August is a robust month, despite the fact that it is the only month that cannot boast of a major federal holiday in the United States. Formerly created into the month we all know and love, August was named after the Roman emperor Augustus in the year 8 B.C. This was the same month that the city of Alexandria, Egypt, fell to the Romans in 30 B.C. Another famous event, which occurred in August, was the end of WWII. In 1945, after the August 6 bombing of Hiroshima and the August 9 bombing of Nagasaki, Emperor Hirohito spoke on behalf of Japan and declared unconditional surrender by the 15th of the month.
On August 21, 1959 Hawaii was introduced as the 50th state of America. Many organizations have highlighted their efforts during the month of August, for example, August is the National Immunization Awareness Month, National Psoriasis Awareness Month, and National Goat Cheese Month. Nightsky-watchers during the month of August can look forward to the Perseid meteor shower. For literary people, you may appreciate the a few of the famous authors born in this great month: Herman Melville (Moby Dick) was born the first day of August in the year 1819, and Percy Bysshe Shelley, one of the major English poets during the Romantic Age, was born on the 15th day of this month, in the year 1792. While not exactly parallel with literature, these people are famous nonetheless: Ms. Louise Ciccone, better known to everyone as Madonna, joined the world on the 16th of August 1958.
Ben Affleck, a child actor turned A-list adult actor, was born in 1972 on the 15th. Other wonderful parts about the month of August include it’s recognized flowers and birthstones. If you want to be festive, deck your house with Poppies (faux ones, because it is illegal to pick Poppies in California!) or Gladiolus. For jewelry purchased for August birthdays, choose lime-green peridot and earth-toned sardonyx to keep up with the month’s stones. Lastly, enjoy the month as a whole-it marks the end of summer and the beginning of the school year.