Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day is the National Holiday of Quebec and part of the 11 days of Celebrate Canada. It was first celebrated in Lower Canada in 1636, when the colony mainly operated as a fur-trading venture. Today, the national holiday is a celebration of French culture within Canada. In many cities and towns in Quebec and other francophone communities across the country, parades and parties are held and fireworks light the sky.
When asked what Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day means to them, Louise Patrice and Jean-Pierre Nault, co-presidents of the Francophone Committee, pointed to the following words drawn from fetenationale.info:
An occasion to meet again
Around a joyous fire, a large table or before scenes in which our artists sing, let us take advantage of these worthwhile occasions offered by Quebec’s National Holiday to tell stories, as have people done here for centuries, from the moment they first gathered. Let us do it in total friendship and in complete solidarity, because these are features of our community, which, throughout literature, have often been made clear. Let us therefore tell each other stories… and let us sing them too, because many of them have been brilliantly made into music.
Bonne Saint-Jean tout le monde!