National Merry-Go-Round Day Jul 25, 2022

National Merry-Go-Round Day

Today we"re celebrating a necessary staple of fairs, carnivals, and boardwalks: the merry-go-round. You may know it as a carousel, like the Golden Gallopers Carousel at the seaside in Brighton, England, seen in today"s photo. The word "carousel" is possibly derived from the Spanish "carosella," meaning "little war." Carousels have a history that goes back centuries, with roots in medieval jousting competitions. As the war game grew in popularity, commoners without horses wanted to participate, and carousels with wooden horses soon appeared at fairgrounds. The popularity of carousels led to many advancements over the years, including the up and down galloping menagerie of animals real and imagined, and the instantly recognizable music that became widespread after 1803.

© Graham Prentice/Alamy

palette

Today in History

Jul 25, 2018Splashes of color for Watercolor Month
Jul 25, 2019Jane’s Carousel delights
Jul 25, 2020Going with the floe
Jul 25, 2021Illuminated Uluru
Jul 25, 2023Laguna de Torrevieja, Spain
Jul 25, 2024Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee
Jul 25, 2025Colorful houses of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Feb 24, 2020Wind horses carry wishes for a new year
Nov 4, 2023National Bison Day
Jan 16, 2018Lionfish off the coast of Indonesia
Mar 16, 2019Quilts as high art
Nov 16, 2020A temple, preserved
Nov 4, 2022A century since Tut s tomb was discovered
Jun 20, 2024Summer solstice
May 28, 2018Honoring the fallen
Jan 2, 2020Winter in the Finnish wilds
Mar 31, 2023Steyr River, Austria
Apr 4, 2024Red lechwe, Okavango Delta, Botswana
Jan 22, 2025Ad-Deir, Petra, Jordan
Apr 4, 2021A yearly sign that spring has sprung
Aug 8, 2022Pantaleu
Jun 9, 2018Yarn bombing in the village of Gurnard, England
Oct 15, 2018The story of a rediscovered redwood
Dec 14, 2020I see one!
Nov 19, 2024Tasmans Arch, Tasmania, Australia
Nov 8, 2021Polar bears
Mar 6, 2024Wahclella Falls, Oregon
Jun 25, 2023Al-Khazneh in Petra, Jordan
Apr 30, 2023International Jazz Day
Aug 31, 2023Saguaro cacti, Ironwood Forest National Monument, Arizona
May 15, 2025Palace of Westminster, London, England
Jun 8, 2025World Oceans Day
Dec 11, 2018‘The mountains are calling’
Mar 12, 2022The Girl Scouts celebrate 110 years
Feb 24, 2025Group of giant cuttlefish, Whyalla, South Australia
Nov 6, 2024Shi Shi Beach, Olympic National Park, Washington
Mar 8, 2025International Womens Day