years later. In 1909, Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington, was listening to a Mother’s Day sermon in church when she thought that fathers deserved their own day of recognition. Her father, a Civil War veteran, raised Sonora and her five siblings after their mother died in childbirth. She petitioned to have the third Sunday of June (the month in which her father was born) declared Father’s Day and asked people to wear a rose on that day to honor their dads.

The first Father’s Day was celebrated on June 19, 1910. It was not until 1966, under U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson, that it was proclaimed a national holiday and the observance of this on the third Sunday in June was made a law in 1972. (In contrast, the U.S. observed Mother’s Day nationally for the first time in 1914.)

However, this modern tribute has been disputed. It’s been said that a Babylonian youth named Elmesu carved the first known Father’s Day card in clay nearly 4,000 years ago. His special message wished his father good health and a long life.

Father's Day Observances

Countries that celebrate Father’s Day on the third Sunday of June, Argentina, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, France, Hong Kong S.A.R., India, Pakistan, Ireland, Japan, Macao S.A.R., Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, Peru, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Venezuela.

The rose has become the symbol of Father’s Day. Some wear a red rose to indicate that one’s father is living or a white rose if he is dead.

Some favorite gifts on Father’s Day are neckties, socks, pipes and cigars, and shirts.

Last year, Americans sent nearly 95 million greeting cards during Father’s Day, making the occasion the fourth most popular card-sending occasion.

They spent $8.2 billion in Father’s Day gifts in 2005, compared to the $11.2 billion spent for Mother’s Day.

Filipino: tatay, itay, tay, ama
French: papa
Romani: dad
German: banketi, Papi
Hebrew: av, aba(h)
Yiddish: tatti, or tay
Urdu: Abbu, Abbu-ji, Abbu-jan
Bangla: Baba, Abba
Kannada: Appa
Hindi: Papa, Pita-ji, Baap
Polish: tata
Hungarian: apa, or apu
Dutch: papa
Italian: papa, babbo
Arabic: babba, yebba, abbi (classical)
Russian: papa
Chinese: bà, bàba (informal)
Kiswahili: Baba
Persian: pedar, pitar, Baabaa
Japanese: otsan, papa, chichi
Spanish: papá
Turkish: baba
Malay/Indonesian: Abah, Ayah
Swedish: Pappa

Dad Through the 'Ages"

At 4: My daddy can do anything.
At 5: My daddy knows a whole lot.
At 6: My dad is smarter than your dad.
At 8: My dad doesn’t know exactly everything.
At 10: In the olden days, when my dad grew up, things were sure different.
At 12: Oh, well, naturally, Dad doesn’t know anything about that . He is too old to remember his childhood.
At 14: Don’t pay any attention to my dad. He is so old-fashioned.
At 21: Him? My Lord, he’s hopelessly out of date.
At 25: Dad knows about it, but then he should, because he has been around so long.
At 30: Maybe we should ask Dad what he thinks. After all, he’s had a lot of experience.
At 35: I’m not doing a single thing until I talk to Dad.
At 40: I wonder how Dad would have handled it. He was so wise.
At 50: I’d give anything if Dad were here now so I could talk this over with him. Too bad I didn’t appreciate how smart he was. I could have learned a lot from him.