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There were eight major Public holidays in the Soviet Union . There were over 30 holidays total. [1]
| Date | English Name | Russian Name | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 1 | New Year's Day | Новый год | Arguably the largest celebration of the year. Most of the traditions that were originally associated with Christmas in Russia (Father Frost, a decorated fir-tree) were moved to New Year's Eve after the Revolution and are associated with New Year's Eve to this day. |
| March 8 | International Women's Day | Международный женский день, (Восьмое марта Vosmoe marta) | An official holiday marking women's liberation movement, popularly celebrated as a cross between Mother's Day and St. Valentine's Day. |
| May 1 and 2 | International Labor Day (May Day) | Первое Мая - День международной солидарности трудящихся ("International Day of Worker's Solidarity") | Now called Праздник весны и труда ("Celebration of Spring and Labor") in Russia. |
| May 9 | Victory Day | День Победы | End of Great Patriotic War, marked by capitulation of Nazi Germany in 1945. |
| October 7 | USSR Constitution Day | День Конституции СССР | 1977 Constitution of the USSR accepted - from 1936 to 1977 celebrated on December 5, after the 1936 Soviet Constitution. |
| November 7 and 8 | October Revolution Day | Годовщина Великой Октябрьской социалистической революции or Седьмое ноября | Celebration of October Revolution 1917. It has now been replaced with День примирения и согласия ("Day of Reconciliation and Agreement") in Russia, celebrated on a Nov. 7 (at least officially) before amendments in Labour Codex (adopted in December 2004), new holiday, which celebrates at November 4 is the People Unity Day ("День народного единства)" in Russia. |
The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. The country was a successor state to the Russian Empire; it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national republics, the largest and most populous of which was the Russian SFSR, but in practice both its government and its economy were highly centralized until its final years. As a one-party state governed by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, it was a flagship communist state.
Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev was a Soviet politician who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1964 until his death in 1982, and Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet from 1960 to 1964 and again from 1977 to 1982. His 18-year term as General Secretary was second only to Joseph Stalin's in duration. To this day, the value of Brezhnev's tenure as General Secretary remains debated by historians. While his rule was characterized by political stability and significant foreign policy achievements, it was also marked by corruption, inefficiency, economic stagnation, and rapidly growing technological gaps with the West.
The Soviet calendar was a modified Gregorian calendar that was used in Soviet Russia between 1918 and 1940. Several variations were used during that time.
Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945; it marked the official end of World War II in Europe in the Eastern Front, with the last known shots fired on 11 May. Russia and some former Soviet countries celebrate on 9 May, as Germany's unconditional surrender entered into force at 23:01 on 8 May Central European Time; this corresponded with 01:01 on 9 May in Moscow Time.
Russia Day called Day of adoption of the Declaration of State Sovereignty of RSFSR before 2002, is the national holiday of the Russian Federation. It has been celebrated annually on 12 June since 1992. The day commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR) on 12 June 1990. The passage of this Declaration by the First Congress of People's Deputies marked the beginning of constitutional reform in the Russian Soviet state.
Victory Day is a holiday that commemorates the Soviet victory 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, and only in certain Soviet republics.
The 1977 Constitution of the Soviet Union, officially the Constitution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, was the constitution of the Soviet Union adopted on 7 October 1977.
Republic Day is the name of a holiday in several countries to commemorate the day when they became republics.
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 national day of mourning is a day, or one of several days, marked by mourning and memorial activities observed among the majority of a country's populace. They are designated by the national government. Such days include those marking the death or funeral of a renowned individual or individuals from that country or elsewhere or the anniversary of such a death or deaths, the anniversaries of a significant natural or man-made disaster occurring either in the country or another country, wartime commemorations or in memory of the victims of a terrorist attack. Flying a national or military flag of that country at half-mast is a common symbol.
The Germans of Kazakhstan or German Kazakhstanis are a minority in Kazakhstan, and make up a small percentage of the population. Today they live mostly in the northeastern part of the country between the cities of Astana and Oskemen, the majority being urban dwellers. Numbering nearly a million at the time of the Soviet dissolution, most have emigrated since then, usually to Germany or Russia. However, after a significant decrease from 1989 to 2009, by 2015 the number had seen a slight increase of a few thousand, the first time since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Between 2009 and 2021 the German population had increased by 26.7%.
New Year trees are decorated trees similar to Christmas trees that are displayed to specifically celebrate the New Year. They should not be confused with the practice of leaving up a Christmas tree until after New Year's Day. New Year trees are common in various cultures and nations, chiefly the former Soviet Union, former Yugoslavia, Turkey, China and Vietnam.
Truman Day is a commemorative holiday to celebrate the birth of Harry S. Truman, the 33rd President of the United States. It is celebrated May 8 in Missouri as a state holiday, according to Missouri Revised Statutes Section 9-035 Public Holidays and nationally by the United States Democratic Party. Since Truman was the only president to come from Missouri, this day is special for this state. However, after the financial crisis of 2008–2010, there were unsuccessful moves by the state government to abolish the holiday. For Missouri state employees, this is a paid holiday.
International Workers' Day, also known as Labour Day in some countries and often referred to as May Day, is a celebration of labourers and the working classes that is promoted by the international labour movement and occurs every year on 1 May, or the first Monday in May.
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the process of the disintegration of the Soviet Union (USSR), which resulted in the end of the country as a sovereign state and its federal government, which in turn resulted in its 15 constituent republics gaining full independence on 26 December 1991. It brought an end to General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev's effort to reform the Soviet political and economic system in an attempt to stop a period of political stalemate and economic backslide. The Soviet Union had experienced internal stagnation and ethnic separatism. Although highly centralized until its final years, the country was made up of 15 top-level republics that served as homelands for different ethnicities. By late 1991, amid a catastrophic political crisis, with several republics already departing the Union and the waning of centralized power, the leaders of three of its founding members declared that the Soviet Union no longer existed. Eight more republics joined their declaration shortly thereafter. Gorbachev resigned in December 1991 and what was left of the Soviet parliament voted to end itself.
Christmas in Russia, called Е́же по пло́ти Рождество Господа Бога и Спа́са нашего Иисуса Христа in the Russian Orthodox Church, is a holiday commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ. It is celebrated on 25 December in the Gregorian calendar followed by the Eastern Orthodox Church and 7 January in the Julian calendar. It is considered a high holiday by the church, one of the 12 Great Feasts, and one of only four of which are preceded by a period of fasting. Traditional Russian Christmas festivities start on Christmas Eve, which is celebrated on 6 January [O.S. 24 December].
Victory Day is a holiday observed in the United States state of Rhode Island with state offices closed on the second Monday of August. Furthermore, in 2017, WPRI-TV claimed that Arkansas and Rhode Island were the only two states to ever celebrate the holiday, though Arkansas's name for the holiday was "World War II Memorial Day."
October Revolution Day was a public holiday in the Soviet Union and other Soviet-aligned states, officially observed on November 7 from 1927 to 1990, commemorating the 1917 October Revolution.
Make Way for Ducklings is a sculpture by Nancy Schön, which recreates the duck family in Robert McCloskey's children's classic Make Way for Ducklings.
The Day of the Union of Bessarabia with Romania is a public holiday of Romania celebrated every 27 March to commemorate the union of Bessarabia with Romania on 27 March 1918. Bessarabia is a Romanian historical region that was part of the Principality of Moldavia, which united with Wallachia to form modern Romania. The region was annexed in 1812 by the Russian Empire, but it became independent and united with Romania on 27 March 1918.
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