Being a month of rain and weather changes in many places of the world, March has become the National Umbrella Month, established in 2013.
Since in other countries mostly parasols as sunshades are in use, this contest includes praising the parasol, too.</p>
<p>The word &quot;umbrella&quot; comes from the Latin root word &quot;umbra,&quot; meaning shade or shadow.
„Parasol“ simple means „to shield sun“.</p>
<p>The basic umbrella was invented more than 4,000 years ago.
There is evidence of umbrellas in the ancient art and artifacts of Egypt, Assyria, Greece and China.</p>
<p>These ancient umbrellas or parasols were first designed to provide shade.
Only royality was allowed umbrellas originally as protection from the sun and to keep a fair complexion.</p>
<p>The Chinese were the first to waterproof their umbrellas for use as rain protection.
They waxed and lacquered their paper parasols in order to use them for rain.</p>
<p>When the Mandarins ruled China in the 11th century B.C., the rank of any holder of office could be judged according to whether a double or triple-decked umbrella was carried over him; a fourfold sunshade was the privilege of the heaven-born emperor alone.</p>
<p>By the mid-18th century, the rain umbrella moved towards an everyday item among women, but it was not until the Englishman Jonas Hanway fashioned and carried a rain umbrella on the streets of London in 1750 did men begin to take notice. Although ridiculed at first, Hanway carried a rain umbrella everywhere he went, and by the late 1700’s, the rain umbrella became a common accessory among both men and women. In fact, in the late-1700’s and early 1800’s, a &quot;Hanway&quot; evolved to become another name for a rain umbrella.</p>
<p>Through the 1800’s right up until the present time, the materials used to create rain umbrellas have evolved, but the same basic canopy shape remains. Whalebones have been replaced with wood, then steel, aluminum and now fiberglass to manufacture the shaft and ribs, and modern-day treated nylon fabrics have replaced silks, leaves and feathers as a more weatherproof option.</p>
<p>The first all umbrella shop was called &quot;James Smith and Sons.&quot; The shop opened in 1830 and is still located at 53 New Oxford Street in London, England.