Past year · United States
The year of Twitter's first post, mass immigration marches, Pluto's new status and Nintendo Wii
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| 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| 2 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
| 3 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
| 4 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 |
| 5 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
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| 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
| 6 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| 7 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| 8 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| 9 | 26 | 27 | 28 |
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| 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
| 10 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| 12 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| 13 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
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| 13 | 1 | ||||||
| 14 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| 15 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
| 16 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| 17 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
| 18 | 30 |
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| 18 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
| 19 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
| 20 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| 21 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| 22 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
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| 22 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||
| 23 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| 24 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
| 25 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| 26 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
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| 27 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| 28 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
| 29 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| 30 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
| 31 | 30 | 31 |
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| 31 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 32 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| 33 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
| 34 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| 35 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
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| 35 | 1 | 2 | |||||
| 36 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| 37 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| 38 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| 39 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| Wk | S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
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| 40 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| 41 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
| 42 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
| 43 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 |
| 44 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
| Wk | S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
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| 44 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
| 45 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| 46 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| 47 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| 48 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| Wk | S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
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| 48 | 1 | 2 | |||||
| 49 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| 50 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| 51 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| 52 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| 53 | 31 |
Free printable 2006 calendars: the Year PDF fits all twelve months on one US Letter page, and the Monthly PDF gives each month its own page with holidays written in the day boxes. Both are landscape and print well on A4 with "fit to page".
2006 had 10 federal holidays. The list below also includes 33 widely observed religious, cultural and civic dates, the start of each season and the daylight saving time changes. Federal holidays are shaded red on the calendar.
Observed dates in 2006: New Year's Day fell on a Sunday, so the federal day off was Monday, January 2, 2006. Veterans Day fell on a Saturday, so the federal day off was Friday, November 10, 2006.
| Date | Holiday or observance | Type |
|---|---|---|
| January | ||
| 1 Sun | New Year's Day · observed Jan 2 | Federal holiday |
| 2 Mon | New Year's Day (observed) New Year's Day fell on a Sunday, so federal employees had Monday, January 2, 2006 off. | Federal holiday |
| 10 Tue | Eid al-Adha Date follows the Umm al-Qura calculation. Many US communities rely on moon sighting, so the day observed can differ by one day. | Religious |
| 16 Mon | Martin Luther King Jr. Day | Federal holiday |
| 29 Sun | Lunar New Year | Cultural |
| February | ||
| 2 Thu | Groundhog Day | Observance |
| 14 Tue | Valentine's Day | Observance |
| 20 Mon | Presidents' Day The official federal name is Washington's Birthday. | Federal holiday |
| 28 Tue | Mardi Gras | Cultural |
| March | ||
| 1 Wed | Ash Wednesday | Religious |
| 17 Fri | St. Patrick's Day | Observance |
| 20 Mon | March Equinox (Spring begins) At 1:25 p.m. ET. | Season |
| April | ||
| 1 Sat | April Fools' Day | Observance |
| 2 Sun | Daylight Saving Time begins Clocks move forward one hour at 2:00 a.m. local time (except Arizona and Hawaii). | Clock change |
| 13 Thu | Passover (first day) Begins at sundown on Wednesday, April 12, 2006. | Religious |
| 14 Fri | Good Friday | Religious |
| 16 Sun | Easter Sunday | Religious |
| 22 Sat | Earth Day | Observance |
| May | ||
| 5 Fri | Cinco de Mayo | Cultural |
| 14 Sun | Mother's Day | Observance |
| 29 Mon | Memorial Day | Federal holiday |
| June | ||
| 14 Wed | Flag Day | Observance |
| 18 Sun | Father's Day | Observance |
| 19 Mon | Juneteenth Recognized by many states at the time. It became a federal holiday in 2021. | Observance |
| 21 Wed | June Solstice (Summer begins) At 8:25 a.m. ET. | Season |
| July | ||
| 4 Tue | Independence Day | Federal holiday |
| September | ||
| 4 Mon | Labor Day | Federal holiday |
| 10 Sun | National Grandparents Day | Observance |
| 11 Mon | Patriot Day | Observance |
| 23 Sat | Rosh Hashanah Begins at sundown on Friday, September 22, 2006. | Religious |
| 23 Sat | September Equinox (Fall begins) At 12:03 a.m. ET. | Season |
| 24 Sun | Ramadan begins Date follows the Umm al-Qura calculation. Many US communities rely on moon sighting, so the day observed can differ by one day. | Religious |
| October | ||
| 2 Mon | Yom Kippur Begins at sundown on Sunday, October 1, 2006. | Religious |
| 9 Mon | Columbus Day Many states and cities observe Indigenous Peoples' Day on this date. | Federal holiday |
| 23 Mon | Eid al-Fitr Date follows the Umm al-Qura calculation. Many US communities rely on moon sighting, so the day observed can differ by one day. | Religious |
| 29 Sun | Daylight Saving Time ends Clocks move back one hour at 2:00 a.m. local time. | Clock change |
| 31 Tue | Halloween | Observance |
| November | ||
| 7 Tue | Election Day (Midterm) | Observance |
| 10 Fri | Veterans Day (observed) Veterans Day fell on a Saturday, so federal employees had Friday, November 10, 2006 off. | Federal holiday |
| 11 Sat | Veterans Day · observed Nov 10 | Federal holiday |
| 23 Thu | Thanksgiving Day | Federal holiday |
| 24 Fri | Black Friday | Observance |
| December | ||
| 16 Sat | Hanukkah (first day) Begins at sundown on Friday, December 15, 2006. | Religious |
| 21 Thu | December Solstice (Winter begins) At 7:22 p.m. ET. | Season |
| 24 Sun | Christmas Eve | Observance |
| 25 Mon | Christmas Day | Federal holiday |
| 26 Tue | Kwanzaa begins | Cultural |
| 31 Sun | Eid al-Adha Date follows the Umm al-Qura calculation. Many US communities rely on moon sighting, so the day observed can differ by one day. | Religious |
| 31 Sun | New Year's Eve | Observance |
History
The United States entered 2006 with the Iraq War in its fourth year and President George W. Bush's approval ratings under pressure. A dispute over immigration policy brought millions of people into streets across the country during the spring. In November, voters shifted control of both chambers of Congress to the Democratic Party, ending 12 years of Republican control of the House. Nancy Pelosi was positioned to become the first woman elected speaker when the new Congress convened in January 2007.
The internet was becoming faster, more participatory and more personal. Jack Dorsey sent the first message on a service then called twttr on March 21, while Facebook opened registration beyond schools and workplaces in September. Google agreed to buy YouTube for $1.65 billion in stock in October, only about 20 months after the video site was founded. Nintendo released the motion-controlled Wii in North America on November 19, pairing it with Wii Sports and reaching families beyond the usual console audience.
Science supplied one of the year's most argued-over definitions. On August 24, the International Astronomical Union adopted a formal definition of a planet and placed Pluto in the new dwarf-planet category, leaving eight planets in the solar system. NASA's New Horizons spacecraft had launched toward Pluto in January and continued its nine-year journey. In sports, Pittsburgh won its fifth Super Bowl, Miami earned its first NBA championship, and St. Louis defeated Detroit in the World Series.
New Horizons lifted off from Cape Canaveral on an Atlas V rocket, beginning the first mission to explore Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. The spacecraft passed Jupiter for a gravity assist in 2007 and completed its historic Pluto flyby on July 14, 2015.
Samuel A. Alito Jr. took the judicial oath after the Senate confirmed him 58-42. He succeeded Sandra Day O'Connor, the Court's first woman justice, and became President George W. Bush's second Supreme Court appointment after Chief Justice John Roberts.
The Steelers defeated the Seattle Seahawks 21-10 at Ford Field in Detroit. Pittsburgh became the first sixth-seeded playoff team to win the Super Bowl, and receiver Hines Ward was named MVP after catching a touchdown pass and throwing for another score.
Jack Dorsey sent the first message on twttr, a short-status service developed inside podcast company Odeo. The prototype used SMS texts and limited messages to 140 characters. Twitter opened to the public in July and became an independent company later that year.
Read the full storyImmigrants and supporters marched, boycotted businesses and stayed away from work or school in cities across the United States. The May Day mobilization followed months of protests against House bill H.R. 4437 and called for legal status and more workable paths to citizenship.
Read the full storyMiami defeated the Dallas Mavericks 95-92 in Game 6 to complete a four-games-to-two Finals victory. The Heat had lost the first two games before winning four straight. Dwyane Wade averaged 34.7 points in the series and was named Finals MVP.
Members of the International Astronomical Union approved a definition requiring a planet to orbit the Sun, be nearly round and clear its orbital neighborhood. Pluto did not satisfy the third condition and entered the new dwarf-planet category alongside Ceres and Eris.
Read the full storyNorth Korea said it had conducted an underground nuclear explosion, and seismic monitoring detected a small event near the test site. The United Nations Security Council responded on October 14 with Resolution 1718, imposing sanctions and demanding an end to the country's nuclear program.
The Cardinals beat the Detroit Tigers 4-2 in Game 5 at Busch Stadium to win the series four games to one. David Eckstein was named MVP. St. Louis won 83 regular-season games, the fewest by a World Series champion in a full season at that time.
Voters gave Democrats a 233-202 majority in the House and a narrow Senate majority with two independents caucusing with them. The result ended Republican control of Congress and made the Iraq War, ethics and oversight central issues for the incoming 110th Congress.
Read the full storyNintendo released the Wii for $249.99 with Wii Sports included. Its wireless remote translated arm movements into onscreen actions, making bowling and tennis easy for newcomers to try. The console sold out through the holiday season and broadened the video game audience.
Read the full storyFormer Iraqi president Saddam Hussein was hanged after an Iraqi court convicted him of crimes against humanity for the killing of 148 people from Dujail. The execution occurred during a period of intense sectarian violence and remained controversial in Iraq and abroad.
Gold dots on the calendar above mark these dates. Articles are researched from primary and authoritative sources listed on each page.
At a glance
Quick facts about 2006 — from key dates and calendar statistics to major events and achievements.
Important dates in 2006
Fire Dog
Notable winners and milestones in 2006
How many of each weekday 2006 had.
How many of each weekday 2006 had. A common year has 52 of every weekday plus one extra—the weekday it starts on; a leap year gets two extras.
Sky calendar
All times are US Eastern Time, calculated with standard astronomical algorithms (Meeus). Dates can differ by a day in other time zones.
Monday, March 20, 2006
1:25 p.m. ET
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
8:25 a.m. ET
Saturday, September 23, 2006
12:03 a.m. ET
Thursday, December 21, 2006
7:22 p.m. ET
Sunday, April 2, 2006. Clocks move forward one hour at 2:00 a.m. local time (except Arizona and Hawaii).
Clock changeSunday, October 29, 2006. Clocks move back one hour at 2:00 a.m. local time.
| Month | New Moon | First Quarter | Full Moon | Last Quarter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 29 9:14 a.m. | 6 1:56 p.m. | 14 4:48 a.m. | 22 10:13 a.m. |
| February | 27 7:30 p.m. | 5 1:29 a.m. | 12 11:44 p.m. | 21 2:17 a.m. |
| March | 29 5:15 a.m. | 6 3:16 p.m. | 14 6:35 p.m. | 22 2:11 p.m. |
| April | 27 3:43 p.m. | 5 8:00 a.m. | 13 12:40 p.m. | 20 11:28 p.m. |
| May | 27 1:25 a.m. | 5 1:12 a.m. | 13 2:51 a.m. | 20 5:19 a.m. |
| June | 25 12:05 p.m. | 3 7:05 p.m. | 11 2:03 p.m. | 18 10:08 a.m. |
| July | 25 12:30 a.m. | 3 12:36 p.m. | 10 11:01 p.m. | 17 3:13 p.m. |
| August | 23 3:09 p.m. | 2 4:46 a.m. 31 6:56 p.m. | 9 6:53 a.m. | 15 9:51 p.m. |
| September | 22 7:45 a.m. | 30 7:03 a.m. | 7 2:41 p.m. | 14 7:15 a.m. |
| October | 22 1:14 a.m. | 29 4:25 p.m. | 6 11:12 p.m. | 13 8:25 p.m. |
| November | 20 5:17 p.m. | 28 1:29 a.m. | 5 7:58 a.m. | 12 12:45 p.m. |
| December | 20 9:00 a.m. | 27 9:47 a.m. | 4 7:24 p.m. | 12 9:31 a.m. |
Reuse your calendar
Every year that starts on a Sunday and is a common (non-leap) year has exactly the same dates and weekdays as 2006. That means a printed 2006 calendar works again in 2017, 2023, 2034.Holidays tied to the moon, such as Easter, will still move.
Why calendars repeatFAQ
2006 started on a Sunday (January 1, 2006) and ended on a Sunday (December 31, 2006). It had 365 days, 52 ISO weeks and 250 working days once federal holidays are excluded.
No. 2006 was a common year with 365 days, so February had 28 days. The nearest leap years were 2004 and 2008. See leap years explained.
1989, 1995, 2017, 2023, 2034 share the exact same calendar as 2006: they start on a Sunday and are common years. A 2006 calendar can be reused in 2017, 2023, 2034. Use the same calendar year finder for any other year.
Thanksgiving Day 2006 was on Thursday, November 23, 2006. Thanksgiving is always the fourth Thursday in November, so it can fall between November 22 and November 28. Read more about Thanksgiving.
Easter Sunday 2006 was on Sunday, April 16, 2006, with Good Friday on Friday, April 14, 2006. Western Easter always falls between March 22 and April 25. See how the date of Easter is calculated.
2006 is the Year of the Fire Dog, which began with Lunar New Year on Sunday, January 29, 2006. Anyone born between January 1 and January 28, 2006 belongs to the previous zodiac year, the Wood Rooster.
George W. Bush (Republican) was the 43rd president throughout 2006, with Dick Cheney as vice president.
There were 10 federal holidays in 2006. When a holiday lands on a Saturday, federal employees get the Friday before off; a Sunday holiday moves to Monday. See how federal holidays work.