commemorations
Events honoring past
Commemorations are events, ceremonies, or observances honoring the memory of someone or something—typically a person's death, a historical event, or a significant anniversary.
The word emphasizes collective remembrance: The city held commemorations marking the centennial of the earthquake.
Commemorations range from solemn memorial services to celebratory festivals.
Formal observances with ritual
- memorialsTributes to the departed
- tributesExpressions honoring someone
- observancesCustomary practices or ceremonies
- anniversariesYearly observances of events
dedications · services · vigils · gatherings · remembrances · celebrations · festivals · parades
Tributes to the departed
- statuesThree-dimensional sculpted likenesses
- plaquesCommemorative mounted inscriptions
- markersPens with porous tips
- monumentsStructures commemorating notable achievements
shrines · obelisks · cenotaphs · steles · tablets · inscriptions · engravings · reliefs
Act of holding something in mind
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
- legacyWhat's passed down
- sacrificeGiving up something precious
- veteransFormer armed forces members
fallen · martyrs · ancestors · founders · patriots · heroes · victims · battles
Long-established customs passed down
- ritualsCeremonial repeated practices
- customsTraditional practices or import taxes
- ritesFormal ceremonial acts
- honorsRecognition for achievement
homages · testimonials · eulogies · elegies · requiems · dirges · hymns · anthems
Formal public announcements
- declarationsExplicit formal statements
- resolutionsFormal decisions or pledges
- decreesOfficial orders with force
- holidaysDesignated celebration days
national days · protocols · dignitaries · speeches · addresses · flags · half-mast · flyovers
ceremonies
Formal observances with ritual
- memorialsTributes to the departed
- tributesExpressions honoring someone
- observancesCustomary practices or ceremonies
anniversaries · dedications · services · vigils · gatherings · remembrances · celebrations · festivals · parades · processions
memorials
Tributes to the departed
- statuesThree-dimensional sculpted likenesses
- plaquesCommemorative mounted inscriptions
- markersPens with porous tips
monuments · shrines · obelisks · cenotaphs · steles · tablets · inscriptions · engravings · reliefs · busts
remembrance
Act of holding something in mind
veterans · fallen · martyrs · ancestors · founders · patriots · heroes · victims · battles · wars
traditions
Long-established customs passed down
- ritualsCeremonial repeated practices
- customsTraditional practices or import taxes
- ritesFormal ceremonial acts
honors · homages · testimonials · eulogies · elegies · requiems · dirges · hymns · anthems · toasts
proclamations
Formal public announcements
- declarationsExplicit formal statements
- resolutionsFormal decisions or pledges
- decreesOfficial orders with force
holidays · national days · protocols · dignitaries · speeches · addresses · flags · half-mast · flyovers · honor guards
- holiday traditionsChristmas, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Easter, New Year
- historical depictionsdioramas, murals, reenactments, paintings, sculptures
- History Contentdocumentaries, PBS, reenactments, archival footage, biographies
- Independence DaysFourth of July, Bastille Day, Canada Day, Independence Day, Liberation Day
- memorialsmemorial, memorial service, memorial statue, memorials, war memorial
- observancesholidays, holy days, anniversaries, Remembrance Day, national holidays
commemorationsforgetting
Failing to retain memories
oblivion · amnesia · erasures · neglect · obliterations
commemorationsdesecrations
Violations of sacred spaces
profanations · condemnations · denunciations · repudiations · insults
commemorationsdemolitions
Deliberate structural destructions
destructions · removals · erasures · iconoclasm · defacements
- war commemorationHonoring those who served