The annual federal holidays are widely observed by state and local governments; however, they may alter the dates of observance or add or subtract holidays according to local custom. Pursuant to the Uniform Holidays Bill of 1968 (taking effect in 1971), official holidays are observed on a Monday, except for New Year's Day, Independence Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. There are also U.S. state holidays particular to individual U.S. states.
Most malls, shopping centers and other retail businesses close only on Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas days, but remain open on all other holidays (half day on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, and sometimes on other major holidays). Private businesses often observe only the "big seven" holidays (New Year's Day, Easter, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas). Some also add the day after Thanksgiving (Black Friday), religious holidays such as Good Friday, or one or more of the other federal/state holidays.
There is no generally accepted policy, however, on whether to observe a Saturday holiday on the preceding Friday or the following Monday. Some states and private businesses may observe on the preceding Friday, some may observe it on the following Monday, and some may not observe the holiday at all in those years. In particular, banks that close on Saturdays do not observe a holiday when it falls on Saturday.
Date |
Official Name |
Remarks |
January 1 |
New Year's Day |
Celebrates beginning of the Gregorian calendar year. Festivities include counting down to midnight (12:00 AM) on the preceding night, New Year's Eve. Traditional end of holiday season. |
Third Monday in January |
Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. |
Honors Martin Luther King, Jr., Civil Rights leader, who was actually born on January 15, 1929; combined with other holidays in several states. |
First January 20th following a Presidential election |
Inauguration Day |
Observed only by federal government employees in Washington, D.C., and the border counties of Maryland and Virginia, in order to relieve congestion that occurs with this major event. Swearing-in of President of the United States and Vice President of the United States. Celebrated every fourth year. Note: Takes place on January 21 if the 20th is a Sunday (although the President is still privately inaugurated on the 20th). If Inauguration Day falls on a Saturday, the preceding Friday is not a federal holiday. |
Third Monday in February |
Washington's Birthday |
Washington's Birthday was first declared a federal holiday by an 1879 act of Congress. The Uniform Holidays Act, 1968, shifted the date of the commemoration of Washington's Birthday from February 22 to the third Monday in February (between February 15 and 21, meaning the observed holiday never falls on Washington's actual birthday). Because of this, combined with the fact that President Abraham Lincoln's birthday falls on February 12, many people now refer to this holiday as "Presidents' Day" and consider it a day honoring all American presidents. However, neither the Uniform Holidays Act nor any subsequent law changed the name of the holiday from Washington's Birthday to Presidents' Day.[1] |
Last Monday in May |
Memorial Day |
Honors the nation's war dead from the Civil War onwards; marks the unofficial beginning of the summer season. (traditionally May 30, shifted by the Uniform Holidays Act 1968) |
July 4 |
Independence Day |
Celebrates the signing of the Declaration of Independence from British rule, also called the Fourth of July. Firework celebrations are held in many cities throughout the US. |
First Monday in September |
Labor Day |
Celebrates the achievements of workers and the labor movement; marks the unofficial end of the summer season. |
Second Monday in October |
Columbus Day |
Honors Christopher Columbus, traditional discoverer of the Americas. In some areas it is also a celebration of Italian culture and heritage. (traditionally October 12) In some states, it is celebrated as "Indigenous People's Day" as a celebration of the Native Americans, not Columbus. |
November 11 |
Veterans Day |
Honors all veterans of the United States armed forces. It is observed on November 11 to recall the end of World War I on that date in 1918 (major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 with the German signing of the Armistice). |
Fourth Thursday in November |
Thanksgiving Day |
Traditionally celebrates the giving of thanks for the autumn harvest. Traditionally includes the sharing of a turkey dinner. Traditional start of the holiday season. |
December 25 |
Christmas |
Traditionally celebrates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. Many of its celebratory aspects are secular.[2][3][4] |
In addition to the official holidays, many religious, ethnic, and other traditional holidays populate the calendar, as well as observances proclaimed by officials and lighter celebrations. These are rarely observed by businesses as holidays; indeed, many are viewed as opportunities for commercial promotion. Because of this commercialization, some critics apply the deprecatory term Hallmark holiday to such days, after the Hallmark greeting card company.
Date |
Name |
Remarks |
February or March, date varies |
Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday |
A festive season (Carnival) leading up to Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Closes with Ash Wednesday (40 days before Easter, not counting Sundays), which starts the penitential season of Lent in the Christian calendar. |
February 2 |
Groundhog Day |
The day on which folklore states that the behavior of a groundhog emerging from its burrow is said to predict the onset of Spring. |
February 14 |
Valentine's Day |
Traditional celebration of love and romance, including the exchange of cards, candy, flowers, and other gifts. |
March 17 |
Saint Patrick's Day |
A holiday honoring Saint Patrick that celebrates Irish culture. Primary activity is simply the wearing of green clothing ("wearing o' the green"), although drinking beer dyed green is also popular. |
April 1 |
April Fools' Day |
A day to play tricks on family, friends, and coworkers, if so inclined. Sometimes claimed to have originated as the Gregorian calendar equivalent of the old style March 25th Julian New Year. |
The Friday before (western) Easter |
Good Friday |
Friday of Holy Week, when Western Christians commemorate the crucifixion and death of Jesus. |
Sunday following the Paschal Full Moon, date varies from March 22 to April 25, inclusive (see Computus), |
(western) Easter |
Western Christians' celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. For some Christians, Easter is a day of religious services and the gathering of family. Many Americans follow the tradition of coloring hard-boiled eggs and giving children baskets of candy. On the next day, Easter Monday, the President of the United States holds an annual Easter egg roll on the White House lawn for young children. Not generally observed by most businesses as it always falls on a Sunday. Most financial markets and some other businesses close on the Friday prior, Good Friday (which is a state holiday in many states).
Protestant Churches and the Roman Catholic Church celebrate Easter on a different Sunday (most years) than the Orthodox churches. |
April 22 (varies by location and observance) |
Earth Day |
A celebration of environmentalism. |
Last Friday in April |
Arbor Day |
A day for planting trees. |
May 1 |
May Day |
An ancient European spring festival that is celebrated as a spring festival in the U.S. |
May 5 |
Cinco de Mayo |
Primarily a celebration of Mexican culture by Mexican-Americans living in the United States. Although this is the anniversary of the victory of the Mexican Army over the French at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, Cinco de Mayo is far more important in the USA than in Mexico itself, often celebrated even by non-Mexican-Americans. Additionally, this "holiday" is often mistaken by Americans as being Mexican Independence Day, which is actually observed on September 16. |
Second Sunday in May |
Mother's Day |
Honors mothers and motherhood (made a "federal holiday" by Presidential order, although most federal agencies are already closed on Sundays) |
May 24 |
Slavic National Holiday in the USA |
Primarily a celebration of Russian, Ukrainian, Belorussian, etc. culture by Russian-speaking Americans living in the United States. |
June 14 |
Flag Day |
Commemorates the adoption of the flag of the United States, in 1777. |
Third Sunday in June |
Father's Day |
Honors fathers and fatherhood. |
June 21 |
Summer Solstice |
The summer solstice is the day with the most daylight in the Northern Hemisphere. |
August 26 |
Women's Equality Day |
Celebrates the fight for, and progress towards, equality for women. Established by the United States Congress in 1971 to commemorate two anniversaries: Passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution ensuring Woman Suffrage in 1920 and a nation-wide demonstration for equal rights, the Women's Strike for Equality, in 1970. |
September 11 |
Patriot Day |
Commemorates the attack on the World Trade Center (New York City) and the Pentagon (Washington, DC) in 2001. |
September 17 |
Constitution/Citizenship Day |
Commemorates the adoption of the Constitution of the United States. |
September 19 |
International Talk Like A Pirate Day |
People talk like a pirate in rememberence of the Golden Age of Piracy |
September or October (depends on Hebrew calendar) |
Rosh Hashanah |
Traditional beginning of the Jewish High Holidays. It also celebrates the beginning of a new year on the Hebrew calendar. |
September or October (depends on Hebrew calendar) |
Yom Kippur |
Traditional end of and highest of the Jewish High Holidays. |
October 9 |
Leif Erikson Day |
Commemorates the arrival of Leif Ericson, the first European to set foot on American soil. Festivities typically consist of imitating Vikings and may include swimming. |
October 31 |
Halloween |
Originally the end of the Celtic year, it now celebrates All Hallow's Eve. Decorations include jack o'lanterns. Costume parties and candy such as candy corn are also part of the holiday. Kids go "trick-or-treating" to neighbors who give away candy. Not generally observed by businesses. |
First Tuesday after the first Monday in November |
Election Day |
Observed by the federal and state governments in applicable years; legal holiday in some states. |
First Friday after the fourth Thursday in November |
Black Friday |
The day after Thanksgiving, traditionally the beginning of the Christmas shopping season in the United States. Black Friday is not actually a holiday, but many non-retail employers give their employees the day off, increasing the number of potential shoppers. |
December (depends on Hebrew calendar) |
Hanukkah |
An eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century BC. |
December 7 |
Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day |
Day to mourn the attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese on December 7, 1941. |
December 8 |
Virgin Mary |
Companies in some states will give Day off to its employees. |
December 21 |
Winter Solstice |
The winter solstice is the day with the least daylight in the Northern Hemisphere. |
December 24 |
Christmas Eve |
Day before Christmas Day |
December 26 through January 1 |
Kwanzaa |
African American holiday celebration created in 1966 by Dr. Maulana Ron Karenga |
December 31 |
New Year's Eve |
Final Day of the Gregorian year. Usually accompanied by much celebration. |