Thaipusam

Thaipusam Tamil Festival தைப்பூசம் தமிழர் திருவிழா
Murugan during Thaipusam.
Also called	Tamilar Thiruvilla , தமிழர் திருவிழா
Observed by	Tamil Hindus most notably, Sri Lankan Tamils, Malaysian Indians, Indian Singaporeans, Indo-Caribbeans, Indo-Fijians, and Indo-Mauritians
Type	Religious
Significance	The festival commemorates the occasion when Parvati gave Murugan a Vel
Date	decided by the Tamil calendar.
2016 date	Sunday 24 January 2016 in Malaysia, Singapore and India, Saturday
2017 date	Thursday 09 February in Malaysia, Singapore and India

Sunday 24 January 2016 in Malaysia, Singapore and India,

Thaipusam or Thaipoosam (Tamil: தைப்பூசம், Taippūcam ^?)(Malayalam: തൈപ്പൂയം,Thaippūyam) is a Hindu festival celebrated mostly by the Tamil community on the full moon in the Tamil month of Thai (January/February). It is mainly observed in countries where there is a significant presence of Tamil community such as India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia,MauritiusSingapore, South Africa, Guadeloupe, Réunion, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar,Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Suriname, Jamaica, and other parts of the Caribbean.

The word Thaipusam is a combination of the name of the month, Thai, and the name of a star, Pusam. This particular star is at its highest point during the festival. The festival commemorates the occasion when Parvati gave Murugan a Vel "spear" so he could vanquish the evil demon Soorapadman. It is commonly believed that Thaipusam marks Murugan's birthday; Some other sources suggest that Vaikhasi Vishakam, which falls in the Vaikhasi month (May/June), is Murugan's birthday.