 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source .(June 2017) |
| | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source .(June 2017) |
| Date | English Name | Danish Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 January | New Year's Day | Nytårsdag | |
| Thursday before Easter Sunday | Maundy Thursday | Skærtorsdag | |
| Friday before Easter Sunday | Good Friday | Langfredag | Flags are at half mast. |
| March/April | Easter Sunday | Påskedag | |
| The day after Easter Sunday | Easter Monday | Anden påskedag | |
| 40 days after Easter | Ascension Day | Kristi himmelfartsdag | |
| 7th Sunday after Easter | Whit Sunday | Pinsedag | |
| The day after Pentecost | Whit Monday | Anden pinsedag | |
| 5 June | Constitution Day | Grundlovsdag | The signing of the Danish constitution in 1849. Some people attend meetings with speeches, often outdoors, where politicians or other public figures will elaborate their view on the constitution, history and the current state of the nation. This day probably is the closest equivalence to an actual national day. Elderly, middle-class and right-of-centre people often regard this day as more important than May 1. With few exceptions, all shops stay closed on Grundlovsdag by law. [1] |
| 24 December | Christmas Eve | Juleaftensdag | Not a public holiday, but many people have the day off due to union agreements. Danes celebrate three days of Christmas, starting early on December 24 in the evening. This is when gifts are given. |
| 25 December | Christmas Day | Juledag | Danes celebrate three days of Christmas, starting early on December 24 in the evening. |
| 26 December | Boxing Day | Anden juledag |
Some of these days derive from politics, and some from Roman Catholic traditions that predate the current national church. Some are simply the Scandinavian tradition of starting the celebrations of a special day on the evening before the actual day.
| Date | English Name | Danish Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 February | Birthday of Queen Mary | Dronningens fødselsdag | |
| 6 February | Princess Marie's birthday | Prinsesse Maries fødselsdag | Outside of the royal house there is no particular tradition for celebrating on this day.[ citation needed ] |
| Seven weeks before Easter Sunday | Fastelavn | Fastelavn | Diminished version of the catholic Carnival. On the following day, Fastelavnsmandag, children go to school dressed up in costume and go door-to-door for candy and sweets. A popular baked good associated with the day is Fastelavnsbolle (lit. Fastelavns bun), a round sweet roll usually covered with icing and filled with cream.[ citation needed ] |
| 1 April | April Fools' Day | 1. April | The day is marked by the commission of hoaxes and other practical jokes of varying sophistication on friends, enemies and neighbors, or sending them on fools' errands, the aim of which is to embarrass the gullible.[ citation needed ] |
| 9 April | German invasion of Denmark | Danmarks besættelse | Historic date. This was the day when Germany invaded Denmark in World War II. Flags on flagpoles must be at half mast until 12:00, to indicate the mourning, after that it goes to full mast to indicate that Denmark is a free country today.[ citation needed ] |
| The 4th Friday after Easter | General Prayer Day | Store Bededag | A collection of minor Christian holy days consolidated into one day. The name translates literally from Danish language, "Major Prayer Day". Formerly a public holiday, but abolished as such in 2024. [2] |
| 1 May | International Workers' Day | Arbejdernes kampdag / 1. maj | Many people attend political meetings in the morning arranged by the labour unions or the labour parties, afterwards demonstrations are held all over the country, going from the place of the meeting and joining each other along the way to a joint meeting place, often a park. The demonstrations can differ in size from a few hundred to ten-thousands depending on the city and organization.[ citation needed ] The day is also known as Arbejdernes kamp og festdag (Workers day of struggle and celebration) referring to the celebration of the past victories of the workers movement, especially the 8-hours working day. Many, both families and young people, meet at the sites of the political meetings holding picnics and drink beer and other alcoholic beverages. Copenhagen's Fælledparken is well known for its annual May 1 celebrations, gathering an average of a hundred thousand people at the meeting of the central Labour Union "LO". This is a full holiday for blue collar workers, but not for white collar workers.[ citation needed ] |
| 5 May | Liberation Day | Danmarks befrielse | Historic date. This was the day that the German forces surrendered in Denmark under World War II. However, the island of Bornholm was not liberated on this date - instead, the occupation continued until the Red Army liberated the island. Afterwards the USSR held control of the island for a time, before it was rejoined with the rest of Denmark. The day is marked by public memorial ceremonies for fallen members of the Danish resistance, and by demonstrations of the left-wing, both in memory of the communist resistance fighters and also carrying slogans of peace and solidarity linking the struggle in the past with new ones today.[ citation needed ] |
| Second Sunday of May | Mother's Day | Mors dag | |
| 26 May | Birthday of King Frederik X | Kongens fødselsdag | The King is usually celebrated in some places, and he will appear either on his balcony at Amalienborg Palace or outside of Marselisborg Palace depending on where he spends his birthday.[ citation needed ] |
| 5 June | Father's Day | Fars dag | Coincides with Constitution Day. |
| 7 June | Birthday of Prince Joachim | Prins Joachims fødselsdag | |
| 15 June | Day of Valdemar and Reunion day | Valdemarsdag og Genforeningsdag | Celebration of Valdemar II of Denmark's victory in a battle in Estonia in 1219, at which Denmark's national flag Dannebrog fell from the skies. It is also the date on which Danes celebrate that Sønderjylland in 1920 was reunited with the rest of Denmark after a referendum, thus held in high regard in that part of the country. Next to Grundlovsdag, an equivalence to an actual national day, but is less widely known and celebrated today than before.[ citation needed ] |
| 23 June | Saint John's Eve | Sankt Hans aften | Pre-Christianity celebration day, celebrating summer solstice on June 24. Sankt Hans (Johannes) is the Danish name of St. John the Baptist. The day is celebrated with a bonfire on the evening before (see Denmark section under Midsummer). [ citation needed ] |
| 15 October | Birthday of Crown Prince Christian | Kronprins Christians fødselsdag | Outside of the royal house there is no particular tradition for celebrating on this day.[ citation needed ] |
| 31 October | Halloween | Allehelgensaften | According to superstition, the 31 October is the night when witches, ghosts and dark forces are set loose to disgrace the saints celebrated on the following Allehelgensdag.[ citation needed ] |
| 10 November | The eve before Saint Martin's Day | Mortensaften | 11 November is a Catholic day. Sankt Morten is the Danish name of Saint Martin of Tours. According to legend, Martin was forced to become a bishop by his parishioners and tried to hide in a barn. However, the noise of the geese gave him away. For this reason, but probably in reality because of the goose slaughtering season, it is tradition to eat a goose dinner, although over time duck has become a more practical dish on this occasion.[ citation needed ] |
| 13 December | Saint Lucy's Day | Luciadag | Catholic day that was located on winter solstice before the European calendar reform. Revived in Sweden in 1928, and in Denmark from the 1940s.[ citation needed ] |
| 24 December | Christmas Eve | Juleaften | The celebration of Christmas in Denmark starts in the evening, traditionally with a Christmas tree, exchanging presents and having dinner with the family. With few exceptions, all shops stay closed by law on Juleaftensdag, the day of Juleaften. [1] |
| 31 December | New Year's Eve | Nytårsaften | Mostly celebrated with friends or family, a homemade gourmet dinner and often liberal amounts of alcohol. The Queen traditionally holds a televised speech at 6pm. Midnight is celebrated with Champagne, kransekage (an almond cake consisting of piled rings) and private displays of fireworks. With few exceptions, all shops stay closed by law from 3pm on Nytårsaftensdag, the day of Nytårsaften. [1] |
Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide. Boxing Day was once a day to donate gifts to those in need, but it has evolved to become a part of Christmas festivities, with many people choosing to shop for deals on Boxing Day. It originated in the United Kingdom and is celebrated in several Commonwealth nations. The attached bank holiday or public holiday may take place on 28 December if necessary to ensure it falls on a weekday. Boxing Day is also concurrent with the Christian festival Saint Stephen's Day.
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the liturgical year in Christianity, it follows the season of Advent or the Nativity Fast, and initiates the season of Christmastide, which historically in the West lasts twelve days and culminates on Twelfth Night. Christmas Day is a public holiday in many countries, is celebrated religiously by a majority of Christians, as well as culturally by many non-Christians, and forms an integral part of the holiday season surrounding it.
Easter, also called Pascha or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in the New Testament as having occurred on the third day of his burial following his crucifixion by the Romans at Calvary c. 30 AD. It is the culmination of the Passion of Jesus Christ, preceded by Lent, a 40-day period of fasting, prayer, and penance.
A holiday is a day or other period of time set aside for festivals or recreation. Public holidays are set by public authorities and vary by state or region. Religious holidays are set by religious organisations for their members and are often also observed as public holidays in religious majority countries. Some religious holidays, such as Christmas, have become secularised by part or all of those who observe them. In addition to secularisation, many holidays have become commercialised due to the growth of industry.
Pentecost is a Christian holiday which takes place on the 49th day after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Mary, mother of Jesus and the Apostles of Jesus while they were in Jerusalem celebrating the Feast of Weeks, as described in the Acts of the Apostles. While the Catholic Church believes the Holy Spirit descended upon Mary, this is not recorded in the New Testament.
In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year, 1 January. Most solar calendars begin the year regularly at or near the northern winter solstice, while cultures and religions that observe a lunisolar or lunar calendar celebrate their Lunar New Year at less fixed points relative to the solar year.
Saint Stephen's Day, also called the Feast of Saint Stephen, is a Christian saint's day to commemorate Saint Stephen, the first Christian martyr or protomartyr, celebrated on 26 December in Western Christianity and 27 December in Eastern Christianity. The Eastern Orthodox churches that adhere to the Julian calendar mark Saint Stephen's Day on 27 December according to that calendar, which places it on 9 January of the Gregorian calendar used in secular contexts. In Latin Christian denominations, Saint Stephen's Day marks the second day of Christmastide.
Midsummer is a celebration of the season of summer occurring near the date of the summer solstice which is known in solar reckoning as the mid-point of the season. As the precise date of the summer solstice can vary from year to year, different traditions may celebrate or fix Midsummer at different dates or under different names occurring on or around the actual solstice. A variety of traditions have developed often rooted in regional, spiritual, or religious practices. Traditionally, Midsummer is on the first Saturday after June 20th, though it is often celebrated on Midsummer's Eve, on the day before.
Easter Monday is the second day of Eastertide and a public holiday in some countries. In Western Christianity it marks the second day of the Octave of Easter; in Eastern Christianity it marks the second day of Bright Week.
The observance of Christmas around the world varies by country. The day of Christmas, and in some cases the day before and the day after, are recognized by many national governments and cultures worldwide, including in areas where Christianity is a minority religion. In some non-Christian areas, periods of former colonial rule introduced the celebration ; in others, Christian minorities or foreign cultural influences have led populations to observe the holiday.
Losar also known as Tibetan New Year, is a festival in Tibetan Buddhism. The holiday is celebrated on various dates depending on location tradition. The holiday is a new year's festival, celebrated on the first day of the lunisolar Tibetan calendar, which corresponds to a date in February or March in the Gregorian calendar. In 2024, the new year commenced on 10 February and celebrations ran until the 12th of the same month. It also commenced the Year of the Male Wood Dragon.
Jul or jol is the term used for the Christmas holiday season in Scandinavia and parts of Scotland. Originally, jul was the name of a month in the old Germanic calendar. The concept of jul as a period of time rather than a specific event prevailed in Scandinavia; in modern times, jul is a period of time stretching from the fourth Sunday before Christmas Eve, December 24, to (traditionally) mid-January at the date of Epiphany with the month of December and Christmas, and the week up to the New Year, as its highlight. The modern English yule and yuletide are cognates with this term.
Fastelavn is a Carnival tradition in the Northern European, and historically Lutheran, nations of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Latvia, Estonia, Iceland, Faroe Islands, as well as Greenland.
All Saints' Day, also known as All Hallows' Day, the Feast of All Saints, the Feast of All Hallows, the Solemnity of All Saints, and Hallowmas, is a Christian solemnity celebrated in honour of all the saints of the Church, whether they are known or unknown.
Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil, Germany and the Philippines. It is also observed in the Dutch town of Leiden and the Australian territory of Norfolk Island. It began as a day of giving thanks for the blessings of the harvest and of the preceding year. Various similarly named harvest festival holidays occur throughout the world during autumn. Although Thanksgiving has historical roots in religious and cultural traditions, it has long been celebrated as a secular holiday as well.
April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day is an annual custom on 1 April consisting of practical jokes and hoaxes. Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting "April Fools!" at the recipient. Mass media can be involved with these pranks, which may be revealed as such the following day. The custom of setting aside a day for playing harmless pranks upon one's neighbour has been relatively common in the world historically.
Jul, the Danish Jule and Christmas, is celebrated throughout December starting either at the beginning of Advent or on 1 December with a variety of traditions. Christmas Eve, Juleaften, the main event of Jul, is celebrated on the evening of 24 December, the evening before the two Christmas holidays, 25 and 26 December. Celebrating on the eve before Christmas is also used for most other holidays in Denmark.
Store bededag, translated literally as Great Prayer Day or more loosely as General Prayer Day, "All Prayers" Day, Great Day of Prayers or Common Prayer Day, is a holiday on the 4th Friday after Easter. It is currently observed in the Faroe Islands, where it is called dýri biðidagur, and in Greenland.
In Sweden, public holidays are established by acts of Parliament. The official holidays can be divided into Christian and non-Christian holidays. The Christian holidays are jul (Christmas), trettondedag jul (Epiphany), påsk (Easter), Kristi himmelsfärds dag, pingstdagen (Pentecost), and alla helgons dag. The non-Christian holidays are: nyårsdagen, första maj, Sveriges nationaldag, and midsommar (Midsummer). Midsummer is, however, officially also a Christian holiday to celebrate John the Baptist's birthday.
Midwinter Day, or Midwinter, is an annual celebration held across Antarctica on the day of the southern winter solstice. It is the continent's primary cultural holiday and, along with Antarctica Day, is one of two principal Antarctic holidays. It is a celebration for personnel overwintering at Antarctic research stations, although some people off the continent observe it as well.