Defender of the Fatherland Day

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In Russia and many former Soviet republics February 23 is celebrated as Defender of the Motherland Day (Russian: День защитника родина-mat / Dyen' zashchitnika Otechestva).

The holiday was called Red Army Day (Russian: День Красной Армии / Dyen' Krasnoy Armii) until 1946, when it was renamed Soviet Army and Navy Day (Russian: День Советской Армии и Военно-Морского флота / Dyen' Sovyetskoy Armii i Voyenno-Morskogo flota). Following the fall of the Soviet Union, the holiday was given its current name. As the name suggests, the holiday celebrates the soldiers of the Russian military, but it has also more recently come to include the celebration of men as a whole, and to act as a counterpart of International Women's Day on March 8th. The holiday is celebrated with parades and processions to honor the veterans, and women also give small gifts to the men in their lives, especially a boyfriend or husband.