Mother’s Day is a great celebration in May to appreciate mothers. You may have asked whether the holiday is capitalized or another question related to it.
Is Mother’s Day Capitalized?
Yes, Mother’s Day is capitalized when referring to the holiday.
Reason #1: While Mother’s Day is not an official federal holiday, it is considered to be one of the most common celebrations, like Groundhog Day and April Fools’ Day. That’s why it is always capitalized.
Alternatively, the following words like mother, mother, and mom are broadly termed as ‘family names.’ They are generally used as a common noun. However, whenever you are using these family names in the form of proper nouns, they need to be capitalized. For your reference, the examples are given below:
I) My mother is not well.
– Here the word ‘mother’ has been used as a common noun and it isn’t capitalized.
II) I have planned to celebrate Mother’s Day In May.
– Here the word ‘mother’ has been used as a proper noun. Thus, it is capitalized.
Reason #2: Mother’s Day is widely celebrated to honor mothers as individuals. This is the day when the children portray their sincere respect and gratitude towards their mothers. This day is special and unique to every mother. Considering its significance and importance, the term Mother’s Day is capitalized.
Why Does Mother’s Day Have an Apostrophe?
Mother’s day was meant to celebrate the contribution of each mother to her family, mothers as a collective group. It is not a day to honor all the mothers in the world. It is a day to celebrate each mother as an individual.
That is why the apostrophe is after r and before s, so that it indicates that the mother is an individual. If the apostrophe was after s, then the meaning completely changes. For example, April Fool’s Day is a day for all the fools of the world. That is why the apostrophe is after L. If Mother’s Day were spelled Mothers’ Day, then the holiday would refer to a day for all the mothers in the world to celebrate together.
This is why you will see that people wish Happy Mother’s day to their mother only and not to everyone. It is different from other popular days like Christmas Day, where you wish everyone a happy day.