Quiz / Parents Quizzes on ArcaMax

History of Mother's Day

Did you know there were three attempts made to establish a Mother's Day in America? Find out more about these, as well as early versions of the holiday in other countries, with our Mother's Day History quiz.

Points available: 10

1:

Ancient Greek "Mother's Day" celebrations honored which mythlogical character?

  • A) Hera
  • B) Athena
  • C) Aphrodite
  • D) Rhea
2:

For what purpose did a holiday honoring mothers in Britain begin?

  • A) To honor the Mothers Superior of local convents
  • B) To give servants a chance to visit their mothers
  • C) To appease overworked mothers who rioted in the streets
  • D) To give upper-class women an opportunity to hold parties
3:

What was Julia Ward Howe's attempt at Mother's Day in America meant to observe?

  • A) Peace and womanhood
  • B) The plight of working mothers
  • C) Widowed mothers during the Civil War
  • D) Her own mother
4:

When did Howe's Mother's Day celebration originally die out?

  • A) Shortly after her death
  • B) When she stopped covering the cost of the celebrations
  • C) After rumors about Howe began to spread
  • D) After attempts to shut it down
5:

Anna Jarvis, daughter of Anna Reeves Jarvis -- who had also attempted to instate a "mother's day" -- wanted to establish the holiday to honor whom?

  • A) Julia Ward Howe's friends
  • B) Mothers living and dead
  • C) A friend who had died in childbirth
  • D) Women who were unable to bear children
6:

In 1912, which state became the first to adopt an official Mother's Day?

  • A) New York
  • B) North Carolina
  • C) West Virginia
  • D) Massachusetts
7:

Why did florists object to the idea of selling flowers for Mother's day?

  • A) They believed the holiday could be exploited
  • B) They were afraid of running out of carnations
  • C) They did not believe the celebration of motherhood should be limited to one day
  • D) They were afraid they would lose money on it
8:

After nearly dying out in the 19th century, what was one of the things that revived the concept of a Mother's Day in England after WWII?

  • A) Support for mothers who had lost children in the war
  • B) An edict from the Queen
  • C) Commercial enterprises trying to boost sales
  • D) A movement among the women of the country to reinstate it
9:

Whom does a white carnation honor?

  • A) A deceased mother
  • B) A living mother
  • C) A mother separated by distance
  • D) A widowed mother
10:

Which proponent of Mother's Day has been honored on a stamp?

  • A) Anna Reeves Jarvis
  • B) Anna Jarvis
  • C) Julia Ward Howe
  • D) No such stamp was ever issued