51+ Birthday Fun Facts To Make Your Birthday Even More Fun

The most popular version of 'Happy Birthday' is the 'Happy Birthday, Mr. President' by Marilyn Monroe.

A birthday celebration, as per the early Christians was observed as in pagan cultures. However, birthday celebrations were held on the day a saint was born that people were named after in Medieval times, so people called John would have celebrated their birthday on St John's Day.

A birthday is the yearly celebration of a person's birth. Many cultures celebrate birthdays, which usually include the rite of passage, birthday gifts, birthday parties, and birthday cards.

A contrast between a birthdate and a birthday is that the former marks the exact date of a human's birth, for example, July 1, 2000, and the latter occurs every year on July 1.

As early civilizations lacked a method to keep track of time, except for using the moon, sun, or other events, it was hard to track birthdays. Our ancestors started realizing that everyone experienced stages of aging but did not have any ways in which to mark them.

Fun Facts About Birthdays

In many places around the world, birthday celebrations include a birthday party with a cake that has the age and name of the person. The number of candles is the same as the person's age. The celebrated person will commonly make a wish and try to blow all the candles in one breathe.

• As per the tradition, if the person blows all the candles at once, their wish will be granted.
• It was believed that celebrations kept evil spirits away from the person celebrating. Also, mirth, revelry, good wishes, and friendly visits were believed to scare these evil spirits.
• On April 23, 1616, William Shakespeare died on his birthday, aged 52.
• The world-famous diary of Anne Frank was a gift for her 13th birthday.
• Birthdays are also celebrated to honor religious founders or figures with special holidays like Buddha's birthday and Christmas.
• Children's day in India is celebrated in honor of the first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru's birthday.
• In 1965, birthday quotes became popular and almost everyone used quotes in England to wish clients, family members, and friends a happy birthday.
• When a person's birth date and age are the same, it is called a golden birthday. For example, if you were born on the 11th and when you turn 11, it is your golden birthday.
• The most common birth date in the United States, excluding leap years, is 22 May.
• When Shirley Temple turned eight, she received 135,000 gifts.

Birthday Cake

Birthday cakes are part of birthday celebrations. These cakes are usually layer cakes with frosting. Various other birthday cakes are tarts, cupcakes, pastries, and cake pops. The cake is usually decorated with a 'Happy Birthday' wish and the name of the celebrant.

• Since the mid-19th-century, Western Europe has been incorporating birthday cakes in its celebrations.
• The tradition of birthday cakes may be from Roman times.
• It is believed that the first birthday cake came from Germany.
• When Fort Payne, Alabama turned 100 years in 1989, the largest birthday cake in the world was baked.
• Cakes were served at special weddings and birthdays in ancient Roman culture.
• In ancient times, cakes were made with nuts and flour, fermented with yeast, and honey.
• German bakeries started marketing one-layer cakes for birthdays and weddings in the 15th-century.
• A theory states that candles on birthday cakes are associated with early Greeks.
• Greeks made use of candles in honor of the birth of the Artemis goddess on every lunar month.
• In Pagan culture, candles on birthdays have symbolic power. It is also said that party-goers scared away evil spirits with loud noises.

Birthday Gifts

Birthday gifts and gift-giving dates back to as long as humans can remember. The survival of a human after their first year was considered an achievement in several cultures.

• Birthday celebrations were rare as people celebrated important moments in one's life like the time of birth, reaching adulthood, or marriage.
• The early first century AD noted the Roman tradition of celebrating birthdays of the reigning emperor, friends, and family with gifts. This tradition eventually gained popularity throughout the Empire.
• It is believed that gift-giving was a primitive caveman culture. These gifts were not packed in a fancy wrapper but the gifts were from nature like tree bark or rock.
• In Ancient Egypt, people gave gifts to pharaohs who built pyramids that had their wealth.
• Gift-giving is a way for people to connect and also allows them to express their feelings.
• Gift-giving also improves the state of mind and is contagious.
• Greeting cards sent or given to someone who is celebrating their birthday are called birthday cards.
• Gifts are usually packaged in a traditional way as per the culture.
• The red wrapping paper in the Chinese culture signifies luck.
• The tradition of gift-giving has turned into a gift economy, as per economists.
• In the United States, around two billion birthday cards are given or sent every year.
• A famous birthday present on the 21st birthday, between 19th-20th century, was to get all your teeth replaced with dentures, to avoid dental treatments in future.
• Gifts are usually given as per the age of the celebrant.

Planning A Surprise Birthday Party

Although the tradition of birthday parties began in the mid-19th century, it only got popularity in the mid-20th-century. In the modern-day, many cultures follow this tradition. Western cultures have many usual rituals in birthday parties. Many times the party location is also decorated with streamers, balloons, candles, and tables.

• The most expensive birthday party in the world was hosted by the Sultan of Brunei on July 13, 1996, when he turned 50.
• If you are going to throw a surprise birthday party, make sure to prepare a checklist after selecting a theme.
• After you have decided the number of people you want to invite, select the location accordingly.
• Make sure the honoree is available on the date and time you pick.
• Pick the right foods for your party. If you want to select a restaurant then make sure they have the right food you need.
• Invite all your guests. Do not forget to tell all your guests that it is a surprise party.
• If your location is in the place of the honoree then make sure to have simple decorations, make it quick, and keep all the decorations away from all the windows.
• If the location is someplace other than the honoree's house, then you will have more time to decorate the place.
• Make sure to give all the details to guests before they arrive.
• Make sure to have someone pick up your honoree or stay with them for regular updates.
• Take a look at your checklist one last time and tell all the guests what you want them to do when the honoree arrives.