Ep.83: Traditional Anniversary Gifts by Year

April 30, 2023 Peter Jans

Intro

Hello and Welcome to this episode of the podcast, "The Mnemonic Tree", where we add a single mnemonic leaf, to our Tree of Knowledge.

Today's episode is on traditional anniversary gifts by year. As there is a total of 24, starting with the first, which is paper and ending at the sixtieth which is diamond, a mnemonic of 24 was going to be a little ambitious, so I have done them in ten-year increments following the first. For example, 1, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 and finally 60.

So, as I won’t be doing all of them, I’ll just run through the first ten for your information.

The 1st year is Paper, the 2nd year Cotton, the 3rd year Leather, the 4th year Fruit or Flowers, the 5th year Wood, the 6th year Candy or Iron, the 7th year Wool or Copper, the 8th year Bronze or Pottery, the 9th year Pottery or Willow, and the 10th year Tin or Aluminium.

So, in retrospect, I’m glad I didn’t do the first ten because it becomes exceptionally confusing when there are multiple options for six of them and also pottery can either be the eighth or ninth year. Along with the fact that many of the lists are different on the internet, so you’re not quite sure which one is correct.

With that being said, we will begin with a summary from Wikipedia.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Diamond_Engagement_Ring_White_Gold_by_1791_Diamond.jpg

Wikipedia Summary

A wedding anniversary is the anniversary of the date that a wedding took place. Couples often mark the occasion by celebrating their relationship, either privately or with a larger party. Special celebrations and gifts are often given for particular anniversary milestones (e.g., 10, 15, 20, or 25 years). In some cultures, traditional names exist for milestone anniversaries; for instance, fifty years of marriage may be known variously as a "golden wedding anniversary", "golden anniversary" or "golden wedding".In English-speaking countries, the tradition of associating gift-giving with wedding anniversaries became more prevalent in the nineteenth century, alongside the emergence of the Victorian era.[2]

Associating a wedding anniversary with precious metals such as "gold" (50 years) or "silver" (25 years) has been documented in Germanic countries since the 1500s.[1] In English-speaking countries, the tradition of associating gift-giving with wedding anniversaries became more prevalent in the nineteenth century, alongside the emergence of the Victorian era.[2] In the twentieth century, increased commercialization led to the inclusion of more anniversaries to a list of predetermined gifts.[3][4]

In some parts of the world, couples can receive special recognition from government officials for particular milestones. In the Commonwealth realms, a couple can receive a message from the monarch for 60th, 65th and 70th wedding anniversaries and for any wedding anniversary after that.[5] This is done by applying to Buckingham Palace in the United Kingdom or to the governor-general's office in the other Commonwealth realms.[6]

In Australia, couples can receive a congratulatory letter from the governor-general on the 50th and all subsequent wedding anniversaries. The prime minister, the Leader of the Opposition, local members of both state and federal parliaments as well as state governors may also send salutations for the same anniversaries.[7]

In Canada, couples can also receive a message from the governor-general for the 50th anniversary and every fifth anniversary after that.[8]

In the United States, a couple can receive an anniversary greeting card from the president for the 50th and all subsequent anniversaries.[9]

Roman Catholics may apply for a papal blessing through their local diocese for wedding anniversaries of a special nature (25th, 50th, 60th, etc.).[10][11]

Extracted from: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wedding_anniversary]

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Happy_Anniversary_cake.jpg

Mnemonic

Traditional Anniversary Gifts by Year Mnemonic – Public Transport Can Provide Really Good Downtime

(Picture yourself on the train sitting back taking it easy, writing a short poem for your partner on a piece of paper, which you will give to him/her when you get home for your one-year anniversary)

1. Paper – 1st Anniversary

2. Tin – 10th Anniversary

3. China – 20th Anniversary

4. Pearl – 30th Anniversary

5. Ruby – 40th Anniversary

6. Gold – 50th Anniversary

7. Diamond – 60th Anniversary

Five Fun Facts

1. The anniversary gift goes all the way back to the 15th century. An American writer named Emily Post was the first to create a list of anniversary themes.

2. There is a myriad of options for Anniversary gifts. They can vary from country to country, they can be traditional or contemporary, and each milestone year is also associated with a colour, gemstone and flower.

Just speaking of flowers, my partner gave me flowers for our last anniversary. I was really impressed ……... she really Rose to the occasion!

I actually went against all traditional conventions and I bought her a refrigerator, as I really wanted to see, her face light up!

For those of you who don’t know, I met my partner online; we just clicked!

3. Anniversary gifts gained popularity in the Victorian era. It was believed that gifts should increase in value as the relationship grows. Modern gift interpretations then evolved and were first published by the American National Retail Jeweller’s Association in 1937

4. The word anniversary has Latin origins. Annus means year and versus means turning, hence the Latin term anniversaries which means returning yearly, which is then converted into middle English as anniversary

5. In Denmark they have a special tradition for their 12-and-a-half-year anniversary. They call it a copper wedding and for this, family and friends get together and build the couple half an arch from spruce which they then decorate with lights and flowers. Apparently, you then get the other half of the arch when you reach your 25th anniversary.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Day_340_Cy365_Gifts_(91915561).jpeg

Three Question Quiz

Q.1. What precious metal celebrates a 25th anniversary?

Q.2. What are the two most common gifts for a wedding Anniversary?

Q.3. What is the celebration of a 70th anniversary called?

Mnemonic Recap

Traditional Anniversary Gifts by Year – Public Transport Can Provide Really Good Downtime