National symbols of Barbados carries two "Pride of Barbados" flowers ("Caesalpinia pulcherrima") and the "bearded" fig tree, which was common on the island at the time of its settlement by the British and may have contributed to Barbados being so named. The national flower is the Pride of Barbados or "Caesalpinia pulcherrima" (L.) Sw., which grows across the island. In April 1998, the Order of National Heroes Act was passed by the Parliament of Barbados. According to the government, the act established that 28 April (the centenary of the birth of Sir Grantley Adams) would be celebrated as National Heroes' Day. The act also
National Poetry Month floods the market with books in a matter of just a few weeks, overwhelming readers. National Poetry Day, founded in 1994 by William Sieghart, is celebrated on the first or second Thursday of October in the United Kingdom; this has become an established fixture in the cultural calendar. Events take place in schools, pubs, arts centres, bookshops, libraries, buses, trains and Women’s Institutes, and the day is the focus for media attention for poetry. National Poetry Day is co-ordinated by the Forward Arts Foundation (a registered charity), which also runs the Forward Prizes for Poetry. A theme is chosen in