Great Britain During the medieval period, Saint Catherine's Day marked the beginning of
Advent in England. Catterntide was celebrated by lacemakers. A traditional celebration of St Catherine's Day, which has seen something of a revival in modern times, is the baking of
symbolic 'Cattern Cakes' in honour of St Catherine. The rise of the internet has assisted in this process, as recipes have become more readily available. The key ingredients are bread dough, egg, sugar, lard or butter, and
caraway seeds. The custom of lighting a revolving pyrotechnic display (a
'Catherine Wheel firework') to celebrate the saint's feast day is assisted by the ready supply of such fireworks during the month of November, due to the secular celebration of
Guy Fawkes Night earlier in the month.
Canada In
Quebec and elsewhere in
French Canada,
St. Catherine's Day is a special day celebrating "
spinsters". Following French tradition, this celebration was seen as the last opportunity for women over 25 still single to present themselves to men still available to find themselves a suitable husband. The women would wear a certain distinctive headdress. Over the centuries, as Quebec modernized, the age was increased to 30 years after the
Quiet Revolution. According to the current tradition and rules of proper etiquette still in place today,
French Canadian women passed 30 must forgo the idea of having a big wedding as many young
Quebec girls dreamt of and must wear a sober dress covering arms and collarbones. Although a trend exists to raise the age to 35, it remains highly frowned upon for women over 30, and certainly those from good families, to hold large weddings and celebrations. This is also why today many
Quebec women leave aside the tradition of a grand wedding and decide instead to buy a house and start a family as a sign of commitment to their partner.
St. Catherine's taffy is a candy made by
French Canadian girls to honor
St. Catherine, the
patron saint of unmarried women on her
feast day. St. Catherine's Day is sometimes known in among French-Canadians as "taffy day", a day when marriage-age girls would make taffy for eligible boys. Saint
Marguerite Bourgeoys, a founder of the
Notre-Dame de Montréal and an early teacher in
Ville-Marie, the colonial settlement that would later become
Montreal, is credited with starting the tradition as a way of keeping the attention of her young pupils by placing the taffy on the path in front of her school leading to the door way.
Estonia In Estonia, five parish churches and at least as many chapels have been dedicated to St. Catherine. St. Catherine's Day () is still widely celebrated in modern-day
Estonia. It marks the arrival of winter and is one of the more important and popular
autumn days in the Estonian folk calendar. It is a day of celebration for the women of the culture. The customs for the Estonian St. Catherine's Day are generally associated with the
kadrisants (kadri beggars) or kadris, which give the whole day a unique quality, although it is similar to the traditions practised on St. Martin's Day. Both require dressing up and going from door to door on the eve of the holiday to collect gifts, such as food, cloth and wool, in return for suitable songs and blessings. As with mardi eve (the evening before St. Martin's Day), when the village youth chose a
mardiisa (father), the main player on kadri eve is
kadriema (mother). On St. Catherine's Day, in order to protect the
sheep, shearing and weaving were forbidden and sewing and knitting were also occasionally banned. St. Catherine's Day has retained its popularity throughout the centuries, including the half-century of Soviet occupation, during which no direct official obstructions to the celebrations were made, probably due to the apolitical nature of the holiday. Thus, St. Catherine's Day is still widely celebrated in modern-day Estonia. It is particularly popular among students and the rural population.
France in 1909 On St Catherine's Day, it is customary for unmarried women to pray for husbands, and to honour women who have reached 25 years of age but have not married—called "
Catherinettes" in France. Catherinettes send postcards to each other, and friends of the Catherinettes make hats for them—traditionally using the colours yellow (
faith) and green (
wisdom), often outrageous—and crown them for the day. Pilgrimage is made to St Catherine's statue, and she is asked to intercede in finding husbands for the unmarried lest they "don St. Catherine's bonnet" and become
spinsters. The Catherinettes are supposed to wear the hat all day long, and they are usually feted with a meal among friends. Because of this hat-wearing custom, French milliners have big parades to show off their wares on this day. The French say that before a girl reaches 25, she prays: ""''Donnez-moi, Seigneur, un mari de bon lieu! Qu'il soit doux, opulent, libéral et agréable!''" (Lord, give me a well-situated husband. Let him be gentle, rich, generous, and pleasant!") After 25, she prays: ""
Seigneur, un qui soit supportable, ou qui, parmi le monde, au moins puisse passer!" (Lord, one who is bearable, or who can at least pass as bearable in the world!") And when she is approaching 30: "''Un tel qu'il te plaira Seigneur, je m'en contente!''" ("Send whoever you want, Lord; I'll be happy!"). An English version goes, St Catherine, St Catherine, O lend me thine aid, And grant that I never may die an old maid. Inspired by the annual event of the same name in Vesoul, French city in the East of France, it is held the weekend before Thanksgiving. ==Media==