Mother’s Day in the United States, celebrated on the second Sunday in May, has roots in both ancient traditions and 19th-century activism.

While ancient Greek and Roman cultures honored mother goddesses, the modern holiday emerged from the efforts of Julia Ward Howe and Anna Jarvis. 

Julia Ward Howe’s 1870 “Mother’s Day Proclamation” called for mothers to unite for peace, while Anna Jarvis later spearheaded a national holiday to honor mothers, which was officially recognized in 1914 by President Woodrow Wilson