May Day, May Day!
Thursday, May 1st, is "May Day" for many people all over the world.

Maypoles are traditional ways of celebrating the First of May in many countries.

PHOTO: HENRIK WIDTH

"May Day" means different things to different people.
For many, it is the International Workers' Day, or a celebration of the labour movement.
But the celebration has other origins, some very ancient, and different customs have become associated with it.
In addition, it occurs about halfway between the solstice and the equinox... Ok, thereabouts, anyway.
In Norway, May 1st is a national holiday, even though many people, at least the younger generation, don’t seem to know quite why anymore.
Some people associate the day with pre-Christian indigenous celebrations -- and the tradition of dancing around a maypole might be a part of this heritage.
And for many, May Day simply signifies the beginning of summer.
At any rate, now May Day has become celebrated around the world in all its many manifestations, and so it will be in Norway tomorrow.
This means there will be no news service on our English Web Desk. But we will be following the news, and hope to catch you up as soon as we are back in place on Friday, the day after.
Happy May Day everyone!