Friend's Day (Spanish: Día del Amigo) is observed every year on July 20 in Argentina and Uruguay and on July 30 in Paraguay.
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During the twentieth century, there were several initiatives for the celebration of Friendship Day around the world. In the United States and parts of Asia, the first Sunday of August was reported as the date of greeting and presenting gifts to friends, and at various times similar celebrations were formed in different countries of South America and Europe.
The initiative to establish an internationally recognized Friendship Day had a historical antecedent, the World Friendship Crusade (Cruzada Mundial de la Amistad). Designed by Dr. Ramón Artemio Bracho in Puerto Pinasco, Paraguay in 1958, it was a campaign aimed to promote friendship between human beings so that a culture of peace would be fostered. As a result of this idea, July 30 was set as Friendship Day (Día de la Amistad). In Paraguay, the eve of July 30 is used for giving presents to close friends and loved ones, and celebrations are a common sight in bars and nightclubs. The game of the Invisible Friend (Amigo Invisible) is considered a tradition, in which small sheets of paper with names are given to all members of a group, each of them secretly selects one, and on July 30 gives a present to the person on the paper. This custom is practiced in both schools and workplaces in Asunción and other Paraguayan cities.
In Argentina, Dr. Enrique Ernesto Febbraro, a native of Lomas de Zamora (which in recognition of his initiative is the Provincial Capital of Friendship by city ordinance and also the headquarters of the World Association for Understanding), professor of psychology, philosophy, and history, musician, dentist, and founder of the Rotary Clubs of San Cristóbal and Balvanera in Buenos Aires, created Friend's Day after sending four thousand letters to a hundred countries around the world (to which he received 700 replies) upon realizing that, by watching the Apollo 11 landing, for the first time all mankind was united.[1] The first official recognition of the day came from the government of Buenos Aires Province with Decree 235/79, which authorized the celebration and made it official.[2]
In Argentina, Friend's Day is often a good excuse for a friendly gathering and greeting both current and old friends. Since it is not an Argentine public holiday, people tend to gather during the evening.
Friend's Day has in recent years turned into a very popular mass phenomenon. In 2005, the amount of well-wishing friends led to a temporary breakdown of the mobile phone network in the cities of Buenos Aires, Mendoza, Córdoba and Rosario, comparable to the one experienced in 2004 on Christmas and New Year's Day. Seats in most restaurants, bars, and other establishments are often completely booked a week before the celebration.
Since the death of the Argentine cartoonist and writer Roberto Fontanarrosa in 2007, a proposal has existed to change the date to July 19, the day of his decease.[3][4]
Friend's Day (Portuguese: Dia do Amigo) is celebrated on April 18 in Brazil.