Preface

The International Book of Days is a companion volume to the fourth edition of The American Book of Days, also prepared by myself and published by the H.W. Wilson Company. The American Book of Days dates back to the 1930s, providing readers and researchers with information concerning historical events of special interest to Americans. Preparation of The International Book of Days was parallel to the release of The American Book of Days’ fourth edition in 2000; the new book is designed to provide readers with information on historical events of military, scientific, ethnic, political, and cultural significance from around the world.

The International Book of Days is a unique record of world history. For each of the 366 days of the year, including February 29, several substantial essays explore significant events through their anniversaries or through other relevant dates. Of course, some of the "days" in this book are longer than others, owing to the inevitable coincidence of various important events occurring on one day or the relative paucity of important events on another. The emphasis is typically on the anniversary of particular events, although in some cases the birth dates or death dates of the individuals involved were used if necessity merited it. Religious events and secular holidays from virtually every country on Earth are also included.

In some instances the reader will find some overlap with The American Book of Days. This was inevitable, since some events—Jewish, Christian, and Muslim holidays, for example—have special international and American interest. However, the duplication of events has been kept to a strict minimum. Where it does occur, extra emphasis is given to the international importance rather than the purely American aspects of the event, and more often than not the reader is referred to The American Book of Days for further information in order to avoid duplication.

Readers of this book will find in-depth treatments of a wide variety of events, rather than the one-sentence or other summary descriptions that so often typify other day-books and online resources. An exhaustive research and fact-checking process ensured that there are events from all of the world’s major religions and cultural traditions as well. Cross-referencing and an extensive index should facilitate research and help readers trace specific themes throughout several articles. Some events such as Passover or Chinese New Year, are "movable events," which do not occur on the same calendar day every year. For purposes of convenience, movable events are included at the day on which they fell in 2001, the first official year of the 21st century and the third millennium. Strict attention was also given to making sure that events from ancient or medieval history were included at their proper days, despite the many gaps in the historical record and the various calendar changes over the centuries and millennia.

This book is dedicated to the Christianson family, especially the newest members, my nieces Caroline (August 2002) and Stephanie (November 2003). I wish to thank Ms. Laura Ware of Sebring, Florida, for her invaluable assistance in preparing articles for this book. I would also like to thank the photographers who graciously donated their pictures to this project: Meredeth Deaton, Karen Duda, Kaitlen Jay Exum, Ann Katrin Hagemann, Lynn M. Messina, Michelle K. Nowland, Eleanor O’Rangers, Richard J. Stein, Sarah Stonebraker, and Kate Tarbell.

Stephen G. Christianson