When the Vikings, a group of seafarers from what is now Norway, Denmark, and Sweden, ventured far out into the Atlantic Ocean under the leadership of the Norwegian Erik the Red, they found a new land and named it Greenland. When Erik's son, Leif, sailed west from Greenland shortly thereafter, he landed somewhere in the vicinity of what is now Newfoundland. The exact spot of his landing is not known. Although Eriksson is not officially credited with discovering America, Congress has declared October 9 Leif Eriksson Day.
This "Day of Atonement" begins at sundown the day before Yom Kippur. (The Jewish day runs from sundown to sundown.) It is a very solemn day in the Jewish year that is devoted to fasting, prayer, and repentance. On Yom Kippur, people repeat a chant called the "Al Chet" (Chet is usually translated as "sin"). In the chant, the people list the ways in which they have fallen short over the past year and repent of these shortcomings.
The term "red-letter day" originates with the tradition of marking holy days in a church calendar in red. We use the term here to designate days of special significance in each month -- holidays, astronomical happenings, anniversaries of historic events, and days with memorable folklore attached. Information is drawn from the library of The Old Farmer's Almanac.
Every month you'll find a calendar of these "red-letter days" on the front page of Almanac.com.
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