey also revealed that Canadians are far more likely than their American counterparts to use technology to express their love for their parents. Almost half (48 percent) of Canadians think it’s acceptable to wish a Happy Mother’s or Father’s Day via text or email message. Americans are more traditional, with only 17 per cent saying it’s okay to send mom or dad an e-greeting to mark the day

The survey shows also that children spend more on moms than dads but the average amount spent is less than $50.

Other findings are:

– The most popular gifts for mom include flowers (46 per cent), cards (39 per cent), meals (27 per cent) and gift cards (25 per cent);

– Flower sales for mother’s day account for approximately a quarter of all flower sales during the year

-Top gifts for dads include a card (36 per cent), a meal (27 per cent), alcohol (18 per cent) and clothing (17 per cent);

– 17 per cent of Canadians and 15 per cent of Americans believe that if they purchase a meal for their mom on Mother’s Day they do not need to get her a gift.

As a final note, the American woman, Anna Jarvis, whose efforts in the early 1900’s resulted in the official declaration of Mother’s Day, was reported to have become quickly disillusioned and greatly dismayed at how commercial interests had seized upon the opportunity and taken over the day.