The celebrations by Greeks and Romans I mentioned above, were carried out so many years back. It is believed that these celebrations were there even before the birth of Jesus Christ.
Mothering Sunday In Britain
However, the origin of Mothering Sunday has a different story. Ancient Christians in England started celebrating the fourth Sunday of Lent on behalf of Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ. In churches special prayers were conducted on that day. During those times it was common to send children for labour so that they could earn and support their family. Later on, children who went away from their family to work for an earning, were given a day off in spring, probably the fourth Sunday of Lent, to participate in the annual prayers in their church and also to visit their mothers. This was widely accepted, and it became a British tradition to dedicate a day, the Mothering Sunday, to honour all mothers. The records of this tradition can be traced back to as early as the 17th century. While the children came to visit their mothers and their churches once a year, they brought flowers and a kind of fruit cake called simnel cake along with them, probably as a gift to their mothers and for the celebrations in church.
Mother's Day in America
Mother's Day is different from the Mothering Sunday, although the concept looks the same, and it was Anna Jarvis, an activist and a social worker, who introduced Mother's Day in America during the beginning of the 20th Century. The mother of Anna Jarvis died on the 9th of May in 1906 and the next year, Anna Jarvis expressed her wish to introduce Mother's Day to honour all the mothers. The idea spread very fast and the governor in Pennsylvania declared second Sunday in the month of May as Mother's Day. Years back, another activist named Julia Ward Howe worked hard to introduce Mother's Day in America. Even though her idea was well received, no official Mother's Day was declared by the Government at that time. Anna Jarvis is known as the mother of Mother's Day. She never married and didn't have any children.
As a result of Anna Jarvis's efforts and the declaration of Mother's Day in Pennsylvania, in 1913 Mother's Day was officially declared by the U S Government across all the states.
However, by the time America declared Mother's Day, the tradition of celebrating Mothering Sunday was almost forgotten in Britain.