US holiday reference
Holidays, dates and the stories behind them
Find when a holiday falls, how its date is calculated, whether federal employees get a day off and why Americans observe it.
Federal holiday does not mean every organization closes. States, schools, banks and private employers set many of their own schedules. We show official federal observed dates separately from the calendar date.
Federal holiday
US federal holidays
Dates established by federal law, including the weekday observed when a fixed holiday falls on a weekend.
New Year's Day
The first day of the Gregorian year and a federal holiday since 1870.
- Date rule
- January 1 every year
- Next
- Friday, January 1, 2027
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Honors the civil rights leader's life and legacy, observed near his January 15 birthday.
- Date rule
- Third Monday in January
- Next
- Monday, January 18, 2027
Inauguration Day
The day a US president is sworn in, a holiday for federal workers around Washington, DC.
- Date rule
- January 20 every fourth year after 1965 (holiday for federal workers in the Washington, DC area)
Presidents' Day
Officially Washington's Birthday, now widely celebrated as Presidents' Day.
- Date rule
- Third Monday in February (officially Washington's Birthday)
- Next
- Monday, February 15, 2027
Memorial Day
Honors the US military personnel who died in service and unofficially opens summer.
- Date rule
- Last Monday in May
- Next
- Monday, May 31, 2027
Juneteenth
Marks June 19, 1865, when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free.
- Date rule
- June 19 every year (a federal holiday since 2021)
- Next
- Saturday, June 19, 2027
Independence Day
Celebrates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.
- Date rule
- July 4 every year
- Next
- Sunday, July 4, 2027
Labor Day
Honors American workers and marks the unofficial end of summer.
- Date rule
- First Monday in September
- Next
- Monday, September 6, 2027
Columbus Day
The federal holiday also observed in many states and cities as Indigenous Peoples' Day.
- Date rule
- Second Monday in October
- Next
- Monday, October 11, 2027
Veterans Day
Honors everyone who has served in the US armed forces, on the anniversary of the WWI armistice.
- Date rule
- November 11 every year
- Next
- Wednesday, November 11, 2026
Thanksgiving Day
A national day of gratitude, family meals and parades, fixed to the fourth Thursday since 1942.
- Date rule
- Fourth Thursday in November
- Next
- Thursday, November 26, 2026
Christmas Day
Christian celebration of the birth of Jesus and a federal holiday since 1870.
- Date rule
- December 25 every year
- Next
- Friday, December 25, 2026
Observance
Observance dates
Widely recognized civic and popular dates that are not nationwide federal days off.
Groundhog Day
Punxsutawney Phil predicts six more weeks of winter or an early spring.
- Date rule
- February 2 every year
- Next
- Tuesday, February 2, 2027
Valentine's Day
A day for cards, flowers and expressions of love.
- Date rule
- February 14 every year
- Next
- Sunday, February 14, 2027
St. Patrick's Day
Irish heritage, parades and a lot of green.
- Date rule
- March 17 every year
- Next
- Wednesday, March 17, 2027
April Fools' Day
A day of pranks, hoaxes and practical jokes.
- Date rule
- April 1 every year
- Next
- Thursday, April 1, 2027
Earth Day
Environmental awareness day first held in 1970.
- Date rule
- April 22 every year (since 1970)
- Next
- Thursday, April 22, 2027
Mother's Day
Honors mothers, made a national observance in 1914.
- Date rule
- Second Sunday in May
- Next
- Sunday, May 9, 2027
Flag Day
Commemorates the adoption of the US flag on June 14, 1777.
- Date rule
- June 14 every year
- Next
- Monday, June 14, 2027
Father's Day
Honors fathers, made a permanent national observance in 1972.
- Date rule
- Third Sunday in June
- Next
- Sunday, June 20, 2027
Patriot Day
Remembers the nearly 3,000 people killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks.
- Date rule
- September 11 every year (since 2002)
- Next
- Saturday, September 11, 2027
National Grandparents Day
Honors grandparents, proclaimed nationally since 1978.
- Date rule
- First Sunday after Labor Day
- Next
- Sunday, September 12, 2027
Halloween
Costumes, trick-or-treating and jack-o-lanterns.
- Date rule
- October 31 every year
- Next
- Saturday, October 31, 2026
Election Day
The day Americans vote in federal general elections.
- Date rule
- Tuesday after the first Monday in November (federal elections in even-numbered years)
- Next
- Tuesday, November 3, 2026
Black Friday
The busiest shopping day tradition, and a day off in several states.
- Date rule
- The Friday after Thanksgiving
- Next
- Friday, November 27, 2026
Christmas Eve
The evening before Christmas, with services, gifts and family traditions.
- Date rule
- December 24 every year
- Next
- Thursday, December 24, 2026
New Year's Eve
The final day of the year, capped by the Times Square ball drop.
- Date rule
- December 31 every year
- Next
- Thursday, December 31, 2026
Religious
Religious dates
Major Christian, Jewish and Islamic dates, clearly labeled where community observance may vary.
Ash Wednesday
The first day of Lent for Western Christians.
- Date rule
- 46 days before Easter Sunday
- Next
- Wednesday, February 10, 2027
Good Friday
Commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus. Markets close and some states give a day off.
- Date rule
- The Friday before Easter Sunday
- Next
- Friday, March 26, 2027
Easter Sunday
Celebrates the resurrection of Jesus, with a date that moves every year.
- Date rule
- First Sunday after the first ecclesiastical full moon on or after March 21 (between March 22 and April 25)
- Next
- Sunday, March 28, 2027
Passover
The eight-day Jewish festival recalling the Exodus from Egypt.
- Date rule
- 15 Nisan in the Hebrew calendar (March or April)
- Next
- Thursday, April 22, 2027
Rosh Hashanah
The Jewish New Year, a two-day holiday of reflection.
- Date rule
- 1 Tishri in the Hebrew calendar (September or early October)
- Next
- Saturday, October 2, 2027
Yom Kippur
The Day of Atonement, the holiest day of the Jewish year.
- Date rule
- 10 Tishri in the Hebrew calendar
- Next
- Monday, October 11, 2027
Hanukkah
The eight-night Jewish Festival of Lights.
- Date rule
- 25 Kislev in the Hebrew calendar, for eight nights (late November or December)
- Next
- Saturday, December 5, 2026
Ramadan begins
The Islamic month of daytime fasting, prayer and charity.
- Date rule
- 1 Ramadan in the Islamic lunar calendar (moves about 11 days earlier each year)
- Next
- Monday, February 8, 2027
Eid al-Fitr
The Festival of Breaking the Fast at the end of Ramadan.
- Date rule
- 1 Shawwal in the Islamic lunar calendar, the day after Ramadan ends
- Next
- Tuesday, March 9, 2027
Eid al-Adha
The Festival of Sacrifice, during the Hajj pilgrimage season.
- Date rule
- 10 Dhu al-Hijjah in the Islamic lunar calendar
- Next
- Sunday, May 16, 2027
Cultural
Cultural dates
Celebrations connected with communities, heritage and regional traditions across the United States.
Cinco de Mayo
Celebrates Mexican-American culture and Mexico's 1862 victory at Puebla.
- Date rule
- May 5 every year
- Next
- Wednesday, May 5, 2027
Lunar New Year
Chinese New Year, celebrated by millions of Asian Americans.
- Date rule
- First day of the first month of the Chinese lunisolar calendar (between January 21 and February 20)
- Next
- Saturday, February 6, 2027
Mardi Gras
Fat Tuesday, the last day of Carnival before Lent, famous in New Orleans.
- Date rule
- 47 days before Easter Sunday
- Next
- Tuesday, February 9, 2027
Kwanzaa
A week-long celebration of African American culture and heritage.
- Date rule
- December 26 to January 1 every year (since 1966)
- Next
- Saturday, December 26, 2026
Clock change
Clock change dates
The dates Americans move their clocks under current and historical daylight saving rules.
Actual dates and observed dates are not the same thing
New Year's Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Veterans Day and Christmas always keep the same calendar date. If one falls on Saturday, most federal employees observe it on Friday; if it falls on Sunday, they observe it on Monday. The holiday itself does not move. Old Calendars shows both dates so a historical calendar is useful for record checks as well as general reference.
Moving holidays use several different calendars
Thanksgiving and Memorial Day use weekday rules within the Gregorian calendar. Easter depends on an ecclesiastical calculation related to the March equinox and full moon. Jewish, Islamic and East Asian observances follow lunisolar or lunar systems, and some begin at sunset. Where local moon sighting can change the observed day, our tables say so instead of presenting an estimate as universally final.