10th February Umbrella Day

 

This day is set aside to honour the humble umbrella for its admirable duty of shielding us from the elements.

The word “umbrella” is derived from the Latin, “umbra”, meaning shade or shadow.

There is evidence of umbrellas in the ancient art and artefacts of Egypt, Assyria, Greece and China. From ancient times, umbrellas have had a place in our lives including playing an important part in religious ceremonies and rituals.

The Chinese are credited with being the first to use umbrellas to protect from the rain. To make their traditional paper parasols water resistant they applied a layer of wax and lacquer.

It wasn’t until the 18th century that umbrellas became popular amongst the nobility where it was as much a fashion accessory and a device to protect from the elements.

To read about the history of the umbrella search out Jonas Hanway's Scurrilous, Scandalous, Shockingly, Sensational Umbrella  by Josh Crute which is all about the real gentleman who introduced umbrellas to 1750's London society.

There are so many wonderful picture books that feature umbrellas and what is surprising about them, is that many use the umbrella as a means to something such as friendship, compassion, even a little magic.

Start with the very reassuring  Under the Love Umbrella  by Davina Bell and Allison Colpoys.

The Blue Umbrella  by Emily Ann Davison and Momoko Abe 

The Big Umbrella  by Amy June Bates and Juniper Bates

Umbrella  by Elena Arevalo Melville

The Elephant's Umbrella  by Laleh Jaffari and Ali Khodai

Zebra's Umbrella  by David Hernandez Sevillano and Anuska Allepuz

The Umbrella  by Beth Ferry and David Lichtenheld

The Umbrella Tree  by Bai Bing, Li Hongzhuan and Yijin Wert

Of course, there are other picture books about umbrellas, see here, but above I have shared my favourites. I hope you choose one to read on Umbrella Day.