Credits

Don’t Miss our Beautiful India Exhibit! First floor by the Browsing Room!

India is the largest democracy in the world, the 6th largest country in the world and one of the most ancient and living civilizations (at least 10,000 years old). The name ‘India’ is derived from the River Indus, the valleys around which were the home of the early settlers. The official Sanskrit name for India is ‘Bharat.”

Although modern images & descriptions of India often show poverty, India was one of the richest countries till the time of British in the early 17th Century. Christopher Columbus was attracted by India’s wealth and was looking for a route to India when he discovered America by mistake.

The world’s first university was established in Takshila in 700 B.C. More than 10,500 students from all over the world studied more than 60 subjects. The University of Nalanda built in the 4th century was one of the greatest achievements of ancient India in the field of education.

The number system was invented by India. Arybhatta was the scientist who invented the digit zero. Algebra, Trigonometry and Calculus are studies, which originated in India. The ‘place value system’ and the ‘decimal system’ were developed in 100BC in India.

Ayurveda is the earliest school of medicine know to mankind. The father of medicine, Charaka, consolidated Ayurveda 2500 years ago.

Chess was invented in India. The game of “Snakes & Ladders” was created by the 13th century poet saint Gyandev. It was originally called ‘Mokshapat.’

Three of the world’s major religions-Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism started in India.

All Indian foods are seasoned with spices. Rice and wheat are important foods. Most people practice vegetarianism.

The capital of the country is New Delhi.

India is the largest democracy in the world.

Because of climate, most articles of clothing are loose fitting made of cotton. Women wear “Saris”. Men wear “Kurta-Pajama.”

To learn more about India, check out some of the materials on display. There are some great cookbooks, histories, dvds, works of literature and more. Don’t forget to grab one of the handouts!

posted by Bela Kaul

Happy Mother’s Day


Mother’s Day will be celebrated on Sunday, May 8th this year… if you live in the United States or over 50 other countries. Not all countries celebrate mothers on this day, though. Other popular dates for celebrating mothers around the world this year are March 8th, March 21st (the first day of spring), and May 29th (the last Sunday in May). In Thailand they celebrate mothers on August 12th which is the queen’s birthday. To learn more about things you can do to celebrate Mother’s Day, visit www.mothersdaycentral.com.

In the Children’s Room, books about holidays and festivals around the world are kept in Row 2 at the call number j394.2. We keep our large collections on specific holidays in our storage area. If you look in the catalog and see that the status of an item is STORAGE, ask a librarian and we cab get the item for you. When it gets close to the time of the holiday, we put the books on display in Row 12.

posted by Lisa

Library Snapshot Day

April 13th was Library Snapshot Day, and coincidentally, we took scads of snapshots of the Waltham Public Library!

Click here for all our photos

And here for more Snapshot Day photos

New Tricks at the Waltham Public Library/April 10th

NewTricks:The Fine Wine of Improv

New England’s Premier over 50 Improv Troupe
stay tuned for future comedy at the Waltham Public Library!

stay tuned for future comedy at the Waltham Public Library!