Holidays Countdown
Why the dates never go stale
Every date here is calculated from the rule that defines it, rather than copied from a fixed list — which is why the page doesn’t need updating by hand each year. Fixed dates are straightforward; Easter is worked out from the ecclesiastical full moon after the equinox, American Thanksgiving is the fourth Thursday in November, and the Islamic dates follow the lunar calendar, moving back by about eleven days on the Gregorian calendar every year.
Holidays, observances, and days actually off work aren’t the same thing
Some entries are national holidays, some are regional, and some are marked observances that close offices but not shops, or the reverse. Where a fixed date falls on a weekend, several countries move the day off to the following Monday, which is why the holiday date and the actual day off can differ.
Questions people ask
Why might an Islamic date shown here differ from my local announcement?
The dates here are arithmetic conversions from the Hijri calendar. Countries that require an actual sighting of the crescent moon may begin the month a day earlier or later than the calculated date.
Are all the dates listed here days off work?
No — the list mixes public holidays with observances that are marked but not necessarily free days, and this is noted for each entry.