The following are 11 public holidays in Ukraine. [1]
Date | English name | Ukrainian name | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|
1 January | New Year's Day | Новий Рік | |
8 March [2] | International Women's Day | Міжнародний жіночий день | |
moveable | (Revised Julian) Easter | Великдень | Religious holiday |
moveable | (Revised Julian) Pentecost | Трійця | Religious holiday |
1 May [3] | International Workers' Day | День праці | Until 2018, 2 May was also a public holiday [3] |
8 May | Day of Remembrance and Victory over Nazism in World War II, 1939–1945 | День пам'яті та перемоги над нацизмом у Другій світовій війні 1939 - 1945 років | To commemorate the end of World War II and the Allied victory over Nazi Germany [4] |
28 June | Constitution Day | День Конституції України | To commemorate Ukraine's Constitution of 1996 |
15 July [5] [6] | Statehood Day | День Української Державності | To commemorate the Christianization of Kievan Rus' (28 July until 2023) |
24 August | Independence Day | День Незалежності України | From the USSR in 1991 |
1 October [5] [6] | Defenders of Ukraine Day | День захисників і захисниць України | Public holiday since 2015 [7] (14 October until 2022) |
25 December [8] [9] [5] [6] | Christmas | Різдво Христове | Religious holiday since 2017, previously celebrated on 7 January (from 2017 to 2022 celebrated on 7 January and 25 December) |
During martial law a public holiday is not a non-working day. [10]
Before the Orthodox Church of Ukraine [11] [12] and the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church [13] switched to the Revised Julian calendar in September 2023 all religious holidays were observed according to the Julian calendar, since then Christmas is officially celebrated on 25 December. [5] From 2017 to 2022 Christmas was celebrated in Ukraine on 2 different days, 7 January (the date of the holiday according to the Julian calendar) and 25 December (the date of the holiday according to the Gregorian and Revised Julian calendars). [9] From 2023 Christmas is only officially celebrated in Ukraine on 25 December. [14] [15] [16] [17]
When a public holiday falls on a weekend (e.g. Saturday or Sunday), the following working day (e.g. Monday) turns into an official day off too.
If only one or only two working days are between a public holiday and another day off then the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine usually releases a recommendation to avoid this gap by moving these working days onto a certain Saturday (that is to have uninterrupted vacations, but to compensate this by work on another day which would be a day off). Usually such recommendations only concern those employees whose weekly days off are Saturday and Sunday.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine that started on 24 February 2022 led to a reappraisal of the popularity of the public holidays in Ukraine. [18] A March 2024 study by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology found that the popularity of Independence Day of Ukraine and Defenders Day had both almost more than doubled (from 37% to 64% and from 29% to 58%) while the popularity of International Women's Day had fallen from being labelled "most beloved" by 49% of respondents in 2017 to 21% in March 2024. [18]
Beginning 2023 the following days are earmarked as days of remembrance and honor in relation to Ukrainian victories during the current (2022) invasion:
August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days.
December is the twelfth and final month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days.
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.
January is the first month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. The first day of the month is known as New Year's Day. It is, on average, the coldest month of the year within most of the Northern Hemisphere and the warmest month of the year within most of the Southern Hemisphere. In the Southern hemisphere, January is the seasonal equivalent of July in the Northern hemisphere and vice versa.
May is the fifth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days.
September is the ninth month of the year in the Gregorian calendar and interchangeably the ninth or tenth month in the less commonly used Julian calendar. In the modern Gregorian calendar, its length is 30 days.
The liturgical year, also called the church year, Christian year, ecclesiastical calendar, or kalendar, consists of the cycle of liturgical days and seasons that determines when feast days, including celebrations of saints, are to be observed, and which portions of scripture are to be read.
In the Catholic Church, holy days of obligation or precepts are days on which the faithful are expected to attend Mass, and engage in rest from work and recreation, according to the third commandment.
Victory Day is a holiday that commemorates the victory of the Soviet Union over Nazi Germany in 1945. It was first inaugurated in the 15 republics of the Soviet Union following the signing of the German Instrument of Surrender late in the evening on 8 May 1945. The Soviet government announced the victory early on 9 May after the signing ceremony in Berlin. Although the official inauguration occurred in 1945, the holiday became a non-labor day only in 1965.
Holidays in Poland are regulated by the Non-working Days Act of 18 January 1951. The Act, as amended in 2010, currently defines thirteen public holidays.
An Armed Forces Day, alongside its branch-specific variants often referred to as Army or Soldier's Day, Navy or Sailor's Day, and Air Force or Aviator's Day, is a holiday dedicated to honoring the armed forces, or one of their branches, of a sovereign state, including their personnel, history, achievements, and perceived sacrifices. It's often patriotic or nationalistic in nature, carrying propaganda value outside of the conventional boundaries of a military's subculture and into the wider civilian society. Many nations around the world observe this day. It is usually distinct from a Veterans or Memorial Day, as the former is dedicated to those who previously served and the latter is dedicated to those who perished in the fulfillment of their duties.
The following is the list of official public holidays recognized by the Government of Russia. On these days, government offices, embassies and some shops, are closed. If the date of observance falls on a weekend, the following Monday will be a day off in lieu of the holiday.
A synaxis is a liturgical assembly in Eastern Christianity, generally for the celebration of Vespers, Matins, Little Hours and the Divine Liturgy.
In Christianity, the Nativity Fast—or Fast of the Prophets in Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church—is a period of abstinence and penance practiced by the Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Church and Catholic Church in preparation for the Nativity of Jesus on December 25. Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox Churches commence the season on November 24 and end the season on the day of Ethiopian Christmas, which falls on January 7. The corresponding Western season of preparation for Christmas, which also has been called the Nativity Fast and St. Martin's Lent, has taken the name of Advent. The Eastern fast runs for 40 days instead of four or six weeks and thematically focuses on proclamation and glorification of the Incarnation of God, whereas the Western Advent focuses on three comings of Jesus Christ: his birth, reception of his grace by the faithful, and his Second Coming or Parousia.
In Ukraine, Christmas celebrations traditionally start on Christmas Eve, which is celebrated from December 24 to January 6, the date of the celebration of the baptism of Jesus, known in Ukraine as Vodokhreshche or Yordan, according to the Gregorian calendar and Revised Julian calendar by the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), the Catholic Church in Ukraine and Ukrainian Protestants.
Lists of holidays by various categorizations.
Defenders Day is a public holiday in Ukraine celebrated annually on 1 October. The holiday honors veterans and fallen members of the Ukrainian armed forces. Its first celebration was in 2015.
Statehood Day or the Day of Ukrainian Statehood is a national holiday in Ukraine, celebrated on 28 July in 2022 and 2023, and held annually on 15 July thereafter, in commemoration of the Christianization of Kievan Rus'.
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