May 11 is International Mother’s Day, World Technology Day, and World Ego Awareness Day. Also, on this day, in different eras, interesting events took place that influenced both the course of history of individual countries and the development of science, culture, and technology.
International Mother’s Day
International Mother’s Day is a day dedicated to honoring mothers, grandmothers, as well as women who performed the role of mother. In Ukraine and more than 20 other countries of the world, this holiday falls on the second Sunday of May every year. This is a day when gratitude is expressed for the daily love, care and efforts of women who gave birth, raised, supported, and were there. It is at the same time a family and social holiday, devoid of formality, but filled with meaning. It reminds of kindness, respect, love, care, which often goes unnoticed in everyday life. It is also a holiday of children and parents, of close family ties rooted in life experience.
In the ancient Greek tradition, honoring the mother came from the cult of Rhea, the Great Mother of the Gods. Official rituals and solemn ceremonies in her honor took place every year on the Ides of March throughout Asia Minor. In ancient Rome, similar ceremonies were held in honor of Cybele.
In Great Britain during the XVII-XIX centuries, the so-called “Mothering Sunday service” (Mothering Sunday), which fell on the second Sunday of Great Lent, was common. On this day, mothers were honored throughout the country, allowing even servants to take the day off to visit their relatives.
In the USA, the idea of an official holiday appeared in 1872. It was nominated by the pacifist Julia Ward Gove, who proposed celebrating Mother’s Day as a day of unity among mothers in the struggle for world peace. However, this initiative did not receive significant support at the time.
In 1907, American Anna Jarvis from Philadelphia proposed honoring mothers in memory of her late mother. She sent dozens of letters to official institutions, legislatures and celebrities, proposing to establish a separate day to honor mothers. Anna Jarvis’s initiative was supported: in 1910, the state of Virginia was the first to recognize Mother’s Day as an official holiday, and in 1914, US President Woodrow Wilson declared the second Sunday of May a national holiday in honor of mothers.
After that, another 23 countries of the world announced the second Sunday of May as a national holiday. Among them: Bahrain, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Mexico, Nicaragua, UAE, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Australia, Ukraine, Estonia and others. More than 30 countries celebrate Mother’s Day on other days.
Interesting facts
In Ukraine, more than 138,000 women received the honorary title of “Heroine Mother”. This is a state award given by the President to women who have given birth to and raised five or more children up to the age of eight, including those adopted in accordance with current legislation. At the same time, not only the number of children is taken into account, but also the mother’s significant personal contribution to their upbringing in the family, ensuring the conditions for obtaining an education, developing abilities and forming moral and spiritual qualities.
In the Ukrainian language, there are more than 40 synonyms for the word “mother” in folklore – nenka, matusya, mamtsa, matinka, nrodnenka, as well as affectionate forms depending on the region.
The youngest mother in the world – Peruvian Lina Medina gave birth at the age of 5 years and 7 months in 1939. She had a rare hormonal disorder — precocious puberty.
The woman who gave birth to the most children was a peasant woman from the Russian Empire, the wife of Fyodor Vasiliev from Shui (XVIII century). She gave birth to 69 children in 27 deliveries: 16 twins, 7 triplets and 4 quadruplets.
In some cultures, mothers were buried at home rather than in a cemetery. In the Amazonian tribes, the mother’s body was buried under the threshold of the house, believing that she would protect the family after death.
In Sparta, mothers were taught not to weep for their dead sons. The phrase “With a shield or on a shield” comes from this tradition: Spartan mothers before a battle handed a shield to their son, demanding heroism or death.
In Tibet, there was a tradition of polyandry — when several brothers married the same woman. All children were considered joint, but each of the brothers considered himself a full-fledged father, and the mother – one.
In medieval Europe, mothers often did not know the exact date of their child’s birth. Due to the lack of a calendar system in the villages, only the season, holiday or omen was recorded (for example, “on Kupala” or “before the first frost”).
Science has proven that pregnancy changes the structure of a woman’s brain. There is a decrease in the volume of gray matter in the areas responsible for social connections – the brain is reprogrammed to “care mode”.
Maternal instinct is not a universal biological mechanism. In a number of cultures, particularly in Asia, the care of newborns was traditionally carried out by grandmothers, and the mother could return to work a few days after giving birth.
In 2022, the highest level of maternal mortality in Europe was recorded in Albania, Ukraine and Moldova. The lowest is in Finland, the Netherlands and Slovenia.
In the traditional culture of the San people (Bushmen in Africa), the mother breastfeeds the child until the age of 5 or more, and the child is breastfed more than 4 times per hour during the day – the most frequent contact in known cultures.
In Afghanistan, until 2001, a woman who gave birth to a daughter could be expelled from the family. The right to have the status of a wife or mother was recognized only through a son.
In the world, as of 2023, more than 15 million women were mothers before the age of 18. Most of them are in sub-Saharan Africa.
World Technology Day
This is an unofficial, but increasingly popular worldwide thematic celebration, which draws attention to the role of technology in the life of a modern person. It is usually observed on May 11 as a day to recognize the global impact of technological progress on the economy, education, health, environment, human rights, war and peace.
This day serves as a reminder that technology is not neutral. They shape the way of thinking, the organization of work, the structure of society, as well as new moral challenges. Unlike local or specialized professional holidays (for example, the Day of the IT specialist), the World Technology Day is a general event designed to draw the attention of a wider public – from schoolchildren to politicians – to the depth of penetration of technology into all spheres of life.
For the first time, the idea of the day was proposed in 2015 within the framework of educational initiatives on digital literacy. Since then, it has been supported by universities, scientific institutions, large technology companies, as well as journalistic platforms covering technology.
Interesting facts
The word “technology” was recorded for the first time in 1615 in the work of the German theologian Gottfried Jung, where it meant “systematic presentation of crafts.”
As of 2025, more than 66% of the world’s population uses the Internet, and the average age of children’s first access to a digital device is 3.7 years.
In 2023, for the first time, artificial intelligence passed the bar exam in some US states, with a result above the human average.
In 2024, Elon Musk announced the start of tests of Neuralink, a chip that allows you to read brain signals and transmit them contactlessly.
The first use of 3D printing to create a functional human organ (liver) was recorded in 2022 in Japan, but at the level of laboratory samples.
The largest electricity consumption in 2023 among private companies is in the data centers of Amazon and Google. They spent more than some Eastern European countries.
One in four people in the world already uses a smart watch or fitness bracelet that collects data about the body in real time.
In the EU, there is a concept of “ethical AI”, which obliges developers to create transparent, non-discriminatory and accountable algorithms.
According to the WHO, more than 2.2 billion people in the world have limited or no access to basic health technologies, including diagnostics, telemedicine and monitoring devices.
World Ego Awareness Day
This day is celebrated annually in the world on May 11, starting from 2018. The initiative belongs to the founder of the concept of “Ego Awareness” — writer, philosopher and coach Ashees Dakkar, who started the day with the aim of drawing attention to the role of the human ego in personal, social and global conflicts. Although the event is new to the calendar of international initiatives, it quickly gained support from the psychological, educational, media and coaching communities in many countries around the world.
The main idea of the day is not to condemn the ego, but to understand its role in human behavior, decision-making, conflicts and building relationships. According to modern psychology, the ego is not an exclusively negative phenomenon. This is the structure of the psyche, which is responsible for self-awareness, self-esteem, internal identity. But in conditions of stress, crisis or uncertainty, the ego can become a source of destructive behavior – from excessive self-assertion to rigid dominance, addiction to recognition, resentment, revenge or manipulation.
This day encourages you to think about the limits of a healthy ego and to learn to recognize the moments when the ego guides actions, causing harm to others or to oneself. It is also about learning the connection between ego and emotional maturity, the ability to admit mistakes, listen to other opinions, compromise, not lose dignity, while remaining open to feedback.
Although the holiday is not official in any country, it is actively supported by organizations working in mental health, school education, conflict studies and coaching. The idea is not to force people to “get rid of the ego”, but to help them understand how it works and where it starts to hurt.
Interesting facts
The term “ego” was introduced into modern psychology by Sigmund Freud, within his theory of personality structure (together with “id” and “super-ego”).
– In Buddhism, the concept of ego is often equated with the illusion of the self, which is the source of suffering. However, modern psychologists do not equate the terms and do not propose complete “destruction” of the ego.
The day was first celebrated online in 2018, at the initiative of Asheesh Dhakar in partnership with several psychotherapy organizations.
– In 2022, more than 50 countries joined the day, including the USA, Great Britain, Canada, Italy, Brazil, India, South Africa, Poland, Ukraine.
In the context of working with teams, ego is one of the causes of team rifts when it comes to conflicts between personal ambitions and a shared goal.
In many cultures, a traditional distinction is made between the “inner ego” (self-awareness) and the “outer ego” (forced self-affirmation in front of others).
Research by neuroscientists shows that ego-active behavior is associated with the activation of areas of the brain responsible for defense and emotional response to threats.
Within the day, organizers often suggest performing a stop-ego exercise: analyzing one recent situation in which a decision was dictated not by need, but by a defensive reaction or self-love.
Historical events on this day
330 — A solemn ceremony was held to consecrate Constantinople as the new capital of the Roman Empire. Emperor Constantine the Great sought to create a Christian center that would compete with Rome for influence.
868 — The “Diamond Sutra” was created in China, the oldest known example of a precisely dated printed text. This Buddhist treatise has survived to this day and is considered the oldest example of a dated woodcut.
1709 — A mass wave of resettlement of Germans from the Palatinate region to North America began. The reason was the war, poverty and religious persecution in Europe.
1712 — The Tula Arms Plant was founded, an enterprise that will become one of the key centers of Russian arms production. Two hundred years later, in 1912, a monument to Peter I will be opened in his honor.
1811 — Conjoined twins Chang and Eng Bunker were born in Siam (modern Thailand). Their lives and medical research became the basis for the term “Siamese twins”.
1858 — Minnesota joined the United States as the 32nd state. Its accession completed the process of development of part of the north-central region.
1860 — Giuseppe Garibaldi began his expedition with a “thousand” of volunteers, landing in Sicily. This event became key in the process of unification of Italy.
1867 — In London, during an international conference, the independence of Luxembourg was confirmed by major European powers. At the same time, its neutral status was confirmed.
1907 — In Kyiv, they founded the Ukrainian Scientific Society — an important academic institution that would later become the basis for the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.
1911 — During the revolutionary events in Mexico, the rebels declared the city of Ciudad Juarez as the new capital of the country, trying to shift the political center.
1914 — Military pilot Petro Nesterov together with mechanic G. Nelidov made a flight from Kyiv to Gatchina. They covered a distance of 1,277 kilometers in 7 hours and 45 minutes on the Newport-IV plane.
1928 — Regular television broadcasting began in New York — the first in the world. This marked the beginning of a new media phase that would later change culture and communication.
1944 — The State Defense Committee of the USSR decided to deport the Crimean Tatar population to the eastern regions of the USSR. This act of resettlement had catastrophic consequences for the Crimean Tatars.
1945 — In the Swiss weekly Die Weltwoche, a landmark publication appeared – an interview with Carl Gustav Jung entitled “Will souls find peace?”. In it, he reflected on the psyche of post-war Europe.
1970 — The first trolleybus line was inaugurated in Mariupol. The event became part of the modernization of urban transport in the southeast of Ukraine.
Munchausen’s birthday
On May 11, 1720, near the German city of Hanover, the fifth of eight children was born in the von Munchhausen family – Karl Friedrich Hieronymus von Munchhausen. His family was of ancient origin. It is believed that the founder of the dynasty was the knight Heino, a participant in the crusades led by Emperor Frederick Barbarossa as early as the 12th century. The surname “Münchhausen” literally means “house of the monk”, and that is why the family’s coat of arms depicts a monk with a staff and a book.
Although most people know Baron Munchausen as the hero of fantastic fables and humorous fictions, he really did exist. In February 1738, at the age of 18, young Karl arrived in St. Petersburg as part of the mail of Prince Braunschweig, who had arrived in Russia as a distinguished guest. The baron served in the Russian army, reached the rank of captain (cavalry captain), after which he retired and returned to his native estate.
Returning to a quiet life in his homeland seemed boring to the baron. Therefore, he began to entertain his aristocratic neighbors with stories about his adventures, mainly from the time of his service in Russia, including hunting, traveling on a cannonball, winter expeditions, fighting wild animals and other emergency situations. These stories were told in the hunting pavilion specially built by Munchausen and decorated with trophies. The pavilion soon received the popular name “Pavilion of Lies”.
Eyewitnesses remembered how the baron began to talk after dinner: he was smoking his large foam pipe with a short mouthpiece, a glass of punch was standing in front of him, and the further the story progressed, the more animated his speech became, the more actively he gestured, the redder his face became. Usually restrained and truthful, it was at these moments that the baron gave free rein to his imagination and artistic inspiration.
The first three anecdotal stories from his stories were recorded by Count Rox Friedrich Linar. And later Rudolf Erich Raspe, a German writer who emigrated to England, used the name Munchausen and published a book called “The Adventures of Baron Munchausen during his travels and campaigns in Russia.” This book brought literary fame, although it became a source of dissatisfaction for the baron himself, because he believed that he was portrayed in a caricature and humiliating way.
In the descriptions of his contemporaries, the real Munchausen had a strong physique, a rounded, symmetrical face, but later artists created another iconic image: a thin man with a curled mustache and a sharp Spanish hair. This is how he appears, for example, in the famous illustrations of Gustave Dore in 1862.
At the end of his life, the baron experienced a personal drama. After the death of his first wife, he decided to marry a second time – this time with 17-year-old Bernardina von Brun, a young, easy-going and extravagant girl. A daughter was born in this marriage, but the 75-year-old baron publicly stated that he does not recognize the child, considering it not his own. He sued, setting off a high-profile and costly process that ended in financial ruin. His wife fled abroad, and the baron, bankrupt and sick, lived out his last years in isolation.
Munchausen died after a stroke, probably in a state of deep depression. However, even in the moments before his death, he did not lose his sense of humor. According to the maid’s recollections, when she asked how he lost his two toes (frozen during his stay in Russia), the baron replied: “They were bitten by a polar bear while hunting.”
Referendums in Donetsk and Luhansk regions
On May 11, 2014, referendums on the status of these regions were held in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The initiators of the event were pro-Russian forces, who, after seizing administrative buildings and announcing the creation of the so-called “people’s republics” — DPR and LPR — put the question of “state independence” to a vote.
The wording of the question on the ballots was the same in both regions: “Do you support the Act on State Independence of the Donetsk People’s Republic (or the Luhansk People’s Republic)?”.
According to the election organizers, the turnout in the Donetsk region was 74.87%. 89.07% of voters voted in favor of “state independence”, 10.19% voted against it, 0.74% of the ballots were spoiled. The organizers recorded the highest turnout in the following settlements:
– Neck — 96%
– Novogrodivka — 87.38%
– Pokrovsk — 81.66%
– Slavyansk — about 80%
– Torez – 78.31%
– Yenakievo — 74.31%
– Kalininsky district of Donetsk — 83.96%.
At the same time, in a number of cities, voting did not actually take place or covered only a small part of voters. The lowest turnout was recorded in Mariupol – 27.38%, which is explained by the fact that due to armed clashes on May 9, only four polling stations were functioning in the city – instead of about 100, as was the case in the 2012 parliamentary elections. At the same time, according to estimates, about 500,000 people lived in the city at that time, with an approximately equal share of the Ukrainian-speaking and Russian-speaking population.
In Luhansk region, according to the organizers, about 75% of voters took part in the voting. 1,298,084 people (96%) expressed support for the “independence of the LPR”, 51,276 people (3.8%) voted against it, and 10,600 ballots were declared invalid.
Ukrainian authorities, like international observers, did not recognize these votes as legitimate. It is believed that the election process did not comply with the laws of Ukraine, there was no transparency, compliance with procedures, electoral register, official observers, and control over the polling stations was carried out by armed formations.
Cancellation of short-term visas for citizens of Ukraine
On May 11, 2017, the Council of Ministers of the European Union approved the decision to cancel short-term visas for citizens of Ukraine. In accordance with this decision, Ukrainian citizens with biometric passports were given the possibility of visa-free entry to the countries of the Schengen zone and several other states — 32 countries in total. It was about staying in the territory of these countries for up to 90 days in every 180 days without the need to obtain a visa for tourist, business or private trips.
This decision was part of the EU’s broader policy of gradual rapprochement with Ukraine, in particular after the signing of the Association Agreement. The document entered into force on June 11, 2017. Its adoption was perceived as a significant step in the development of relations between Ukraine and the European Union, because it was preceded by many years of preparation, a series of reforms and difficult negotiations.
