International Friendship Day Celebrated on Every Year 30th July

On 27 April 2011 the General Assembly of the United Nation declared July 30 as official International Friendship Day. The day has been celebrated in several southern South American countries for many years, particularly in Paraguay, where the 30th July was first proposed as World Friendship Day in 1958. Traditionally , the Day takes place on the first Sunday of August.

Initially created by the greeting cards industry, evidence from social networking sites shows a revival of interest in the holiday that may have grown with the spread of the Internet, particularly in India, Bangladesh, and Malaysia. There is also some evidence that the day is celebrated in some South American countries. Digital communication modes such as the Internet and mobile phones may be helping to popularize the custom, since greeting friends en masse is now easier than before.

Those who promote the holiday in South Asia attribute the tradition of dedicating a day in honor of friends to have originated in the U.S. in 1935, but it actually dates from 1919. The exchange of Friendship Day Gifts like flowers, cards and wrist bands is a popular tradition of this occasion.

In some countries, the Friendship Day celebrations take place on the first Sunday of August, and several Friendship Day celebrations on other dates are held by a range of countries.

History

Friendship Day was originally promoted by Joyce Hall, the founder of Hallmark cards in 1919, and intended on first sunday of august to be a day where people celebrated their friendships by sending cards. The first Sunday in August was chosen as the centre of the largest lull in holiday celebrations. Friendship Day was promoted by the greetings card National Association during the 1920s but met with consumer resistance - given that it was rather too obviously a commercial gimmick to promote greetings cards. By the 1940s the number of Friendship Day cards available in the US had dwindled and the holiday largely died out there. There is no evidence to date for its uptake in Europe, however it has been kept alive and revitalised in Asia where several countries adopted the tradition of dedicating a day to friends. Today, Friendship Day is enthusiastically celebrated in a number of countries across the world.

In honor of Friendship Day in 1998, Nane Annan, wife of Secretary-General Kofi Annan, named Winnie the Pooh as the world's Ambassador of Friendship at the United Nations. The event was co-sponsored by the U.N. Department of Public Information and Disney Enterprises, and was co-hosted by Kathy Lee Gifford.

Many friends acknowledge each other with exchange of gifts and cards on this day. Friendship bands are very popular in India, Nepal, Bangladesh and parts of South America. With the advent of social networking sites, friendship day is also being celebrated online. The commercialization of the Friendship Day celebrations has led to some dismissing it as a "marketing gimmick".

sus miembros a festejarlo en esta fecha que conmemora justamente la "Cruzada Mundíal de la Amistad".

World Friendship Crusade

The idea of a World Friendship Day was first proposed on 20 July 1958 by Dr. Artemio Bracho during a dinner with friends in Puerto Pinasco, a town on the River Paraguay about 200 miles north of Asuncion,Paraguay.

Out of this humble meeting of friends, the World Friendship Crusade was born. The World Friendship Crusade is a foundation that promotes friendship and fellowship among all human beings, regardless of race, colour or religion. Since then, 30 July has been faithfully celebrated as World Friendship Day in Paraguay every year and has also been adopted by several other countries.

The World Friendship Crusade has lobbied the United Nations for many years to recognised July 30 as World Friendship Day.

UN International Day of Friendship

Finally on 27 April 2011 during the sixty-fifth session of the General Assembley of the United Nations, 30 July was unanimous designated as International Day of Friendship, following a petition of several countries in the context of the UN Culture of Peace Agenda. As the UN Resolution exposes, the target of this day is to promote the international understanding, the respect for diversity and a culture of peace, between peoples, countries, cultures and individuals.

According to the Friendship Day declaration, the azdbasha invited to "observe this day in an appropriate manner, in accordance with the culture and other appropriate circumstances or customs of their local, national and regional communities, including through education and public awareness-raising activities".

Other traditions

• Día del Amigo (Spanish: "Friend's Day"), a celebration of friendship, held annually on 20 July mainly in Argentina and Uruguay, but also in some other countries.

• Dia do Amigo (Portuguese: "Friend's Day"), celebration happens on 18 April because on 20 July, they celebrate International Friendship Day.