The International Day of Friendship, celebrated globally on July 30, was established by the UN in 2011 to promote global peace and unity. The day aims to foster better understanding and cooperation among people from diverse cultures and communities.
Indian Friendship Day
In India, Friendship Day is celebrated on the first Sunday of August. This timing, driven by commercial interests and media promotion, allows for convenient gatherings as it falls on a day off from work. The summer season, associated with warmth and social activities, further enhances the celebration.
Origins and Popularisation
The concept of a Friendship Day originated in the United States in the 1950s by Joyce Hall, founder of Hallmark Cards. While the date was unspecified initially, the idea quickly spread internationally. In India, the first Sunday of August became a practical and culturally suitable date, allowing for leisurely and enthusiastic celebrations.
While both the International Day of Friendship and Indian Friendship Day celebrate the bond of friendship, they differ in dates and focus. The international observance aims for global unity, whereas the Indian celebration emphasizes personal relationships and social activities. Despite these differences, both days honor the special emotion of friendship.
VALUABLE FRIENDSHIP QUOTES FOR YOU
“Things are never quite as scary when you’ve got a best friend.” — Bill Watterson
“Friendship is the hardest thing in the world to explain. It’s not something you learn in school. But if you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven’t learned anything.” — Muhammad Ali
“My best friend is the one who brings out the best in me.” — Henry Ford
“Friendship is the only cement that will ever hold the world together.” — Woodrow Wilson
“A day without a friend is like a pot without a single drop of honey left inside.” — Winnie the Pooh
“They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.” — Carl W. Buechner
“There’s not a word yet for old friends who’ve just met.” — Jim Henson
“True friends are always together in spirit.” — L.M. Montgomery
“True friends are never apart, maybe in distance but never in heart.” — Unknown
“The best mirror is an old friend.” — George Herbert
“The most important discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart.” — Elisabeth Foley
“I still have friends from primary school. And my two best girlfriends are from secondary school. I don’t have to explain anything to them. I don’t have to apologize for anything. They know. There’s no judgment in any way.” — Emma Watson
“Growing apart doesn’t change the fact that for a long time we grew side by side; our roots will always be tangled.” — Ally Condie
“‘Tis the privilege of friendship to talk nonsense, and to have her nonsense respected.” — Charles Lamb
“A friend is one soul abiding in two bodies.” — Aristotle
“True friends are great riches.” — Unknown
“A true friend is for ever a friend.” — George MacDonald
“Your friends will know you better in the first minute you meet than your acquaintances will know you in a thousand years.” — Richard Bach
“One good friendship will outlive forty average loves.” — Unknown
“A friend is one who overlooks your broken fence and admires the flowers in your garden.” — Unknown
“I would rather walk with a friend in the dark than walk alone in the light.” — Helen Keller
“That was what a best friend did: hold up a mirror and show you your heart.” — Kristin Hannah
“A good friend is a connection to life — a tie to the past, a road to the future, the key to sanity in a totally insane world.” — Lois Wyse
“Friendship’s the wine of life.” — Edward Young
“Best friends are the people in your life who make you laugh louder, smile brighter, and live better.” — Unknown
“That was what a best friend did: hold up a mirror and show you your heart.” —Kristin Hannah
“A best friend us someone who makes you laugh even when you think you’ll never smile again.” –Unknown
“True friendship is when two friends can walk in opposite directions, yet remain side by side.” –Josh Grayson
“A faithful friend loves to the end.” — Unknown
“True friendship is a plant of slow growth…” — George Washington
“The only reward of virtue is virtue; the only way to have a friend is to be one.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Friendship improves happiness and abates misery, by, the doubling of our joy, and diving of our grief;” — Joseph Addison