School Year in Bulgaria Begins

September 5 is the day when the school year is traditionally opened in the Bulgarian schools. Until 1921, students in Bulgaria began their classes on September 1, but the date was has been changed with two weeks because of Alexander Stamboliiski's agricultural government so children to help their families to harvest the crop.

Nowadays in the beginning of September the school year starts in a large number of countries in the European Union - Belgium, Estonia, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovenia, Hungary, France and the Czech Republic, as well as other European countries such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro and the Russian Federation.

The middle of September marks the start of the school year in 11 Member States, most of which are located in southern Europe - Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Croatia, Romania, Slovakia, Austria and Luxembourg.

Interesting fact is that in 10 European countries the first bell beats in August - Germany, Denmark, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Finland, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland.

In the UK, the school year begins on different dates in different regions of the country - from the end of August to the first week of September.

In the United States of America and Canada, there is no exact day to begin the school year. The first school day for most of the schools is on Tuesday after Labor Day, which marks the first Monday of September.

In Japan, the first school day is traditionally at the beginning of April, when the Japanese sakura is blooming, as it is believed that spring symbolizes the beginning of a new life.

In the Southern Hemisphere, the school year begins in late February and early March -...