History
A mug of hot chocolate. Chocolate was first drunk rather than eaten.
Main article: History of chocolate
The word "chocolate" comes from the Aztecs of Mexico, and is derived from the Nahuatl word xocolatl (pronounced [ʃoˈkolaːtɬ])[2], which is a combination of the words, xocolli, meaning "bitter", and atl, which is "water". The Aztecs associated chocolate with Xochiquetzal, the goddess of fertility. Chocolate is also associated with the Mayan god of fertility. Mexican philologist Ignacio Davila Garibi, proposed that "Spaniards had coined the word by taking the Maya word chocol and then replacing the Maya term for water, haa, with the Aztec one, atl."[3] However, it is more likely that the Aztecs themselves coined the term,[4] having long adopted into Nahuatl the Mayan word for the "cacao" bean; the Spanish had little contact with the Mayans before Cortés's early reports to the Spanish King of the beverage known as xocolatl.[5] William Bright (personal communication cited in a 1977 article by Lyle Campbell [6]) noted that the word xocoatl does not occur in early Spanish or Nahuatl colonial sources.
Chocolate has been used as a drink for nearly all of its history. The earliest record of using chocolate pre-dates the Maya. In November, 2007, archeologists reported finding evidence of the oldest known cultivation and use of cacao at a site in Puerto Escondido, Honduras, dating from about 1100 to 1400 BC. [7] The residues found and the kind of vessel they were found in, indicate that the initial use of cacao was not simply as a beverage, but the white pulp around the cacao beans was likely used as a source of sugar for an alcoholic drink. The chocolate residue found in an early classic ancient Maya pot in Río Azul, northern Guatemala, suggests that Mayans were drinking chocolate around 400 A.D.. In the New World, chocolate was consumed in a bitter, spicy drink called xocoatl, and was often flavored with vanilla, chile pepper, and achiote (known today as annatto). Xocoatl was believed to fight fatigue, a belief that is probably attributable to the theobromine content. Other chocolate drinks combined it with such edibles as maize starch paste (which acts as an emulsifier and thickener), various fruits, and honey.[citation needed] In 1689 noted physician and collector Hans Sloane, developed a milk chocolate drink in Jamaica which was initially used by apothecaries, but later sold by the Cadbury brothers.[8]
Chocolate was also an important luxury good throughout pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, and cacao beans were often used as currency.[9] For example, the Aztecs used a system in which one turkey cost one hundred cacao beans and one fresh avocado was worth three beans.[10]
Production
Chocolate is created from the cocoa bean. A cacao tree with fruit pods in various stages of ripening
Roughly two-thirds of the entire world's cocoa is produced in Western Africa, with 43% sourced from Côte d'Ivoire.[11] Like many food industry producers, individual cocoa farmers are at the mercy of volatile world markets. The price can vary from £500 ($945) to £3,000 ($5,672) per ton, in the space of just a few years. While investors trading in cacao can dump shares at will, individual cocoa farmers cannot increase production or abandon trees very quickly. When cocoa prices drop, farmers in West Africa sometimes cut costs by using slave labor.[12] It has been alleged that an estimated 90% of cocoa farms in Côte d'Ivoire have used some form of slave labor in order to remain viable.[13] According to the World Cocoa Foundation, some 50 million people around the world depend on cocoa as a source of livelihood. [1] The industry is dominated by three chocolate makers, Barry Callebaut, Cargill and Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) and in the UK, 99.999% of chocolatiers, whether they be large companies such as Cadbury Schweppes or small independents, purchase their chocolate from them, to melt, mould and package to their own design. [14]
Despite some disagreement in the EU about the definition, chocolate is any product made primarily of cocoa solids and cocoa fat. The different flavours of chocolate can be obtained by varying the time and temperature when roasting the beans, by adjusting the relative quantities of the cocoa solids and cocoa fat, and by adding non-chocolate ingredients.
Production costs can be decreased by reducing cocoa solid content or by substituting cocoa butter with a non-cocoa fat. Cocoa growers oppose allowing the resulting food to be called "chocolate", because that would lower demand for their crops.[1]
There are two main jobs associated with creating chocolate candy, chocolate makers and chocolatiers. Chocolate makers use harvested cacao beans and other ingredients to produce couverture chocolate. Chocolatiers use the finished couverture to make chocolate candies (bars, truffles, baked goods, etc.).[15]
Cacao varieties
The three main varieties of cacao beans used in chocolate are criollo, forastero and trinitario.
Criollo is the rarest and most expensive cocoa on the market and is native to Central America, the Caribbean islands and the northern tier of South American states.[citation needed] There is some dispute about the genetic purity of cocoas sold today as Criollo, because most populations have been exposed to the genetic influence of other varieties. Criollos are particularly difficult to grow, as they are vulnerable to a variety of environmental threats and produce low yields of cocoa per tree. The flavour of Criollo is unique. It is described as delicate yet complex, low in classic chocolate flavour, but rich in "secondary" notes of long duration.[citation needed]
Forastero is a large group of wild and cultivated cacaos, most likely native to the Amazon basin. The African cocoa crop is entirely of the Forastero variety. They are significantly hardier and of higher yield than Criollo. Forastero cocoas are typically strong in classic "chocolate" flavour, but have a short duration and are unsupported by secondary flavours. There are exceptional Forasteros, such as the "Nacional" or the "Arriba" varieties, which can be very complex flavors.[citation needed]
Trinitario is a natural hybrid of Criollo and Forastero. Trinitario originated in Trinidad (hence the name) after an introduction of (Amelonado) Forastero to the local Criollo crop. These cocoas encompass a wide range of flavour profiles according to the genetic heritage of each tree.[citation needed]
Nearly all cacao produced over the past five decades is of the Forastero or lower-grade Trinitario varieties. The share of higher quality Criollos and Trinitarios (so-called flavour cacao) is just under 5%.[cacao trees are small, understory trees that need rich, well-drained soils. They naturally grow within 20 degrees of either side of the equator because they need about 2000 milimeters of rainfall a year, and temperatures in the range of 21 to 32 degrees Celsius, and cannot tolerate a temperature lower than 15 degrees Celsius (59 degrees Fahrenheit Harvesting
Harvesting cacao beans is a delicate process. First, the pods containing cacao beans, are harvested. The beans with their surrounding pulp are removed from the pod and placed in piles or bins to ferment for three to seven days. The fermentation process is what gives the beans their familiar chocolate taste. The beans must then be quickly dried to prevent mold growth; weather permitting, this is done by spreading the beans out in the sun.
Chocolate liquor
The dried beans are transported from the plantation where they were grown to a chocolate manufacturing facility.
The beans are then cleaned (removing twigs, stones, and other debris), roasted, and graded. Next the shells are removed to extract the nib. Finally, the nibs are ground which releases and melts the cocoa butter producing chocolate liquor.
Chocolate made with enough cocoa butter flows gently over a chocolate fountain to serve dessert fondue.
There are three things that can be done with the chocolate liquor at this point:
It can be solidified and sold as unsweetened baking chocolate.
Cocoa butter can be removed from it and the result is cocoa powder. There are several mechanisms for removing cocoa butter from chocolate liquor. These include using hydraulic pressure and the Broma process.
Cocoa butter can be added to it to make eating chocolate.
Blending
Main article: Types of chocolate
Chocolate liquor is blended with the cocoa butter in varying quantities to make different types of chocolate or couvertures. The basic blends of ingredients for the various types of chocolate (in order of highest quantity of cocoa liquor first), are as follows:
Dark chocolate: sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa liquor, and (sometimes) vanilla
Milk chocolate: sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa liquor, milk or milk powder, and vanilla
White chocolate: sugar, cocoa butter, milk or milk powder, and vanilla
Usually, an emulsifying agent such as soya lecithin is added, though a few manufacturers prefer to exclude this ingredient for purity reasons and to remain GMO-free (Soya is a heavily genetically modified crop), sometimes at the cost of a perfectly smooth texture. Some manufacturers are now using PGPR, an artificial emulsifier derived from castor oil that allows them to reduce the amount of cocoa butter while maintaining the same mouthfeel.
The texture is also heavily influenced by processing, specifically conching (see below). The more expensive chocolates tend to be processed longer and thus have a smoother texture and "feel" on the tongue, regardless of whether emulsifying agents are added.
Different manufacturers develop their own "signature" blends based on the above formulas but varying proportions of the different constituents are used.
The finest, plain dark chocolate couvertures contain at least 70% cocoa (solids + butter), whereas milk chocolate usually contains up to 50%. High-quality white chocolate couvertures contain only about 33% cocoa. Some mass-produced chocolate contains much less cocoa (as low as 7% in many cases) and fats other than cocoa butter. Some chocolate makers say that these "chocolate" products should not be classified as couvertures, or even as chocolate, because of the low or virtually non-existent cocoa content.[citation needed]
In 2007, the Chocolate Manufacturers Association in the United States, whose members include Hershey, Nestlé, and Archer Daniels Midland, lobbied the Food and Drug Administration to change the legal definition of chocolate to let them substitute partially hydrogenated vegetable oils for cocoa butter in addition to using artificial sweeteners and milk substitutes. Currently, the FDA does not allow a product to be referred to as "chocolate" if the product contains any of these ingredients.
Conching
Various chocolate making machinery
Main article: Conching
The penultimate process is called conching. A conche is a container filled with metal beads, which act as grinders. The refined and blended chocolate mass is kept liquid by frictional heat. Chocolate prior to conching has an uneven and gritty texture. The conching process produces cocoa and sugar particles smaller than the tongue can detect, hence the smooth feel in the mouth. The length of the conching process determines the final smoothness and quality of the chocolate. High-quality chocolate is conched for about 72 hours, lesser grades about four to six hours. After the process is complete, the chocolate mass is stored in tanks heated to approximately 45–50 °C (113–122 °F) until final processing.
Tempering
The final process is called tempering. Uncontrolled crystallization of cocoa butter typically results in crystals of varying size, some or all large enough to be clearly seen with the naked eye. This causes the surface of the chocolate to appear mottled and matte, and causes the chocolate to crumble rather than snap when broken. The uniform sheen and crisp bite of properly processed chocolate are the result of consistently small cocoa butter crystals produced by the tempering process.
The fats in cocoa butter can crystallize in six different forms (polymorphous crystallization). The primary purpose of tempering is to assure that only the best form is present. The six different crystal forms have different properties.
วันจันทร์ที่ 11 กุมภาพันธ์ พ.ศ. 2551
วันพฤหัสบดีที่ 7 กุมภาพันธ์ พ.ศ. 2551
History
Numerous early Christian martyrs were named Valentine. Until 1969, the Catholic Church formally recognized eleven Valentine's Days. The Valentines honored on February 14 are:
Valentine of Rome (Valentinus presb. m. Romae): a priest in Rome who suffered martyrdom about AD 269 and was buried on the Via Flaminia. His relics are at the Church of Saint Praxed in Rome. [5] and at Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, Ireland.
Valentine of Terni (Valentinus ep. Interamnensis m. Romae): He became bishop of Interamna (modern Terni) about AD 197 and is said to have been killed during the persecution of Emperor Aurelian. He is also buried on the Via Flaminia, but in a different location than Valentine of Rome. His relics are at the Basilica of Saint Valentine in Terni (Basilica di San Valentino).
The Catholic Encyclopedia also speaks of a third saint named Valentine who was mentioned in early martyrologies under date of 14 February. He was martyred in Africa with a number of companions, but nothing more is known about him.
Some sources say the Valentine linked to romance is Valentine of Rome, others say Valentine of Terni.[citation needed] Some scholars (such as the Bollandists[citation needed]) have concluded that the two were originally the same person. In any case, no romantic elements are present in the original Early Medieval biographies of either of these martyrs.
An overview of attested traditions relevant to the holiday is presented below, with the legends about Valentine himself discussed in the end.
February fertility festivals
Though popular modern sources link unspecified Graeco-Roman February holidays alleged to be devoted to fertility and love to St Valentine's Day, Professor Jack Oruch of the University of Kansas argued[4] that prior to Chaucer, no links between the Saints named Valentinus and romantic love existed. Thus whether or not in the ancient Athenian calendar, the period between mid-January and mid-February was the month of Gamelion, was dedicated to the sacred marriage of Zeus and Hera is immaterial.
In Ancient Rome, February 15 was Lupercalia, an archaic rite connected to fertility, without overtones of romance. Plutarch wrote:
Lupercalia, of which many write that it was anciently celebrated by shepherds, and has also some connection with the Arcadian Lycaea. At this time many of the noble youths and of the magistrates run up and down through the city naked, for sport and laughter striking those they meet with shaggy thongs. And many women of rank also purposely get in their way, and like children at school present their hands to be struck, believing that the pregnant will thus be helped in delivery, and the barren to pregnancy.[6]
The word Lupercalia comes from lupus, or wolf, so the holiday may be connected with the legendary wolf that suckled Romulus and Remus. Priests of this cult, luperci would travel to the lupercal, the cave where the she-wolf who reared Romulus and Remus allegedly lived, and sacrifice animals (two goats and a dog). The blood would then be scattered in the streets, to bring fertility and keep the wolves away from the fields. [7] Lupercalia was a festival local to the city of Rome. The more general Festival of Juno Februa, meaning "Juno the purifier "or "the chaste Juno," was celebrated on February 13-14. Pope Gelasius I (492-496) abolished Lupercalia.
Chaucer's love birds
A portrait of English poet Geoffrey Chaucer by Thomas Hoccleve (1412). The earliest known link between Valentine's Day and romance is found in Chaucer's Parliament of Foules
The first recorded association of Valentine's Day with romantic love is in Parlement of Foules (1382) by Geoffrey Chaucer:[5]
For this was on seynt Volantynys day
Whan euery bryd comyth there to chese [choose] his make [mate].
This poem was written to honor the first anniversary of the engagement of King Richard II of England to Anne of Bohemia[8]. A treaty providing for a marriage was signed on May 2, 1381.[9] (When they were married eight months later, he was 13 or 14. She was 14.)
On the liturgical calendar, May 2 is the saints' day for Valentine of Genoa. This St. Valentine was an early bishop of Genoa who died around AD 307.[10][11] Readers incorrectly assumed that Chaucer was referring to February 14 as Valentine's Day. However, mid-February is an unlikely time for birds to be mating in England.[6]
Chaucer's Parliament of Foules is set in a fictional context of an old tradition, but in fact there was no such tradition before Chaucer. The speculative explanation of sentimental customs, posing as historical fact, had their origins among eighteenth-century antiquaries, notably Alban Butler, the author of Butler's Lives of Saints, and have been perpetuated even by respectable modern scholars.
Medieval and modern times
Swedish calendar showing St Valentine's Day, February 14, 1712
Using the language of the law courts for the rituals of courtly love, a "High Court of Love" was established in Paris on Valentine's Day in 1400. The court dealt with love contracts, betrayals, and violence against women. Judges were selected by women on the basis of a poetry readingThe earliest surviving valentine is a fifteenth-century rondeau written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his "valentined" wife, which commences.
Je suis desja d'amour tannéMa tres doulce Valentinée… (Charles d'Orléans, Rondeau VI, lines 1–2)
At the time, the duke was being held in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt, 1415 Valentine's Day is mentioned ruefully by Ophelia in Hamlet (1600-01): "Tomorrow is Saint Valentine's Day."
In 1836, relics of St. Valentine of Rome were donated by Pope Gregory XVI to the Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, Ireland. In the 1960s, the church was renovated and relics restored to prominence.[14] In American culture,Saint Valentine's Day was remade in the 1840s; as a writer in GFTraham's American Monthly observed in 1849, "Saint Valentine's Day... is becoming,nay it has become, a national holyday."[8]
In the 1969 revision of the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints, the feastday of Saint Valentine on 14 February was removed from the General Roman Calendar and relegated to particular (local or even national) calendars for the following reason: "Though the memorial of Saint Valentine is ancient, it is left to particular calendars, since, apart from his name, nothing is known of Saint Valentine except that he was buried on the Via Flaminia on 14 February."[9] The feast day is still celebrated in Balzan and in Malta where relics of the saint are claimed to be found, and also throughout the world by Traditionalist Catholics who follow the older, pre-Vatican II calendar.
Valentine's Day postcard, circa 1910
Tree decorated for Valentine's Day
The reinvention of Saint Valentine's Day in the 1840s has been traced by Leigh Eric Schmidt.[10] In the United States, the first mass-produced valentines of embossed paper lace were produced and sold shortly after 1847 by Esther Howland (1828-1904) of Worcester, Massachusetts. Her father operated a large book and stationery store, and she took her inspiration from an English valentine she had received. Since 2001, the Greeting Card Association has been giving an annual "Esther Howland Award for a Greeting Card Visionary."
In the second half of the twentieth century, the practice of exchanging cards was extended to all manner of gifts in the United States, usually from a man to a woman. Such gifts typically include roses and chocolates. In the 1980s, the diamond industry began to promote Valentine's Day as an occasion for giving jewelry.
The day has come to be associated with a generic platonic greeting of "Happy Valentine's Day." As a joke, Valentine's Day is also referred to as "Singles Awareness Day."
In some North American elementary schools, students are asked to give a Valentine card or small gift to everyone in the class. The greeting cards of these students often mention what they appreciate about each other.
The evolving legend
The Early Medieval acta of either Saint Valentine were excerpted by Bede and briefly expounded in Legenda Aurea,[11] According to that version, St Valentine was persecuted as a Christian and interrogated by Roman Emperor Claudius II in person. Claudius was impressed by Valentine and had a discussion with him, attempting to get him to convert to Roman paganism in order to save his life. Valentine refused and tried to convert Claudius to Christianity instead. Because of this, he was executed. Before his execution, he is reported to have performed a miracle by healing the blind daughter of his jailer.
Legenda Aurea still providing no connections whatsoever with sentimental love, appropriate lore has been embroidered in modern times to portray Valentine as a priest who refused an unattested law attributed to Roman Emperor Claudius II, allegedly ordering that young men remain single. The Emperor supposedly did this to grow his army, believing that married men did not make for good soldiers. The priest Valentine, however, secretly performed marriage ceremonies for young men. When Claudius found out about this, he had Valentine arrested and thrown in jail. In an embellishment to The Golden Legend, on the evening before Valentine was to be executed, he wrote the first "valentine" himself, addressed to a young girl variously identified as his beloved,[12] as the jailer's daughter whom he had befriended and healed,[13] or both.[14] It was a note that read "From your Valentine."[12]
In another apparently modern embellishment, while Valentine was imprisoned, people would leave him little notes, folded up and hidden in cracks in the rocks around his cell. He would find them and offer prayers for them.
Valentine's Day and its equivalents in other cultures
This section does not cite any references or sources.Please improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (February 2007)
Part of a series on Love
Historically
Courtly love
Greek love
Religious love
Types of emotion
Erotic love
Platonic love
Familial love
Puppy love
Romantic love
See also
Unrequited love
Problem of love
Sexuality
Sexual intercourse
Valentine's Day
In the West
Valentine's Day also has regional traditions in the UK. In Norfolk a character called 'Jack' Valentine knocks on the rear door of houses leaving sweets and presents for children. Although he was leaving treats, many children were scared of this mystical person.
In Wales many people celebrate Dydd Santes Dwynwen (St Dwynwen's Day) on 25 January instead of or as well as St Valentine's Day. The day commemorates St Dwynwen, the patron saint of Welsh lovers.
In France, a traditionally Catholic country, Valentine's Day is known simply as "Saint Valentin", and is celebrated in much the same way as other western countries.
In Denmark & Norway Valentine's Day (14 Feb) is known as Valentinsdag. It is not celebrated to a large extent, but a lot people take time to eat a romantic dinner with their partner, to send a card to a secret love or give a red rose to their loved one. In Sweden it is called Alla hjärtans dag ("All Hearts' Day") and was launched in the 1960s by the flower industry's commercial interests, and due to influence of American culture. It is not an official holiday, but its celebration is recognized and sales of cosmetics and flowers for this holiday are only bested by those for Mother's Day.
In Finland, Valentine's Day is called Ystävänpäivä which translates into "Friend's day". As the name says, this day is more about remembering all your friends, not only your loved ones.
In Slovenia, a proverb says that "St Valentine brings the keys of roots," so on February 14, plants and flowers start to grow. Valentine's Day has been celebrated as the day when the first works in the vineyards and on the fields commence. It is also said that birds propose to each other or marry on that day. Nevertheless, it has only recently been celebrated as the day of love. The day of love is traditionally 12 March, the Saint Gregory's day. Another proverb says "Valentin - prvi spomladin" ("Valentine — first saint of spring"), as in some places (especially White Carniola) Saint Valentine marks the beginning of spring.
In Romania, the traditional holiday for lovers is Dragobete, which is celebrated on February 24. It is named after a character from Romanian folklore who was supposed to be the son of Baba Dochia. Part of his name is the word drag ("dear"), which can also be found in the word dragoste ("love"). In recent years, Romania has also started celebrating Valentine's Day, despite already having Dragobete as a traditional holiday. This has drawn backlash from many groups, reputable persons and institutions[15] but also nationalist organizations like Noua Dreaptǎ, who condemn Valentine's Day for being superficial, commercialist and imported Western kitsch.
In Turkey, Valentine's Day is called Sevgililer Günü which translates into "Sweethearts' Day".
According to Jewish tradition the 15th day of the month of Av - Tu B'Av (usually late August) is the festival of love. In ancient times girls would wear white dresses and dance in the vineyards, where the boys would be waiting for them (Mishna Taanith end of Chapter 4). In modern Israeli culture this is a popular day to pronounce love, propose marriage and give gifts like cards or flowers.
In the Americas
The exchange of chocolates and flowers is traditional on Valentine's Day.
In Brazil, the Dia dos Namorados (lit. "Day of the enamored", or "Boyfriend's/Girlfriend's Day") is celebrated on June 12, when couples exchange gifts, chocolates, cards and flower bouquets. This day was chosen probably because it is the day before the Saint Anthony's day, known there as the marriage saint, when many single women perform popular rituals, called simpatias, in order to find a good husband or a boyfriend.
In Colombia, the Día del amor y la amistad (lit. "Love and Friendship Day") is celebrated on the third Friday and Saturday in September, because of commercial issues. In this country the Amigo secreto ("Secret friend") tradition is quite popular, which consists of randomly assigning to each participant a recipient who is to be given an anonymous gift (similar to the Christmas tradition of Secret Santa).
In Asia
Thanks to a concentrated marketing effort, Valentine's Day has emerged in Japan and Korea as a day on which women, and less commonly men, give candy, chocolate or flowers. It has become an obligation for many women to give chocolates to all male co-workers. In Japan this is known as giri-choko (義理チョコ), from the words giri ("obligation") and choko, ("chocolate"). This contrasts with honmei-choko (本命チョコ); chocolate given to a loved one. Friends, especially girls, may exchange chocolate referred to as tomo-choko (友チョコ); from tomo meaning "friend".
By a further marketing effort, a reciprocal day called White Day has emerged. On March 14, men are expected to return the favour to those who gave them chocolates on Valentine's Day. Originally, the return gift was supposed to be white chocolate or marshmallows; hence "White Day". However, lingerie and jewelry have become common gifts.
In South Korea, there is also Pepero Day, celebrated on November 11, when young couples give each other romantic gifts. There is an additional day for single people, Black Day, celebrated on April 14.
In Chinese culture, there is a counterpart to Valentine's Day, called "The Night of Sevens" (七夕); according to legend the Cowherd and the Weaver Maid meet in Heaven on the 7th day of the 7th month of the lunar calendar. A slightly different version of this day is celebrated in Japan as Tanabata, on July 7th of the solar calendar.
In Western Asia
In Persian culture (Iran) Sepandarmazgan is a day for love, which is on 29 Bahman in the jalali solar calendar. The corresponding date in the Gregorian calendar is 17 February. Sepandarmazgan were held in the Great Persian Empire in the 20th century BC hundreds of years before its acknowledgement by western world.
This day is currently celebrated in Iran despite some restrictions made by government, and young Persian boys and girls may be seen on this day going out and buying gifts and celebrating.
Numerous early Christian martyrs were named Valentine. Until 1969, the Catholic Church formally recognized eleven Valentine's Days. The Valentines honored on February 14 are:
Valentine of Rome (Valentinus presb. m. Romae): a priest in Rome who suffered martyrdom about AD 269 and was buried on the Via Flaminia. His relics are at the Church of Saint Praxed in Rome. [5] and at Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, Ireland.
Valentine of Terni (Valentinus ep. Interamnensis m. Romae): He became bishop of Interamna (modern Terni) about AD 197 and is said to have been killed during the persecution of Emperor Aurelian. He is also buried on the Via Flaminia, but in a different location than Valentine of Rome. His relics are at the Basilica of Saint Valentine in Terni (Basilica di San Valentino).
The Catholic Encyclopedia also speaks of a third saint named Valentine who was mentioned in early martyrologies under date of 14 February. He was martyred in Africa with a number of companions, but nothing more is known about him.
Some sources say the Valentine linked to romance is Valentine of Rome, others say Valentine of Terni.[citation needed] Some scholars (such as the Bollandists[citation needed]) have concluded that the two were originally the same person. In any case, no romantic elements are present in the original Early Medieval biographies of either of these martyrs.
An overview of attested traditions relevant to the holiday is presented below, with the legends about Valentine himself discussed in the end.
February fertility festivals
Though popular modern sources link unspecified Graeco-Roman February holidays alleged to be devoted to fertility and love to St Valentine's Day, Professor Jack Oruch of the University of Kansas argued[4] that prior to Chaucer, no links between the Saints named Valentinus and romantic love existed. Thus whether or not in the ancient Athenian calendar, the period between mid-January and mid-February was the month of Gamelion, was dedicated to the sacred marriage of Zeus and Hera is immaterial.
In Ancient Rome, February 15 was Lupercalia, an archaic rite connected to fertility, without overtones of romance. Plutarch wrote:
Lupercalia, of which many write that it was anciently celebrated by shepherds, and has also some connection with the Arcadian Lycaea. At this time many of the noble youths and of the magistrates run up and down through the city naked, for sport and laughter striking those they meet with shaggy thongs. And many women of rank also purposely get in their way, and like children at school present their hands to be struck, believing that the pregnant will thus be helped in delivery, and the barren to pregnancy.[6]
The word Lupercalia comes from lupus, or wolf, so the holiday may be connected with the legendary wolf that suckled Romulus and Remus. Priests of this cult, luperci would travel to the lupercal, the cave where the she-wolf who reared Romulus and Remus allegedly lived, and sacrifice animals (two goats and a dog). The blood would then be scattered in the streets, to bring fertility and keep the wolves away from the fields. [7] Lupercalia was a festival local to the city of Rome. The more general Festival of Juno Februa, meaning "Juno the purifier "or "the chaste Juno," was celebrated on February 13-14. Pope Gelasius I (492-496) abolished Lupercalia.
Chaucer's love birds
A portrait of English poet Geoffrey Chaucer by Thomas Hoccleve (1412). The earliest known link between Valentine's Day and romance is found in Chaucer's Parliament of Foules
The first recorded association of Valentine's Day with romantic love is in Parlement of Foules (1382) by Geoffrey Chaucer:[5]
For this was on seynt Volantynys day
Whan euery bryd comyth there to chese [choose] his make [mate].
This poem was written to honor the first anniversary of the engagement of King Richard II of England to Anne of Bohemia[8]. A treaty providing for a marriage was signed on May 2, 1381.[9] (When they were married eight months later, he was 13 or 14. She was 14.)
On the liturgical calendar, May 2 is the saints' day for Valentine of Genoa. This St. Valentine was an early bishop of Genoa who died around AD 307.[10][11] Readers incorrectly assumed that Chaucer was referring to February 14 as Valentine's Day. However, mid-February is an unlikely time for birds to be mating in England.[6]
Chaucer's Parliament of Foules is set in a fictional context of an old tradition, but in fact there was no such tradition before Chaucer. The speculative explanation of sentimental customs, posing as historical fact, had their origins among eighteenth-century antiquaries, notably Alban Butler, the author of Butler's Lives of Saints, and have been perpetuated even by respectable modern scholars.
Medieval and modern times
Swedish calendar showing St Valentine's Day, February 14, 1712
Using the language of the law courts for the rituals of courtly love, a "High Court of Love" was established in Paris on Valentine's Day in 1400. The court dealt with love contracts, betrayals, and violence against women. Judges were selected by women on the basis of a poetry readingThe earliest surviving valentine is a fifteenth-century rondeau written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his "valentined" wife, which commences.
Je suis desja d'amour tannéMa tres doulce Valentinée… (Charles d'Orléans, Rondeau VI, lines 1–2)
At the time, the duke was being held in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt, 1415 Valentine's Day is mentioned ruefully by Ophelia in Hamlet (1600-01): "Tomorrow is Saint Valentine's Day."
In 1836, relics of St. Valentine of Rome were donated by Pope Gregory XVI to the Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, Ireland. In the 1960s, the church was renovated and relics restored to prominence.[14] In American culture,Saint Valentine's Day was remade in the 1840s; as a writer in GFTraham's American Monthly observed in 1849, "Saint Valentine's Day... is becoming,nay it has become, a national holyday."[8]
In the 1969 revision of the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints, the feastday of Saint Valentine on 14 February was removed from the General Roman Calendar and relegated to particular (local or even national) calendars for the following reason: "Though the memorial of Saint Valentine is ancient, it is left to particular calendars, since, apart from his name, nothing is known of Saint Valentine except that he was buried on the Via Flaminia on 14 February."[9] The feast day is still celebrated in Balzan and in Malta where relics of the saint are claimed to be found, and also throughout the world by Traditionalist Catholics who follow the older, pre-Vatican II calendar.
Valentine's Day postcard, circa 1910
Tree decorated for Valentine's Day
The reinvention of Saint Valentine's Day in the 1840s has been traced by Leigh Eric Schmidt.[10] In the United States, the first mass-produced valentines of embossed paper lace were produced and sold shortly after 1847 by Esther Howland (1828-1904) of Worcester, Massachusetts. Her father operated a large book and stationery store, and she took her inspiration from an English valentine she had received. Since 2001, the Greeting Card Association has been giving an annual "Esther Howland Award for a Greeting Card Visionary."
In the second half of the twentieth century, the practice of exchanging cards was extended to all manner of gifts in the United States, usually from a man to a woman. Such gifts typically include roses and chocolates. In the 1980s, the diamond industry began to promote Valentine's Day as an occasion for giving jewelry.
The day has come to be associated with a generic platonic greeting of "Happy Valentine's Day." As a joke, Valentine's Day is also referred to as "Singles Awareness Day."
In some North American elementary schools, students are asked to give a Valentine card or small gift to everyone in the class. The greeting cards of these students often mention what they appreciate about each other.
The evolving legend
The Early Medieval acta of either Saint Valentine were excerpted by Bede and briefly expounded in Legenda Aurea,[11] According to that version, St Valentine was persecuted as a Christian and interrogated by Roman Emperor Claudius II in person. Claudius was impressed by Valentine and had a discussion with him, attempting to get him to convert to Roman paganism in order to save his life. Valentine refused and tried to convert Claudius to Christianity instead. Because of this, he was executed. Before his execution, he is reported to have performed a miracle by healing the blind daughter of his jailer.
Legenda Aurea still providing no connections whatsoever with sentimental love, appropriate lore has been embroidered in modern times to portray Valentine as a priest who refused an unattested law attributed to Roman Emperor Claudius II, allegedly ordering that young men remain single. The Emperor supposedly did this to grow his army, believing that married men did not make for good soldiers. The priest Valentine, however, secretly performed marriage ceremonies for young men. When Claudius found out about this, he had Valentine arrested and thrown in jail. In an embellishment to The Golden Legend, on the evening before Valentine was to be executed, he wrote the first "valentine" himself, addressed to a young girl variously identified as his beloved,[12] as the jailer's daughter whom he had befriended and healed,[13] or both.[14] It was a note that read "From your Valentine."[12]
In another apparently modern embellishment, while Valentine was imprisoned, people would leave him little notes, folded up and hidden in cracks in the rocks around his cell. He would find them and offer prayers for them.
Valentine's Day and its equivalents in other cultures
This section does not cite any references or sources.Please improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (February 2007)
Part of a series on Love
Historically
Courtly love
Greek love
Religious love
Types of emotion
Erotic love
Platonic love
Familial love
Puppy love
Romantic love
See also
Unrequited love
Problem of love
Sexuality
Sexual intercourse
Valentine's Day
In the West
Valentine's Day also has regional traditions in the UK. In Norfolk a character called 'Jack' Valentine knocks on the rear door of houses leaving sweets and presents for children. Although he was leaving treats, many children were scared of this mystical person.
In Wales many people celebrate Dydd Santes Dwynwen (St Dwynwen's Day) on 25 January instead of or as well as St Valentine's Day. The day commemorates St Dwynwen, the patron saint of Welsh lovers.
In France, a traditionally Catholic country, Valentine's Day is known simply as "Saint Valentin", and is celebrated in much the same way as other western countries.
In Denmark & Norway Valentine's Day (14 Feb) is known as Valentinsdag. It is not celebrated to a large extent, but a lot people take time to eat a romantic dinner with their partner, to send a card to a secret love or give a red rose to their loved one. In Sweden it is called Alla hjärtans dag ("All Hearts' Day") and was launched in the 1960s by the flower industry's commercial interests, and due to influence of American culture. It is not an official holiday, but its celebration is recognized and sales of cosmetics and flowers for this holiday are only bested by those for Mother's Day.
In Finland, Valentine's Day is called Ystävänpäivä which translates into "Friend's day". As the name says, this day is more about remembering all your friends, not only your loved ones.
In Slovenia, a proverb says that "St Valentine brings the keys of roots," so on February 14, plants and flowers start to grow. Valentine's Day has been celebrated as the day when the first works in the vineyards and on the fields commence. It is also said that birds propose to each other or marry on that day. Nevertheless, it has only recently been celebrated as the day of love. The day of love is traditionally 12 March, the Saint Gregory's day. Another proverb says "Valentin - prvi spomladin" ("Valentine — first saint of spring"), as in some places (especially White Carniola) Saint Valentine marks the beginning of spring.
In Romania, the traditional holiday for lovers is Dragobete, which is celebrated on February 24. It is named after a character from Romanian folklore who was supposed to be the son of Baba Dochia. Part of his name is the word drag ("dear"), which can also be found in the word dragoste ("love"). In recent years, Romania has also started celebrating Valentine's Day, despite already having Dragobete as a traditional holiday. This has drawn backlash from many groups, reputable persons and institutions[15] but also nationalist organizations like Noua Dreaptǎ, who condemn Valentine's Day for being superficial, commercialist and imported Western kitsch.
In Turkey, Valentine's Day is called Sevgililer Günü which translates into "Sweethearts' Day".
According to Jewish tradition the 15th day of the month of Av - Tu B'Av (usually late August) is the festival of love. In ancient times girls would wear white dresses and dance in the vineyards, where the boys would be waiting for them (Mishna Taanith end of Chapter 4). In modern Israeli culture this is a popular day to pronounce love, propose marriage and give gifts like cards or flowers.
In the Americas
The exchange of chocolates and flowers is traditional on Valentine's Day.
In Brazil, the Dia dos Namorados (lit. "Day of the enamored", or "Boyfriend's/Girlfriend's Day") is celebrated on June 12, when couples exchange gifts, chocolates, cards and flower bouquets. This day was chosen probably because it is the day before the Saint Anthony's day, known there as the marriage saint, when many single women perform popular rituals, called simpatias, in order to find a good husband or a boyfriend.
In Colombia, the Día del amor y la amistad (lit. "Love and Friendship Day") is celebrated on the third Friday and Saturday in September, because of commercial issues. In this country the Amigo secreto ("Secret friend") tradition is quite popular, which consists of randomly assigning to each participant a recipient who is to be given an anonymous gift (similar to the Christmas tradition of Secret Santa).
In Asia
Thanks to a concentrated marketing effort, Valentine's Day has emerged in Japan and Korea as a day on which women, and less commonly men, give candy, chocolate or flowers. It has become an obligation for many women to give chocolates to all male co-workers. In Japan this is known as giri-choko (義理チョコ), from the words giri ("obligation") and choko, ("chocolate"). This contrasts with honmei-choko (本命チョコ); chocolate given to a loved one. Friends, especially girls, may exchange chocolate referred to as tomo-choko (友チョコ); from tomo meaning "friend".
By a further marketing effort, a reciprocal day called White Day has emerged. On March 14, men are expected to return the favour to those who gave them chocolates on Valentine's Day. Originally, the return gift was supposed to be white chocolate or marshmallows; hence "White Day". However, lingerie and jewelry have become common gifts.
In South Korea, there is also Pepero Day, celebrated on November 11, when young couples give each other romantic gifts. There is an additional day for single people, Black Day, celebrated on April 14.
In Chinese culture, there is a counterpart to Valentine's Day, called "The Night of Sevens" (七夕); according to legend the Cowherd and the Weaver Maid meet in Heaven on the 7th day of the 7th month of the lunar calendar. A slightly different version of this day is celebrated in Japan as Tanabata, on July 7th of the solar calendar.
In Western Asia
In Persian culture (Iran) Sepandarmazgan is a day for love, which is on 29 Bahman in the jalali solar calendar. The corresponding date in the Gregorian calendar is 17 February. Sepandarmazgan were held in the Great Persian Empire in the 20th century BC hundreds of years before its acknowledgement by western world.
This day is currently celebrated in Iran despite some restrictions made by government, and young Persian boys and girls may be seen on this day going out and buying gifts and celebrating.
วันเสาร์ที่ 2 กุมภาพันธ์ พ.ศ. 2551
History
Approximately 2800 years ago the kite was first invented and popularized in China, where materials ideal for kite building were readily available: silk fabric for sail material, fine, high-tensile-strength silk for flying line, and resilient bamboo for a strong, lightweight framework. The kite was said to be the invention of the famous 5th century BC Chinese philosophers Mozi and Lu Ban. By at least 549 AD paper kites were being flown, as it was recorded in that year a paper kite was used as a message for a rescue mission.[1] Ancient and medieval Chinese sources list other uses of kites for measuring distances, testing the wind, lifting men, signaling, and communication for military operations.[1] The earliest known Chinese kites were flat (not bowed) and often rectangular. Later, tailless kites incorporated a stabilizing bowline. Kites were decorated with mythological motifs and legendary figures; some were fitted with strings and whistles to make musical sounds while flying.[2]
After its appearance in China, the kite migrated to Japan, Korea, Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), India, Arabia, and North Africa, then farther south into the Malay Peninsula, Indonesia, and the islands of Oceania as far east as Easter Island. Since kites made of leaves have been flown in Malaya and the South Seas from time immemorial, the kite could also have been invented independently in that region.[2]
One ancient design, the fighter kite, became popular throughout Asia. Most variations, including the fighter kites of India, Thailand and Japan, are small, flat, roughly diamond-shaped kites made of paper, with a tapered bamboo spine and a balanced bow. Flown without tails that would hinder their agility, these highly maneuverable flat kites have a length of cutting line coated with an abrasive attached to the bridle, which is then tied to a light cotton flying line. Although the rules of kite fighting varied from country to country, the basic combat was to maneuver the swift kite in such a way as to cut the opponent's flying line.[2]
Kite flying began much later in Europe than in Asia. While unambiguous drawings of kites first appeared in print in the Netherlands and England in the 17th century, pennon-type kites that evolved from military banners dating back to Roman times and earlier were flown during the Middle Ages.[2]
Hang gliders are based on the Rogallo wing, originally marketed as a mylar self-inflating kite named the flexikite.
During the 18th century tailless bowed kites were still unknown in Europe. Flying flat arch- or pear-shaped kites with tails had become a popular pastime, mostly among children. The first recorded scientific application of a kite took place in 1749 when Alexander Wilson of Scotland used a kite train (two or more kites flown from a common line) as a meteorologic device for measuring temperature variations at different altitudes.[2]
Three years after, in June 1752, in what is the most famous of kite experiments, the American inventor and statesman Benjamin Franklin, with the aid of his son, lofted a flat kite fitted with a pointed wire and silk sail on a hemp line during a thunderstorm. Somehow both father and son avoided electrocution as a metal key attached to the flying line became electrified. Franklin proved that lightning was the natural phenomenon called electricity, not the wrath of the gods. One immediate and practical outcome of the experiment was Franklin's invention of the lightning rod.
Materials
Art kites at a German Kite Festival
Kites typically consist of one or more spars to which a paper or fabric sail is attached, although some, such as foil kites, have no spars at all. Classic kites use bamboo, rattan or some other strong but flexible wood for the spars, paper or light fabrics such as silk for the sails, and are flown on string or twine. Modern kites use synthetic materials, such as ripstop nylon or more exotic fabrics for the sails, fiberglass or carbon fiber for the spars and dacron or dyneema for the kite lines.
Kites can be designed with many different shapes, forms, and sizes. They can take the form of flat geometric designs, boxes and other three-dimensional forms, or modern sparless inflatable designs. Kites flown by children are often simple geometric forms (for example, the diamond). In Asia, children fly dried symmetrical leaves on sewing thread and sled-style kites made from sheets of folded writing paper.[citation needed]
Chinese kite designs often emulate flying insects, birds, and other beasts, both real and mythical. The finest Chinese kites are made from split bamboo (usually golden bamboo), covered with silk, and hand painted. On larger kites, clever hinges and latches allow the kite to be disassembled and compactly folded for storage or transport. Cheaper mass-produced kites are often made from printed polyester rather than silk.
Tails are used for some single-line kite designs to keep the kite's nose pointing into the wind. Spinners and spinsocks can be attached to the flying line for visual effect. There are rotating wind socks which spin like a turbine. On large display kites these tails, spinners and spinsocks can be 50 feet (15 m) long or more.
Modern acrobatic kites use two or four lines to allow fine control of the kite's angle to the wind. Traction kites may have an additional line to de-power the kite and quick-release mechanisms to disengage flyer and kite in an emergency.
Practical uses
Chinese dragon kite more than one hundred feet long which flew in the annual Berkeley, California, kite festival in 2000. It is a kite-train of hundreds of linked circles (with outriggers ending in feathers for balance). The dragon's head is a bamboo frame with painted silk covering.
A quad-line traction kite, commonly used as a power source for kite surfing
Kites have been used for military uses in the past, both for delivery of messages and munitions, and for observation, by lifting an observer above the field of battle, and by using kite aerial photography.
Kites have also been used for scientific purposes, such as Benjamin Franklin's famous (but dangerous) experiment proving that lightning is electricity. Kites were the precursors to aircraft, and were instrumental in the development of early flying craft. Alexander Graham Bell experimented with very large man-lifting kites, as did the Wright brothers and Lawrence Hargrave. Kites had an historical role in lifting scientific instruments to measure atmospheric conditions for weather forecasting.
Kites can also be used for radio technical purposes, either by kites carrying antennas or by using a kite, which carries up an antenna wire ( for MF, LF or VLF-transmitters). This was done in the past, for the reception station of the first transatlantic transmission by Marconi. Captive balloons may be more convenient for such experiments, because kite carried antennas require a lot of wind, which may be not always possible with heavy equipment and a ground conductor. It must be taken into account during experiments, that a conductor carried up by a kite in the sky can lead due to a high voltage toward ground, which can endanger people and equipment, if suitable precautions (grounding through resistors or a parallel resonant-circuit tuned to transmission frequency) are not taken.
Kites can also be used as light effect carrier, for example by carrying lightsticks or battery powered light effects.
A German company has developed ship-pulling kites as an additional power source for cargo ships. Trials on a 55m ship have shown that, in favorable winds, the kite increases fuel-efficiency by up to 30%. This SkySails system is planned to be in commercial production by 2008. [3] Kites are also available as an auxiliary sail or emergency spinnaker for sailing boats. Self-launching Parafoil kites are attached to the mast.
MS Beluga Skysails is the world's first commercial container cargo ship which is partially powered by a giant computer-controlled kite (160sq. m. or 1,722 sq ft.). The kite could reduce fuel consumption by 20%. It was launched 17 December 2007 and is set to leave the northern German port of Bremerhaven to Guanta, Venezuela at 1700 local time (1600 GMT), January 22, 2008. Stephan Wrage, managing director of SkySails GmbH announced: "During the next few months we will finally be able to prove that our technology works in practice and significantly reduces fuel consumption and emissions." Verena Frank, project manager at Beluga Shipping GmbH, SkySails GmbH's partner further stated that "the project's core concept was using wind energy as auxiliary propulsion power and using wind as a free of charge energy".[4]
A research and development project called Makani Power, based in California, is investigating the use of kites to harness high altitude wind currents to generate electricity[5].
Launch of ram-air inflated Peter Lynn single-line kite, shaped like an octopus and 90 feet long.
Ancient military use of kites
Kites were often used in the military of China as signal equipment. Military adoption of this was more common in East Asia than in Europe. Much like modern flares, kites were flown engulfed in fire to provide a way to deliver messages to nearby or distant allies or soldiers.
Kites were also used by Admiral Yi of the Joseon (1392-1910) Dynasty of Korea.[citation needed] During the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592-1598), Admiral Yi commanded his navy with kites. His kites had specific markings directing his fleet to perform his order. Admiral Yi was said to have over 300 such kites.[citation needed] The war eventually resulted in a Chinese and Korean victory, and although kites played a minor role in the war's conclusion, they were by no means a predecessor to modern day radio and/or flares.
In more modern times the British navy also used kites to haul human lookouts high into the air to see over the horizon and possibly the enemy ships. The famed Cody Kite (named after the creator Samuel Franklin Cody) (see, for example, this webpage) is known for its classic beauty as well as its lifting abilities.
Cultural uses
Kite festivals are a popular form of entertainment throughout the world. They include small local events, traditional festivals which have been held for hundreds of years and major International Festivals which bring in kite flyers from overseas to display their unique art kites and demonstrate the latest technical kites.
Asia
Kite flying is very popular in many Asian countries, where it often takes the form of 'kite fighting', in which kite fighters try to snag each other's kites or cut other kites down. Fighter kites are usually small, flat, flattened diamond-shaped kites made of paper and bamboo. Tails were left off of the fighter kites so that agility and maneuverability were not compromised. The usual goal of a 'kite fighter' is to maneuver his/her kite to cut the opponent's string.[6] In Afghanistan this is known as Gudiparan Bazi. Some kite fighters pass their strings through a mixture of ground glass powder and glue. The resulting strings are very abrasive and can sever the competitor's strings. The modernization of the sport of 'kite fighting' comes with newer technology, as canny arms dealers begin importing a flexible razor sharp wire from China, rather than the old, nylon fishing line used for kite string.[7] However, this practice is dangerous since the abrasive strings can also injure people. During the Taliban rule in Afghanistan, kite flying was banned, among various other recreations.
In Korea kites were usually flown to make a wish or wish the person flying the kite good luck. The kites were usually flown on festive days and national holidays. In countrysides children used to take part in a fun battle where a person tried to disconnect the main bit of a kite of their opponent when the opponent tried to disconnect theirs. To disconnect an opponent's kite one would have to have a strong, steel-like thread to attach the main bit of a kite to the traditional Korean wooden reel, called Earl Leil
In Vietnam, kite flown by adults are "tail-less". Instead small flutes are attached allowing the wind to "hum" a musical tune. There are other forms of sound-making kites. In Bali, large bows are attached to the front of the kites to make a deep throbbing vibration, and in Malaysia row of gourds with sound-slots are use to create a whistle as the kite flies.
The Indian festival of Makar Sankranti is devoted to kite fighting in some states. This spring festival is celebrated every January 14 (or January 15 on leap years), with millions of people flying kites all over northern India. The cities of Ahmedabad and Jaipur are particularly notable for their kite fighting festivals. Highly maneuverable single-string paper and bamboo kites are flown from the rooftops while using line friction in an attempt to cut each other's kite lines, either by letting the line loose at high speed or by pulling the line in a fast and repeated manner. The activity is not without risk as the line is treated to be abrasive and flyers can, and occasionally do, fall from the rooftops. In some Indian cities kite flying/fighting is an important part of other celebrations, including Republic Day, Independence Day, Raksha Bandhan, and Janmashtami.
Making traditional Wau jala budi kite, Malaysia. The bamboo frame is covered with plain paper and then decorated with multiple layers of cut-outs of paper and foil.
In Pakistan, kite flying is a ritual for the spring festival known as Basant. However, kite flying is currently banned as some kite fliers engage in kite battles by coating their strings with glass or shards of metal, leading to injuries and death. Kite fighting is a very popular sport in Pakistan, mainly centered in Lahore people spend thousands of dollars in preparing different types of kites and threads best suited to battle. The kites that are manufactured for battling are very different from the conventional kites as they are especially designed and made for this purpose. Kup, Patang, Guda, Nakhlaoo, etc are some of the kites used in the battle and they vary in balance, weight and speed through the air. Threads for kite battling are manufactured using especial glues, chemicals and crushed glass and are numbered based on their ability to cut other threads and to handle kite's weight. Kite Battle is an art and the more experienced a person is in this art the more likely he is to win the battle. It is a very popular social event in Pakistan that happens once a year.
Weifang (Shandong, China) promotes itself as the Kite Capital of the World. It is home to the largest kite museum in the world, which has a display area of 8100 m². Weifang hosts an annual International Kite Festival on the large salt flats south of the city. There are several kite museums in Japan and others in England, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand and the USA.
Approximately 2800 years ago the kite was first invented and popularized in China, where materials ideal for kite building were readily available: silk fabric for sail material, fine, high-tensile-strength silk for flying line, and resilient bamboo for a strong, lightweight framework. The kite was said to be the invention of the famous 5th century BC Chinese philosophers Mozi and Lu Ban. By at least 549 AD paper kites were being flown, as it was recorded in that year a paper kite was used as a message for a rescue mission.[1] Ancient and medieval Chinese sources list other uses of kites for measuring distances, testing the wind, lifting men, signaling, and communication for military operations.[1] The earliest known Chinese kites were flat (not bowed) and often rectangular. Later, tailless kites incorporated a stabilizing bowline. Kites were decorated with mythological motifs and legendary figures; some were fitted with strings and whistles to make musical sounds while flying.[2]
After its appearance in China, the kite migrated to Japan, Korea, Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), India, Arabia, and North Africa, then farther south into the Malay Peninsula, Indonesia, and the islands of Oceania as far east as Easter Island. Since kites made of leaves have been flown in Malaya and the South Seas from time immemorial, the kite could also have been invented independently in that region.[2]
One ancient design, the fighter kite, became popular throughout Asia. Most variations, including the fighter kites of India, Thailand and Japan, are small, flat, roughly diamond-shaped kites made of paper, with a tapered bamboo spine and a balanced bow. Flown without tails that would hinder their agility, these highly maneuverable flat kites have a length of cutting line coated with an abrasive attached to the bridle, which is then tied to a light cotton flying line. Although the rules of kite fighting varied from country to country, the basic combat was to maneuver the swift kite in such a way as to cut the opponent's flying line.[2]
Kite flying began much later in Europe than in Asia. While unambiguous drawings of kites first appeared in print in the Netherlands and England in the 17th century, pennon-type kites that evolved from military banners dating back to Roman times and earlier were flown during the Middle Ages.[2]
Hang gliders are based on the Rogallo wing, originally marketed as a mylar self-inflating kite named the flexikite.
During the 18th century tailless bowed kites were still unknown in Europe. Flying flat arch- or pear-shaped kites with tails had become a popular pastime, mostly among children. The first recorded scientific application of a kite took place in 1749 when Alexander Wilson of Scotland used a kite train (two or more kites flown from a common line) as a meteorologic device for measuring temperature variations at different altitudes.[2]
Three years after, in June 1752, in what is the most famous of kite experiments, the American inventor and statesman Benjamin Franklin, with the aid of his son, lofted a flat kite fitted with a pointed wire and silk sail on a hemp line during a thunderstorm. Somehow both father and son avoided electrocution as a metal key attached to the flying line became electrified. Franklin proved that lightning was the natural phenomenon called electricity, not the wrath of the gods. One immediate and practical outcome of the experiment was Franklin's invention of the lightning rod.
Materials
Art kites at a German Kite Festival
Kites typically consist of one or more spars to which a paper or fabric sail is attached, although some, such as foil kites, have no spars at all. Classic kites use bamboo, rattan or some other strong but flexible wood for the spars, paper or light fabrics such as silk for the sails, and are flown on string or twine. Modern kites use synthetic materials, such as ripstop nylon or more exotic fabrics for the sails, fiberglass or carbon fiber for the spars and dacron or dyneema for the kite lines.
Kites can be designed with many different shapes, forms, and sizes. They can take the form of flat geometric designs, boxes and other three-dimensional forms, or modern sparless inflatable designs. Kites flown by children are often simple geometric forms (for example, the diamond). In Asia, children fly dried symmetrical leaves on sewing thread and sled-style kites made from sheets of folded writing paper.[citation needed]
Chinese kite designs often emulate flying insects, birds, and other beasts, both real and mythical. The finest Chinese kites are made from split bamboo (usually golden bamboo), covered with silk, and hand painted. On larger kites, clever hinges and latches allow the kite to be disassembled and compactly folded for storage or transport. Cheaper mass-produced kites are often made from printed polyester rather than silk.
Tails are used for some single-line kite designs to keep the kite's nose pointing into the wind. Spinners and spinsocks can be attached to the flying line for visual effect. There are rotating wind socks which spin like a turbine. On large display kites these tails, spinners and spinsocks can be 50 feet (15 m) long or more.
Modern acrobatic kites use two or four lines to allow fine control of the kite's angle to the wind. Traction kites may have an additional line to de-power the kite and quick-release mechanisms to disengage flyer and kite in an emergency.
Practical uses
Chinese dragon kite more than one hundred feet long which flew in the annual Berkeley, California, kite festival in 2000. It is a kite-train of hundreds of linked circles (with outriggers ending in feathers for balance). The dragon's head is a bamboo frame with painted silk covering.
A quad-line traction kite, commonly used as a power source for kite surfing
Kites have been used for military uses in the past, both for delivery of messages and munitions, and for observation, by lifting an observer above the field of battle, and by using kite aerial photography.
Kites have also been used for scientific purposes, such as Benjamin Franklin's famous (but dangerous) experiment proving that lightning is electricity. Kites were the precursors to aircraft, and were instrumental in the development of early flying craft. Alexander Graham Bell experimented with very large man-lifting kites, as did the Wright brothers and Lawrence Hargrave. Kites had an historical role in lifting scientific instruments to measure atmospheric conditions for weather forecasting.
Kites can also be used for radio technical purposes, either by kites carrying antennas or by using a kite, which carries up an antenna wire ( for MF, LF or VLF-transmitters). This was done in the past, for the reception station of the first transatlantic transmission by Marconi. Captive balloons may be more convenient for such experiments, because kite carried antennas require a lot of wind, which may be not always possible with heavy equipment and a ground conductor. It must be taken into account during experiments, that a conductor carried up by a kite in the sky can lead due to a high voltage toward ground, which can endanger people and equipment, if suitable precautions (grounding through resistors or a parallel resonant-circuit tuned to transmission frequency) are not taken.
Kites can also be used as light effect carrier, for example by carrying lightsticks or battery powered light effects.
A German company has developed ship-pulling kites as an additional power source for cargo ships. Trials on a 55m ship have shown that, in favorable winds, the kite increases fuel-efficiency by up to 30%. This SkySails system is planned to be in commercial production by 2008. [3] Kites are also available as an auxiliary sail or emergency spinnaker for sailing boats. Self-launching Parafoil kites are attached to the mast.
MS Beluga Skysails is the world's first commercial container cargo ship which is partially powered by a giant computer-controlled kite (160sq. m. or 1,722 sq ft.). The kite could reduce fuel consumption by 20%. It was launched 17 December 2007 and is set to leave the northern German port of Bremerhaven to Guanta, Venezuela at 1700 local time (1600 GMT), January 22, 2008. Stephan Wrage, managing director of SkySails GmbH announced: "During the next few months we will finally be able to prove that our technology works in practice and significantly reduces fuel consumption and emissions." Verena Frank, project manager at Beluga Shipping GmbH, SkySails GmbH's partner further stated that "the project's core concept was using wind energy as auxiliary propulsion power and using wind as a free of charge energy".[4]
A research and development project called Makani Power, based in California, is investigating the use of kites to harness high altitude wind currents to generate electricity[5].
Launch of ram-air inflated Peter Lynn single-line kite, shaped like an octopus and 90 feet long.
Ancient military use of kites
Kites were often used in the military of China as signal equipment. Military adoption of this was more common in East Asia than in Europe. Much like modern flares, kites were flown engulfed in fire to provide a way to deliver messages to nearby or distant allies or soldiers.
Kites were also used by Admiral Yi of the Joseon (1392-1910) Dynasty of Korea.[citation needed] During the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592-1598), Admiral Yi commanded his navy with kites. His kites had specific markings directing his fleet to perform his order. Admiral Yi was said to have over 300 such kites.[citation needed] The war eventually resulted in a Chinese and Korean victory, and although kites played a minor role in the war's conclusion, they were by no means a predecessor to modern day radio and/or flares.
In more modern times the British navy also used kites to haul human lookouts high into the air to see over the horizon and possibly the enemy ships. The famed Cody Kite (named after the creator Samuel Franklin Cody) (see, for example, this webpage) is known for its classic beauty as well as its lifting abilities.
Cultural uses
Kite festivals are a popular form of entertainment throughout the world. They include small local events, traditional festivals which have been held for hundreds of years and major International Festivals which bring in kite flyers from overseas to display their unique art kites and demonstrate the latest technical kites.
Asia
Kite flying is very popular in many Asian countries, where it often takes the form of 'kite fighting', in which kite fighters try to snag each other's kites or cut other kites down. Fighter kites are usually small, flat, flattened diamond-shaped kites made of paper and bamboo. Tails were left off of the fighter kites so that agility and maneuverability were not compromised. The usual goal of a 'kite fighter' is to maneuver his/her kite to cut the opponent's string.[6] In Afghanistan this is known as Gudiparan Bazi. Some kite fighters pass their strings through a mixture of ground glass powder and glue. The resulting strings are very abrasive and can sever the competitor's strings. The modernization of the sport of 'kite fighting' comes with newer technology, as canny arms dealers begin importing a flexible razor sharp wire from China, rather than the old, nylon fishing line used for kite string.[7] However, this practice is dangerous since the abrasive strings can also injure people. During the Taliban rule in Afghanistan, kite flying was banned, among various other recreations.
In Korea kites were usually flown to make a wish or wish the person flying the kite good luck. The kites were usually flown on festive days and national holidays. In countrysides children used to take part in a fun battle where a person tried to disconnect the main bit of a kite of their opponent when the opponent tried to disconnect theirs. To disconnect an opponent's kite one would have to have a strong, steel-like thread to attach the main bit of a kite to the traditional Korean wooden reel, called Earl Leil
In Vietnam, kite flown by adults are "tail-less". Instead small flutes are attached allowing the wind to "hum" a musical tune. There are other forms of sound-making kites. In Bali, large bows are attached to the front of the kites to make a deep throbbing vibration, and in Malaysia row of gourds with sound-slots are use to create a whistle as the kite flies.
The Indian festival of Makar Sankranti is devoted to kite fighting in some states. This spring festival is celebrated every January 14 (or January 15 on leap years), with millions of people flying kites all over northern India. The cities of Ahmedabad and Jaipur are particularly notable for their kite fighting festivals. Highly maneuverable single-string paper and bamboo kites are flown from the rooftops while using line friction in an attempt to cut each other's kite lines, either by letting the line loose at high speed or by pulling the line in a fast and repeated manner. The activity is not without risk as the line is treated to be abrasive and flyers can, and occasionally do, fall from the rooftops. In some Indian cities kite flying/fighting is an important part of other celebrations, including Republic Day, Independence Day, Raksha Bandhan, and Janmashtami.
Making traditional Wau jala budi kite, Malaysia. The bamboo frame is covered with plain paper and then decorated with multiple layers of cut-outs of paper and foil.
In Pakistan, kite flying is a ritual for the spring festival known as Basant. However, kite flying is currently banned as some kite fliers engage in kite battles by coating their strings with glass or shards of metal, leading to injuries and death. Kite fighting is a very popular sport in Pakistan, mainly centered in Lahore people spend thousands of dollars in preparing different types of kites and threads best suited to battle. The kites that are manufactured for battling are very different from the conventional kites as they are especially designed and made for this purpose. Kup, Patang, Guda, Nakhlaoo, etc are some of the kites used in the battle and they vary in balance, weight and speed through the air. Threads for kite battling are manufactured using especial glues, chemicals and crushed glass and are numbered based on their ability to cut other threads and to handle kite's weight. Kite Battle is an art and the more experienced a person is in this art the more likely he is to win the battle. It is a very popular social event in Pakistan that happens once a year.
Weifang (Shandong, China) promotes itself as the Kite Capital of the World. It is home to the largest kite museum in the world, which has a display area of 8100 m². Weifang hosts an annual International Kite Festival on the large salt flats south of the city. There are several kite museums in Japan and others in England, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand and the USA.
วันพุธที่ 23 มกราคม พ.ศ. 2551
ที่ตั้งและลักษณะทางภูมิศาสตร์
สหพันธ์สาธารณรัฐเยอรมันตั้งอยู่ใจกลางทวีปยุโรป ทางตอนเหนือเป็นที่ราบต่ำ ติดทะเลเหนือ และทะเลบอลติก ทางตะวันออกเฉียงเหนือเป็นทะเลสาบสลับกับเนินเขา (Seenplatte) ตอนกลางเป็นเทือกเขาขนาดกลาง ปกคลุมด้วยป่าไม้หนาแน่น ทางใต้เป็นเทือกเขาแอลป์ซึ่งมีความสูงชัน โดยมียอดเขาสูงสุดคือ die Zugspitze มีความสูงจากระดับน้ำทะเล 2,963 เมตร
ขนาด พื้นที่
356,945 ตารางกิโลเมตร
จำนวนประชากร
ประมาณ 81,000,000 คน
ภาษาราชการ
ภาษาเยอรมัน
เมืองหลวง
กรุงเบอร์ลิน
เมืองใหญ่
ฮัมบูร์ก , มิวนิค , เดรสเดน, ไลพ์ซิก,โคโลญจ์,แฟรงเฟริต
ประเทศเพื่อนบ้าน
9 ประเทศ ประกอบด้วย เดนมาร์ก, เบลเยี่ยม, เนเธอรแลนด์, ลักเซมเบิร์ก, ฝรั่งเศส,สวิตเซอแลนด์,ออสเตรีย,สาธารรัฐเชคและโปแลนด์
การปกครอง
แบบสมาพันธรัฐ โดยแบ่งเป็นรัฐต่างๆ 16 รัฐ มีประธานาธิบดีซึ่งได้รับการเลือกตั้งจากสภาผู้แทนราษฎรเป็นประมุขของประเทศ โดยดำรงตำแหน่งวาระ ละ 5 ปี รัฐบาลประกอบด้วย นายกรัฐมนตรีและคณะรัฐมนตรี วันชาติเยอรมัน
3 ตุลาคม
แม่น้ำสายสำคัญ
แม่น้ำไรน์, แม่น้ำเอลเบ, แม่น้ำเอเซอร์,แม่น้ำไมน์, แม่น้ำเนคคาร์ , แม่น้ำดานูบ
สกุลเงิน
มาร์คเยอรมัน
อัตราแลกเปลี่ยน
1 มาร์ค ประมาณ 20 บาท
ธงชาติเยอรมัน
สีดำ,แดง,เหลือง เรียงกันตามแนวนอน
สัญลักษณ์ประจำชาติ
นกอินทรีย์
สหพันธ์สาธารณรัฐเยอรมันตั้งอยู่ใจกลางทวีปยุโรป ทางตอนเหนือเป็นที่ราบต่ำ ติดทะเลเหนือ และทะเลบอลติก ทางตะวันออกเฉียงเหนือเป็นทะเลสาบสลับกับเนินเขา (Seenplatte) ตอนกลางเป็นเทือกเขาขนาดกลาง ปกคลุมด้วยป่าไม้หนาแน่น ทางใต้เป็นเทือกเขาแอลป์ซึ่งมีความสูงชัน โดยมียอดเขาสูงสุดคือ die Zugspitze มีความสูงจากระดับน้ำทะเล 2,963 เมตร
ขนาด พื้นที่
356,945 ตารางกิโลเมตร
จำนวนประชากร
ประมาณ 81,000,000 คน
ภาษาราชการ
ภาษาเยอรมัน
เมืองหลวง
กรุงเบอร์ลิน
เมืองใหญ่
ฮัมบูร์ก , มิวนิค , เดรสเดน, ไลพ์ซิก,โคโลญจ์,แฟรงเฟริต
ประเทศเพื่อนบ้าน
9 ประเทศ ประกอบด้วย เดนมาร์ก, เบลเยี่ยม, เนเธอรแลนด์, ลักเซมเบิร์ก, ฝรั่งเศส,สวิตเซอแลนด์,ออสเตรีย,สาธารรัฐเชคและโปแลนด์
การปกครอง
แบบสมาพันธรัฐ โดยแบ่งเป็นรัฐต่างๆ 16 รัฐ มีประธานาธิบดีซึ่งได้รับการเลือกตั้งจากสภาผู้แทนราษฎรเป็นประมุขของประเทศ โดยดำรงตำแหน่งวาระ ละ 5 ปี รัฐบาลประกอบด้วย นายกรัฐมนตรีและคณะรัฐมนตรี วันชาติเยอรมัน
3 ตุลาคม
แม่น้ำสายสำคัญ
แม่น้ำไรน์, แม่น้ำเอลเบ, แม่น้ำเอเซอร์,แม่น้ำไมน์, แม่น้ำเนคคาร์ , แม่น้ำดานูบ
สกุลเงิน
มาร์คเยอรมัน
อัตราแลกเปลี่ยน
1 มาร์ค ประมาณ 20 บาท
ธงชาติเยอรมัน
สีดำ,แดง,เหลือง เรียงกันตามแนวนอน
สัญลักษณ์ประจำชาติ
นกอินทรีย์
วันพฤหัสบดีที่ 17 มกราคม พ.ศ. 2551
วันครู
วันครู
ความหมาย ครู หมายถึงผู้อบรมสั่งสอน ผู้ถ่ายทอดความรู้ ผู้สร้างสรรค์ภูมิปัญญา และพัฒนาทรัพยากรมนุษย์เพื่อนำไปสู่ความเจริญรุ่งเรืองของสังคมและประเทศชาติ
ประวัติความเป็นมา วันครูได้จัดให้มีขึ้นครั้งแรกเมื่อวันที่ 16 มกราคม พ.ศ. 2500 สืบเนื่องมาจากการประกาศพระราชบัญญัติครูในราชกิจจานุเบกษาเมื่อปี พ.ศ. 2488 ซึ่งระบุให้มีสภาในกระทรวงศึกษาธิการเรียกว่า"คุรุสภา" ซึ่งมีสถานะเป็นนิติบุคคลและให้ครูทุกคนเป็นสมาชิกคุรุสภา โดยมีหน้าที่ในเรื่องของสถาบันวิชาชีพครูในขณะเดียวกันก็ทำหน้าที่ให้ความเห็นในเรื่องนโยบายการศึกษา และวิชาการศึกษาทั่วไปแก่กระทรวงศึกษาธิการ จัดสวสัดิการให้แก่ครูและครอบครัว ได้รับความช่วยเหลือตามสมควร ส่งเสริมความรู้และความสามัคคีของครู ด้วยเหตุนี้ในทุกๆปี คุรุสภาจึงจัดให้มีการประชุมสามัญคุรุสภาประจำปี เพื่อเปิดโอกาสให้ผู้แทนครูจากทั่วประเทศแถลงผลงานในรอบปีที่ผ่านมา พร้อมทั้งซักถามปัญหาข้อข้องใจต่างๆเกี่ยวกับการดำเนินงานของคุรุสภา โดยมี คณะกรรมการอำนวยการคุรุสภาเป็นผู้ตอบข้อสงสัย สถานที่ในการประชุมสมัยนั้นใช้หอประชุม"สามัคคยาจารย์"หอประชุมของจุฬาลงกรณมหาวิทยาลัย ในระยะหลังจึงมาใช้หอประชุมของคุรุสภา ปี พ.ศ. 2499 ในที่ประชุมสามัญคุรุสภาประจำปี จอมพล ป. พิบูลสงคราม นายกรัฐมนตรีและประธานกรรมการอำนวยการคุรุสภากิตติมศักดิ์ ได้กล่าวปราศัยต่อที่ประชุมครูทั่วประเทศว่า "ที่อยากเสนอในตอนนี้ก็คือว่า เนื่องจากผู้เป็นครูมีบุญคุณเป็นผู้ให้แสงสว่างในชีวิตของเราทั้งหลาย ข้าพเจ้าคิดว่า"วันครู"ควรมีสักวันหนึ่งสำหรับให้บรรดาลูกศิษย์ทั้งหลายได้แสดงความเคารพสักการะต่อบรรดาครูผู้มีพระคุณทั้งหลาย เพราะเหตุว่าสำหรับคนทั่วไปถ้าถึงวันตรุษ วันสงกรานต์ เราก็นำอัฐิของผู้มีพระคุณบังเกิดเกล้ามาทำบุญ ทำทาน คนที่สองรองลงไปก็คือครูผู้เสียสละทั้งหลาย ข้าพเจ้าคิดว่าในโอกาสนี้จะขอฝากที่ประชุมไว้ด้วย ลองปรึกษาหารือกันในหลักการทุกคนคงจะไม่ขัดข้อง" จากแนวความคิดนี้ กอรปกับคว่ทคอดเห็นของครูที่แสดงออกทางสื่อมวลชนและอื่นๆที่ล้วนเรียกร้องให้มี"วันครู"เพื่อให้เป็นการรำลึกถึงความสำคัญของครูในฐานะที่เป็นผู้เสียสละ ประกอบคุณงามความดีเพื่แประโยชน์ของชาติ และประชาชนเป็นอันมาก ในปีเดียวกันที่ประชุมคุรุสภาสามัญประจำปีจึงได้พิจารณาเรื่องนี้และมีมติเห็นควรให้มี "วันครู" เพื่อเสนอคณะกรรมการอำนวยการต่อไป โดยได้เสนอในหลักการว่า เพื่อจะได้ประกอบพิธีระลึกถึงคุณบูรพาจารย์ ส่งเสริมสามัคคีธรรมระหว่างครู และเพื่อส่งเสริมความเข้าใจอีนดีระหว่างครูกับประชาชน ในที่สุดคณะรัฐมนตรีได้มีมติเมื่อวันที่ 21 พฤศจิกายน 2499 ให้วันที่ 16 มกราคม ของทุกปีเป็น"วันครู"โดยถือเอาวันที่ประกาศพระราชบัญญัติครูในราชกิจจานุเบกษาเมื่อวันที่ 16 มกราคม พ.ศ. 2488 เป็นวันครูและให้กระทรวงศึกษาธิการสั่งการให้นักเรียนและครูหยุดในวันดังกล่าวได้ การจัดงานวันครูได้จัดเป็นครั้งแรกเมื่อวันที่ 16 มกราคม 2500 ในส่วนกลางใช้สถานที่ของกรีฑาสถานแห่งชาติเป็นที่จัดงาน งานวันครูนี้ได้กำหนดเป็นหลักการให้มีอนุสรณ์งานวันครูไว้ให้แก่อนุชนรุ่นหลังทุกปี อนุสรณ์ที่สำคัญคือหนังสือประวัติครู หนังสือที่ระลึกวันครู และสิ่งก่อสร้างที่เป็นถาวรวัตถุ การจัดงานวันครูได้ปรับปรุงเปลี่ยนแปลงกิจกรรมให้สอดคล้องกับการเปลี่ยนแปลงของสังคมตลอดเวลา ในปัจจุบันได้จัดรูปแบบการจัดงานวันครูจะมีกิจกรรม 3 ประเภทใหญ่ดังนี้ 1.กิจกรรมทางศาสนา 2.พิธีรำลึกถึงพระคุณบูรพาจารย์ ประกอบด้วยพิธีปฏิญาณตน การกล่าวคำระลึกถึงพระคุณบูรพาจารย์ 3.กิจกรรมเพื่อความสามัคคีระหว่างผู้ประกอบอาชีพครู สา่วนมากจะเป็นการแข่งขันกีฬาหรือการจัดงานรื่นเริง
ความหมาย ครู หมายถึงผู้อบรมสั่งสอน ผู้ถ่ายทอดความรู้ ผู้สร้างสรรค์ภูมิปัญญา และพัฒนาทรัพยากรมนุษย์เพื่อนำไปสู่ความเจริญรุ่งเรืองของสังคมและประเทศชาติ
ประวัติความเป็นมา วันครูได้จัดให้มีขึ้นครั้งแรกเมื่อวันที่ 16 มกราคม พ.ศ. 2500 สืบเนื่องมาจากการประกาศพระราชบัญญัติครูในราชกิจจานุเบกษาเมื่อปี พ.ศ. 2488 ซึ่งระบุให้มีสภาในกระทรวงศึกษาธิการเรียกว่า"คุรุสภา" ซึ่งมีสถานะเป็นนิติบุคคลและให้ครูทุกคนเป็นสมาชิกคุรุสภา โดยมีหน้าที่ในเรื่องของสถาบันวิชาชีพครูในขณะเดียวกันก็ทำหน้าที่ให้ความเห็นในเรื่องนโยบายการศึกษา และวิชาการศึกษาทั่วไปแก่กระทรวงศึกษาธิการ จัดสวสัดิการให้แก่ครูและครอบครัว ได้รับความช่วยเหลือตามสมควร ส่งเสริมความรู้และความสามัคคีของครู ด้วยเหตุนี้ในทุกๆปี คุรุสภาจึงจัดให้มีการประชุมสามัญคุรุสภาประจำปี เพื่อเปิดโอกาสให้ผู้แทนครูจากทั่วประเทศแถลงผลงานในรอบปีที่ผ่านมา พร้อมทั้งซักถามปัญหาข้อข้องใจต่างๆเกี่ยวกับการดำเนินงานของคุรุสภา โดยมี คณะกรรมการอำนวยการคุรุสภาเป็นผู้ตอบข้อสงสัย สถานที่ในการประชุมสมัยนั้นใช้หอประชุม"สามัคคยาจารย์"หอประชุมของจุฬาลงกรณมหาวิทยาลัย ในระยะหลังจึงมาใช้หอประชุมของคุรุสภา ปี พ.ศ. 2499 ในที่ประชุมสามัญคุรุสภาประจำปี จอมพล ป. พิบูลสงคราม นายกรัฐมนตรีและประธานกรรมการอำนวยการคุรุสภากิตติมศักดิ์ ได้กล่าวปราศัยต่อที่ประชุมครูทั่วประเทศว่า "ที่อยากเสนอในตอนนี้ก็คือว่า เนื่องจากผู้เป็นครูมีบุญคุณเป็นผู้ให้แสงสว่างในชีวิตของเราทั้งหลาย ข้าพเจ้าคิดว่า"วันครู"ควรมีสักวันหนึ่งสำหรับให้บรรดาลูกศิษย์ทั้งหลายได้แสดงความเคารพสักการะต่อบรรดาครูผู้มีพระคุณทั้งหลาย เพราะเหตุว่าสำหรับคนทั่วไปถ้าถึงวันตรุษ วันสงกรานต์ เราก็นำอัฐิของผู้มีพระคุณบังเกิดเกล้ามาทำบุญ ทำทาน คนที่สองรองลงไปก็คือครูผู้เสียสละทั้งหลาย ข้าพเจ้าคิดว่าในโอกาสนี้จะขอฝากที่ประชุมไว้ด้วย ลองปรึกษาหารือกันในหลักการทุกคนคงจะไม่ขัดข้อง" จากแนวความคิดนี้ กอรปกับคว่ทคอดเห็นของครูที่แสดงออกทางสื่อมวลชนและอื่นๆที่ล้วนเรียกร้องให้มี"วันครู"เพื่อให้เป็นการรำลึกถึงความสำคัญของครูในฐานะที่เป็นผู้เสียสละ ประกอบคุณงามความดีเพื่แประโยชน์ของชาติ และประชาชนเป็นอันมาก ในปีเดียวกันที่ประชุมคุรุสภาสามัญประจำปีจึงได้พิจารณาเรื่องนี้และมีมติเห็นควรให้มี "วันครู" เพื่อเสนอคณะกรรมการอำนวยการต่อไป โดยได้เสนอในหลักการว่า เพื่อจะได้ประกอบพิธีระลึกถึงคุณบูรพาจารย์ ส่งเสริมสามัคคีธรรมระหว่างครู และเพื่อส่งเสริมความเข้าใจอีนดีระหว่างครูกับประชาชน ในที่สุดคณะรัฐมนตรีได้มีมติเมื่อวันที่ 21 พฤศจิกายน 2499 ให้วันที่ 16 มกราคม ของทุกปีเป็น"วันครู"โดยถือเอาวันที่ประกาศพระราชบัญญัติครูในราชกิจจานุเบกษาเมื่อวันที่ 16 มกราคม พ.ศ. 2488 เป็นวันครูและให้กระทรวงศึกษาธิการสั่งการให้นักเรียนและครูหยุดในวันดังกล่าวได้ การจัดงานวันครูได้จัดเป็นครั้งแรกเมื่อวันที่ 16 มกราคม 2500 ในส่วนกลางใช้สถานที่ของกรีฑาสถานแห่งชาติเป็นที่จัดงาน งานวันครูนี้ได้กำหนดเป็นหลักการให้มีอนุสรณ์งานวันครูไว้ให้แก่อนุชนรุ่นหลังทุกปี อนุสรณ์ที่สำคัญคือหนังสือประวัติครู หนังสือที่ระลึกวันครู และสิ่งก่อสร้างที่เป็นถาวรวัตถุ การจัดงานวันครูได้ปรับปรุงเปลี่ยนแปลงกิจกรรมให้สอดคล้องกับการเปลี่ยนแปลงของสังคมตลอดเวลา ในปัจจุบันได้จัดรูปแบบการจัดงานวันครูจะมีกิจกรรม 3 ประเภทใหญ่ดังนี้ 1.กิจกรรมทางศาสนา 2.พิธีรำลึกถึงพระคุณบูรพาจารย์ ประกอบด้วยพิธีปฏิญาณตน การกล่าวคำระลึกถึงพระคุณบูรพาจารย์ 3.กิจกรรมเพื่อความสามัคคีระหว่างผู้ประกอบอาชีพครู สา่วนมากจะเป็นการแข่งขันกีฬาหรือการจัดงานรื่นเริง
Histoire et origine Article détaillé : Histoire de la vigne et du vin.
On admet généralement que le vin existe depuis plusieurs millénaires, on a trouvé des jarres anciennes de plus de 8 000 ans av. J.-C. contenant des pépins de raisins cultivés et de résidus d'acide tartrique. On ne sait actuellement pas si ce produit était réellement du vin ou simplement du jus de raisin.
Après l'Iran, on aurait retrouvé au nord de la Chine des traces datant de 7 000 ans av. J.-C. d'une boisson fermentée sur de la poterie.
Le roi Salomon l'a célébré, mais ce sont certainement les Grecs qui ont contribué au développement de la viticulture sur le pourtour de la Méditerranée. En effet, ils ont longtemps fait du commerce dans tous les pays méditerranéens. Ce sont eux qui ont importé les premiers vins en France en arrivant par le port de Marseille. À cette époque, le vin était composé de moût de raisin partiellement fermenté auquel on ajoutait de l'eau de mer pour sa conservation durant le transport, à l'arrivée on ajoutait de l'eau douce pour enlever le goût du sel.
Dans l'Égypte ancienne, on sait que la viticulture était très organisée. Osiris en Égypte, Dionysos en Grèce, Bacchus chez les Romains, Gilgamesh à Babylone représentent le vin ou sa quête dans la mythologie. Le vin symbolise aussi le sang du Christ dans la religion chrétienne. Le vin a évolué énormément durant les précédents millénaires. Les Romains avaient des vins très épicés qu'ils allongeaient à l'eau de mer. Ils ne correspondraient pas du tout aux goûts actuels.
Au XIXe siècle, le vin est considéré comme une boisson énergétique, par exemple, un faucheur en boit 6 à 8 litres par jour ! Le vin constituait une partie de sa rémunération, à une époque où l'eau n'était pas toujours vraiment potable.
Constitution et fabrication du vin Article détaillé : Vinification.
Le vin, tel qu'il est entendu généralement, est le produit d'une plante (la vigne) et d'une seule variété de raisin (vinifera). Il est par exemple quasi impossible de vinifier des raisins venant d'autres souches.
Il existe aussi des produits auxquels - par analogie - on donne le nom de « vin » : comme le saké au Japon (« vin de riz ») ou le vin de palme.
Il est essentiellement une solution d'alcool dans l'eau, qui contient également un grand nombre de composés chimiques volatils ou non, en solution ou en suspension. La teneur en alcool est généralement comprise entre 10 % et 15 % en moyenne pour sa version non renforcée pour une teneur en eau de l'ordre de 85 %.
L'alcool est principalement de l'éthanol mais on y trouve aussi du glycérol, du sorbitol, du butylèneglycol.
Le vin comprend aussi :
des sucres : glucose, fructose dont le dosage varie de 1 à 2 g/L dans les vins secs jusqu'à 50 à 60 g/L dans les vins doux pour lesquels la fermentation alcoolique a été incomplète ;
des acides : malique, citrique, tartrique, acétique, lactique, succinique, oxalique, borique, phosphorique, phénolique, 7 acides benzoïques, 3 acides cinnamiques. Le PH du vin varie de 3 à 4 ;
des composés phénoliques : tanins, anthocyanes qui, dans le vin rouge, qui sont des antioxydants.
Caractérisation Les vins sont qualifiés en général suivant plusieurs éléments :
l'origine (ou terroir) : pouvant aller du pays (ex. Australia) à un terroir précis (ex. Aloxe-Corton)
le cépage principal (ou type génétiquement identifié de raisin) : ex. Merlot ou Chardonnay
la marque : il peut s'agir d'une simple marque (ex. Baron de Lestac), du nom du vinificateur (ex. Louis Latour) ou du nom du récoltant (M. Eric Roche de La Rigodière à St Julien sous Montmelas)
la couleur : blanc, rouge, rosé en général
le millésime (ou année de récolte des raisins)
la taille du contenant : la norme étant 75cl
Cépage
Le cépage décrit le cultivar de la vigne utilisée pour produire le vin. Les plus célèbres sont dans les rouges : le cabernet-sauvignon, le cabernet franc, le merlot, le grenache, la syrah, le mourvèdre, le carignan, le pinot noir, le gamay, le zinfandel, le malbec, le tempranillo, le sangiovese, le pinotage, le côt, l'alicante, l'aramon.
Parmi les blancs les plus connus sont : le chardonnay, le sauvignon blanc, le gewurztraminer, le chenin, le muscat, le pinot gris, le riesling, le sémillon, la roussanne, la marsanne, le viognier, le vermentino, le maccabeu, la clairette, le bourboulenc et le grenache blanc.
Types de vins
Vin aromatisé
Vin bio, vin sans soufre
Vin blanc, vin rouge, vin rosé, vin gris
Champagne
Vin chaud, vin cuit,
Vin doux, vin liquoreux, vin moelleux, vin muté
Vin effervescent, vin mousseux, vin perlant
Vin de glace
Vin jaune, vin de paille
Vin de montagne
Vins distillés : Cognac, Armagnac, Metaxa
Vin sans alcool
Terroir Le terroir (ou l'origine) est caractérisé par l'environnement dans lesquels la vigne pousse : sol, sous-sol, exposition, climat, par des pratiques culturales : choix du cépage, type de plantation et de taille de la vigne et par des pratiques oenologiques : type de vinification et choix de l'élevage du vin. Dans les pays anciennement producteurs comme la France les deux derniers points, pratiques culturales et vinification revêtent une grande importance liée à la tradition et à l'histoire.
Les vins de producteurs dit du « nouveau monde » (Argentine, Australie, Afrique du Sud, Chili, Californie…) diversifient grandement les possibilités offertes par les paramètres environnementaux (ensoleillement, humidité, qualité de la terre) et s'attachent moins à la tradition qu'à la recherche de nouvelles techniques, bien qu'ils soient souvent considérés, souvent à tort, comme des vins de plus faible qualité.
Ces terroirs sont protégés par un système d'appellations qui tend à s'étendre à travers le monde. En France la hiérarchie des appellations est :
Vin de Table (vin conforme à la réglementation et propre à la consommation) ;
Vin de Table de France (les raisins proviennent de France exclusivement) ;
Vin de Pays (région délimitée et pratiques réglementées) ;
A.O.V.D.Q.S. ou appellation d'origine vin de qualité supérieure (souvent un tremplin vers l'A.O.C.) ;
A.O.C. ou appellation d'origine contrôlée (terroir défini plus strictement et pratiques visant à exprimer la spécificité du vin).
Ces appellations sont gérées par des syndicats d'appellation regroupés au sein de l'I.N.A.O.
En France, les terroirs sont parfois associés à un ou plusieurs cépages (exemples : Bordeaux et le Cabernet ou le Merlot, la Bourgogne et le Pinot Noir ou le Chardonnay). Les propriétés prennent en général le nom de domaine en Bourgogne et de châteaux dans la région de Bordeaux ou encore mas dans le sud de la France. Certaines de ces appellations sont réglementées, d'autres pas.
Millésime C'est l'année de récolte des raisins ayant servi à produire un vin. Le millésime, qui exprime les conditions climatologiques de l'année, est un repère important pour apprécier la qualité d'un vin. Il est généralement indiqué sur l'étiquette apposée sur la bouteille, sauf pour les vins de qualité courante. À noter le champagne, seul vin d'assemblage autorisé en France (assemblage de vins issus d'années de production différentes) ne possèdant pas de millésime sauf si l'assemblage est obtenu à partir de vins de la même année de récolte. Il s'agira alors d'un champagne issu d'une année exceptionnelle.
Les nouveaux vins Naguère chaque vin acquérait sa personnalité de par les cépages utilisés, de par les terroirs sur lesquels les vignes poussaient, de par les microclimats dont ils profitaient, de par le savoir-faire du vigneron qui le cultivait, le vinifiait et l'élevait, et même de choses qui paraissent insignifiantes comme la qualité de la cave ou celle des tonneaux de chêne.
Aujourd'hui, le vin en s'ouvrant de nouveaux territoires à travers le monde et en conquérant de nouveaux consommateurs non éduqués, est obligé de rentrer dans une logique productiviste et de marketing comme n'importe quel autre produit. Pour plaire et rassurer les nouveaux vins doivent être, quelle que soit la bouteille, identiques d'apparence et de goût, être reconnus et surtout ne pas créer de surprises aux consommateurs.
Il est donc nécessaire d'avoir un produit standardisé où tous les composants se fondent dans un goût plaisant et neutre. Pour cela tous les vins d'une même appellation sont vinifiés ensemble. Les caractères particuliers doivent être cassés et les différences abolies pour que le vin soit celui qui est défini à l'avance, on passe d'une identité de terroir à une identité collective, et pour que cela ne soit pas trop compliqué un nouveau vin n'est souvent produit, dans un premier temps, qu'avec un seul cépage.
Contenants
Verre
Un verre de vin rouge.
Un verre de vin blanc.
La mignonette, 5 cl.
Le ballon, 12,5 cl.
La fillette (vins de Loire) 50 cl.
Le pot (vins de la région lyonnaise) environ 50 cl. Il possède un cul épais, lui conférant une certaine stabilité.
Le clavelin, 62 cl (Jura)=> bouteille utilisée pour le vin jaune (AOC)
La demi-bouteille, 37,5 cl.
La bouteille normale en verre de 75 cl, celle d'Alsace est plus fine, celle de Champagne plus épaisse et résistante (et faisait 70 cl jusqu'au XXe siècle).
La fiasque (Italie)
La dame-jeanne
Autres formats de bouteilles :
magnum 1,5 l (2 bouteilles)
jéroboam, 3 l (4 bouteilles)
réhoboam, 4,5 l (6 bouteilles)
mathusalem, 6 l (8 bouteilles)
salmanazar, 9 l (12 bouteilles)
balthazar, 12 l (16 bouteilles)
nabuchodonosor, 15 l (20 bouteilles)
salomon, 18 l (24 bouteilles)
souverain, 26,25 l (35 bouteilles)
primat, 27 l (36 bouteilles).
Selon la tradition, beaucoup ont l'habitude de trinquer avant de boire leur verre. Cette habitude vient de la volonté de "mélanger" les contenus des verres avant de les boire. Ainsi si l'un contenait du poison, un peu de celui-ci retombait dans le second verre. Une manière de tranquilliser les esprits à une époque où les empoisonnements n'étaient pas rare... Lorsqu'une bouteille est vide, on l'appelle familièrement un « cadavre ».
La majorité des contenants en verre destinés au vin sont donc des multiples ou des divisions de volumes de 75 cl pour la plupart des appellations. L'origine de ce volume « singulier » est objet de discussions parmi les spécialistes de poids et mesures, surpris que la normalisation des mesures post-révolution française n'ait apparemment pas eu prise sur ce contenant (en réalité, des bouteilles d'un litre se vendaient encore fréquemment il y a quelques dizaines d'années pour des vins courants).
Par opposition, la mise en bouteilles (faite le plus souvent en dehors des domaines producteurs jusqu'au début du siècle) de vins « de qualité » utilisait des contenants proches de 75 cl. On pense aujourd'hui que ce volume a été choisi car il correspondait à une mesure couramment utilisée lors des échanges sur les marchés export (un gallon impérial environ 4,5 l). L'achat d'une caisse de 12 bouteilles d'un grand cru bordelais correspondait donc à l'achat de deux gallons impériaux du même vin, une barrique bordelaise de 225 litres à 50 gallons impériaux.
Plastique et carton
Le cubitainer de plusieurs litres pour une consommation ou un transfert immédiat.
Le « bib », de l'anglicisme bag-in-box, est une poche à vin à l'intérieur d'une boîte en carton qui se rétracte au fur et à mesure qu'elle se vide sans que l'air y pénètre. Au Québec on l'appelle le « vinier ».
Il existe des bouteilles en plastique, et même des cartons.
Bois de chêne Plusieurs types de chênes sont utilisés Quercus alba, Quercus sessiflora, Quercus robur. Pour l'élevage des vins, Quercus Alba n'est pas utilisé. On le réserve aux eaux de vie et alocols.
Les volumes les plus classiques sont les suivants :
foudre (20 à 500 hectolitres parfois plus encore),
feuillette (114 à 140 l),
barrique bordelaise (225 l),
fût ou pièce bourgogne (228 l),
pièce beaujolais (216 l),
barrique de Bordeaux (225 l),
tonneau de Bordeaux (4 barriques),
feuillette de Chablis (132 l),
fût d'Armagnac (273 l),
fût de Cognac (350 l).
On admet généralement que le vin existe depuis plusieurs millénaires, on a trouvé des jarres anciennes de plus de 8 000 ans av. J.-C. contenant des pépins de raisins cultivés et de résidus d'acide tartrique. On ne sait actuellement pas si ce produit était réellement du vin ou simplement du jus de raisin.
Après l'Iran, on aurait retrouvé au nord de la Chine des traces datant de 7 000 ans av. J.-C. d'une boisson fermentée sur de la poterie.
Le roi Salomon l'a célébré, mais ce sont certainement les Grecs qui ont contribué au développement de la viticulture sur le pourtour de la Méditerranée. En effet, ils ont longtemps fait du commerce dans tous les pays méditerranéens. Ce sont eux qui ont importé les premiers vins en France en arrivant par le port de Marseille. À cette époque, le vin était composé de moût de raisin partiellement fermenté auquel on ajoutait de l'eau de mer pour sa conservation durant le transport, à l'arrivée on ajoutait de l'eau douce pour enlever le goût du sel.
Dans l'Égypte ancienne, on sait que la viticulture était très organisée. Osiris en Égypte, Dionysos en Grèce, Bacchus chez les Romains, Gilgamesh à Babylone représentent le vin ou sa quête dans la mythologie. Le vin symbolise aussi le sang du Christ dans la religion chrétienne. Le vin a évolué énormément durant les précédents millénaires. Les Romains avaient des vins très épicés qu'ils allongeaient à l'eau de mer. Ils ne correspondraient pas du tout aux goûts actuels.
Au XIXe siècle, le vin est considéré comme une boisson énergétique, par exemple, un faucheur en boit 6 à 8 litres par jour ! Le vin constituait une partie de sa rémunération, à une époque où l'eau n'était pas toujours vraiment potable.
Constitution et fabrication du vin Article détaillé : Vinification.
Le vin, tel qu'il est entendu généralement, est le produit d'une plante (la vigne) et d'une seule variété de raisin (vinifera). Il est par exemple quasi impossible de vinifier des raisins venant d'autres souches.
Il existe aussi des produits auxquels - par analogie - on donne le nom de « vin » : comme le saké au Japon (« vin de riz ») ou le vin de palme.
Il est essentiellement une solution d'alcool dans l'eau, qui contient également un grand nombre de composés chimiques volatils ou non, en solution ou en suspension. La teneur en alcool est généralement comprise entre 10 % et 15 % en moyenne pour sa version non renforcée pour une teneur en eau de l'ordre de 85 %.
L'alcool est principalement de l'éthanol mais on y trouve aussi du glycérol, du sorbitol, du butylèneglycol.
Le vin comprend aussi :
des sucres : glucose, fructose dont le dosage varie de 1 à 2 g/L dans les vins secs jusqu'à 50 à 60 g/L dans les vins doux pour lesquels la fermentation alcoolique a été incomplète ;
des acides : malique, citrique, tartrique, acétique, lactique, succinique, oxalique, borique, phosphorique, phénolique, 7 acides benzoïques, 3 acides cinnamiques. Le PH du vin varie de 3 à 4 ;
des composés phénoliques : tanins, anthocyanes qui, dans le vin rouge, qui sont des antioxydants.
Caractérisation Les vins sont qualifiés en général suivant plusieurs éléments :
l'origine (ou terroir) : pouvant aller du pays (ex. Australia) à un terroir précis (ex. Aloxe-Corton)
le cépage principal (ou type génétiquement identifié de raisin) : ex. Merlot ou Chardonnay
la marque : il peut s'agir d'une simple marque (ex. Baron de Lestac), du nom du vinificateur (ex. Louis Latour) ou du nom du récoltant (M. Eric Roche de La Rigodière à St Julien sous Montmelas)
la couleur : blanc, rouge, rosé en général
le millésime (ou année de récolte des raisins)
la taille du contenant : la norme étant 75cl
Cépage
Le cépage décrit le cultivar de la vigne utilisée pour produire le vin. Les plus célèbres sont dans les rouges : le cabernet-sauvignon, le cabernet franc, le merlot, le grenache, la syrah, le mourvèdre, le carignan, le pinot noir, le gamay, le zinfandel, le malbec, le tempranillo, le sangiovese, le pinotage, le côt, l'alicante, l'aramon.
Parmi les blancs les plus connus sont : le chardonnay, le sauvignon blanc, le gewurztraminer, le chenin, le muscat, le pinot gris, le riesling, le sémillon, la roussanne, la marsanne, le viognier, le vermentino, le maccabeu, la clairette, le bourboulenc et le grenache blanc.
Types de vins
Vin aromatisé
Vin bio, vin sans soufre
Vin blanc, vin rouge, vin rosé, vin gris
Champagne
Vin chaud, vin cuit,
Vin doux, vin liquoreux, vin moelleux, vin muté
Vin effervescent, vin mousseux, vin perlant
Vin de glace
Vin jaune, vin de paille
Vin de montagne
Vins distillés : Cognac, Armagnac, Metaxa
Vin sans alcool
Terroir Le terroir (ou l'origine) est caractérisé par l'environnement dans lesquels la vigne pousse : sol, sous-sol, exposition, climat, par des pratiques culturales : choix du cépage, type de plantation et de taille de la vigne et par des pratiques oenologiques : type de vinification et choix de l'élevage du vin. Dans les pays anciennement producteurs comme la France les deux derniers points, pratiques culturales et vinification revêtent une grande importance liée à la tradition et à l'histoire.
Les vins de producteurs dit du « nouveau monde » (Argentine, Australie, Afrique du Sud, Chili, Californie…) diversifient grandement les possibilités offertes par les paramètres environnementaux (ensoleillement, humidité, qualité de la terre) et s'attachent moins à la tradition qu'à la recherche de nouvelles techniques, bien qu'ils soient souvent considérés, souvent à tort, comme des vins de plus faible qualité.
Ces terroirs sont protégés par un système d'appellations qui tend à s'étendre à travers le monde. En France la hiérarchie des appellations est :
Vin de Table (vin conforme à la réglementation et propre à la consommation) ;
Vin de Table de France (les raisins proviennent de France exclusivement) ;
Vin de Pays (région délimitée et pratiques réglementées) ;
A.O.V.D.Q.S. ou appellation d'origine vin de qualité supérieure (souvent un tremplin vers l'A.O.C.) ;
A.O.C. ou appellation d'origine contrôlée (terroir défini plus strictement et pratiques visant à exprimer la spécificité du vin).
Ces appellations sont gérées par des syndicats d'appellation regroupés au sein de l'I.N.A.O.
En France, les terroirs sont parfois associés à un ou plusieurs cépages (exemples : Bordeaux et le Cabernet ou le Merlot, la Bourgogne et le Pinot Noir ou le Chardonnay). Les propriétés prennent en général le nom de domaine en Bourgogne et de châteaux dans la région de Bordeaux ou encore mas dans le sud de la France. Certaines de ces appellations sont réglementées, d'autres pas.
Millésime C'est l'année de récolte des raisins ayant servi à produire un vin. Le millésime, qui exprime les conditions climatologiques de l'année, est un repère important pour apprécier la qualité d'un vin. Il est généralement indiqué sur l'étiquette apposée sur la bouteille, sauf pour les vins de qualité courante. À noter le champagne, seul vin d'assemblage autorisé en France (assemblage de vins issus d'années de production différentes) ne possèdant pas de millésime sauf si l'assemblage est obtenu à partir de vins de la même année de récolte. Il s'agira alors d'un champagne issu d'une année exceptionnelle.
Les nouveaux vins Naguère chaque vin acquérait sa personnalité de par les cépages utilisés, de par les terroirs sur lesquels les vignes poussaient, de par les microclimats dont ils profitaient, de par le savoir-faire du vigneron qui le cultivait, le vinifiait et l'élevait, et même de choses qui paraissent insignifiantes comme la qualité de la cave ou celle des tonneaux de chêne.
Aujourd'hui, le vin en s'ouvrant de nouveaux territoires à travers le monde et en conquérant de nouveaux consommateurs non éduqués, est obligé de rentrer dans une logique productiviste et de marketing comme n'importe quel autre produit. Pour plaire et rassurer les nouveaux vins doivent être, quelle que soit la bouteille, identiques d'apparence et de goût, être reconnus et surtout ne pas créer de surprises aux consommateurs.
Il est donc nécessaire d'avoir un produit standardisé où tous les composants se fondent dans un goût plaisant et neutre. Pour cela tous les vins d'une même appellation sont vinifiés ensemble. Les caractères particuliers doivent être cassés et les différences abolies pour que le vin soit celui qui est défini à l'avance, on passe d'une identité de terroir à une identité collective, et pour que cela ne soit pas trop compliqué un nouveau vin n'est souvent produit, dans un premier temps, qu'avec un seul cépage.
Contenants
Verre
Un verre de vin rouge.
Un verre de vin blanc.
La mignonette, 5 cl.
Le ballon, 12,5 cl.
La fillette (vins de Loire) 50 cl.
Le pot (vins de la région lyonnaise) environ 50 cl. Il possède un cul épais, lui conférant une certaine stabilité.
Le clavelin, 62 cl (Jura)=> bouteille utilisée pour le vin jaune (AOC)
La demi-bouteille, 37,5 cl.
La bouteille normale en verre de 75 cl, celle d'Alsace est plus fine, celle de Champagne plus épaisse et résistante (et faisait 70 cl jusqu'au XXe siècle).
La fiasque (Italie)
La dame-jeanne
Autres formats de bouteilles :
magnum 1,5 l (2 bouteilles)
jéroboam, 3 l (4 bouteilles)
réhoboam, 4,5 l (6 bouteilles)
mathusalem, 6 l (8 bouteilles)
salmanazar, 9 l (12 bouteilles)
balthazar, 12 l (16 bouteilles)
nabuchodonosor, 15 l (20 bouteilles)
salomon, 18 l (24 bouteilles)
souverain, 26,25 l (35 bouteilles)
primat, 27 l (36 bouteilles).
Selon la tradition, beaucoup ont l'habitude de trinquer avant de boire leur verre. Cette habitude vient de la volonté de "mélanger" les contenus des verres avant de les boire. Ainsi si l'un contenait du poison, un peu de celui-ci retombait dans le second verre. Une manière de tranquilliser les esprits à une époque où les empoisonnements n'étaient pas rare... Lorsqu'une bouteille est vide, on l'appelle familièrement un « cadavre ».
La majorité des contenants en verre destinés au vin sont donc des multiples ou des divisions de volumes de 75 cl pour la plupart des appellations. L'origine de ce volume « singulier » est objet de discussions parmi les spécialistes de poids et mesures, surpris que la normalisation des mesures post-révolution française n'ait apparemment pas eu prise sur ce contenant (en réalité, des bouteilles d'un litre se vendaient encore fréquemment il y a quelques dizaines d'années pour des vins courants).
Par opposition, la mise en bouteilles (faite le plus souvent en dehors des domaines producteurs jusqu'au début du siècle) de vins « de qualité » utilisait des contenants proches de 75 cl. On pense aujourd'hui que ce volume a été choisi car il correspondait à une mesure couramment utilisée lors des échanges sur les marchés export (un gallon impérial environ 4,5 l). L'achat d'une caisse de 12 bouteilles d'un grand cru bordelais correspondait donc à l'achat de deux gallons impériaux du même vin, une barrique bordelaise de 225 litres à 50 gallons impériaux.
Plastique et carton
Le cubitainer de plusieurs litres pour une consommation ou un transfert immédiat.
Le « bib », de l'anglicisme bag-in-box, est une poche à vin à l'intérieur d'une boîte en carton qui se rétracte au fur et à mesure qu'elle se vide sans que l'air y pénètre. Au Québec on l'appelle le « vinier ».
Il existe des bouteilles en plastique, et même des cartons.
Bois de chêne Plusieurs types de chênes sont utilisés Quercus alba, Quercus sessiflora, Quercus robur. Pour l'élevage des vins, Quercus Alba n'est pas utilisé. On le réserve aux eaux de vie et alocols.
Les volumes les plus classiques sont les suivants :
foudre (20 à 500 hectolitres parfois plus encore),
feuillette (114 à 140 l),
barrique bordelaise (225 l),
fût ou pièce bourgogne (228 l),
pièce beaujolais (216 l),
barrique de Bordeaux (225 l),
tonneau de Bordeaux (4 barriques),
feuillette de Chablis (132 l),
fût d'Armagnac (273 l),
fût de Cognac (350 l).
สมัครสมาชิก:
บทความ (Atom)
