Put your stamp on
your celebrations on
World Post Day
every 9 October
Each year on 9 October we celebrate World Post Day.
The day, supported by the United Nations, marks the anniversary of creation of the Universal Postal Union in 1874 in Bern in Switzerland. Then, in 1969, the Universal Postal Union Congress was held in Japan and they declared 9 October as World Post Day. These days, countries from all around the world celebrate postal systems everywhere!
Did you know the UK Penny Black, featuring Queen Victoria’s portrait was issued on 1 May 1840 and it was the world’s first official adhesive postage stamp.
Nearly 445 billion letters are delivered around the world every year. In the UK, the peak period for the Royal Mail (the UK postal system) was 2005-2006 when they delivered around 84 million items every day and had around 14,376 Post Offices across the country!
A number of events will be held worldwide to celebrate the day, including workshops on the art of stamp making and information and seminars about stamp collecting.
Stamp collecting – the collecting of postage stamps and related paraphernalia has been one of the most popular hobbies in the world since the late nineteenth century. With the growth of the postal service around the globe and more countries issuing their own stamps, stamp collecting was a great hobbies for collectors. With some stamps becoming particularly rare, it wasn’t long before they were traded internationally and one of the most famous stamp companies in the world is Stanley Gibbons based in The Strand, London.
Stamp collecting is a great hobby for young children – the stamps can teach so them about world history, geography, culture, famous people and so much more!
Often around this special day, postal services issue special commemorative stamps, so all you budding philatelists (that’s stamp collectors to you and me!) should keep your eyes peeled on the World Post Day website!