Calendar
Human Rights Day (December 10): This day commemorates the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on December 10, 1948. This declaration recognizes that all human beings in all nations have inherent rights and dignity.
Yalda Night (December 20): Also known as Chelleh Night, this Iranian festival marks the longest night of the year. Participants celebrate by uniting with friends and family to eat, drink, and read poetry.
Christmas (December 25): An annual Christian (and Duke) holiday commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ. Some Christians celebrate Christmas on different days of the year in addition to the 25th.
Hanukkah (December 25-January 2): Also known as the Festival of Lights, Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish holiday celebrating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in the second century A.D. It is often celebrated with the lighting of menorah candles, as well as traditional foods, games, and gifts.
Kwanzaa (December 26-January 1): An African American and Pan-African holiday celebrating family, community and culture, Kwanzaa is a secular observance with some religious participation. Each day of Kwanzaa celebrates a different life virtue.
New Year's Eve (December 31): The final night of the year, often celebrated by staying up until the start of the next calendar year at midnight.
New Year's Day (January 1) The first day of the new year is a federal and a Duke holiday (observed January 1).
Martin Luther King Jr. Day (January 20): A federal and Duke holiday marking the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr.
Lunar New Year (January 29): The start of a 15-day festival for Chinese (and many Asian) people of all religions. Family reunions with thanksgiving and remembrance of departed relatives take place. Traditionally a religious ceremony honors Heaven and Earth. In the Chinese zodiac, 2025 will be the year of the snake.
Black History Month (all month): An annual celebration of Black American culture and achievements, and a time for recognizing the role Black Americans have played in our history.
Tu BiShvat (February 12-13): Tu B'Shevat is considered the New Year for the trees. It occurs on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Shevat. In contemporary Israel, the day is celebrated as an ecological awareness day, and trees are planted in celebration.
Ramadan (February 28-March 30): A month of fasting, reflection, prayer, and community observed by people of Muslim faith. Participating adult Muslims fast between sunrise and sunset.
Eastern Orthodox Lent (March 3-April 19): Also known as Great Lent or the Great Fast, this period is the most important fasting season in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and lasts for 40 days before the feast of Easter.
Ash Wednesday (March 5): Christian observance to begin the 40-day season of Lent. Ashes are marked on worshippers as a sign of penitence.
Lent (March 5-April 17): Roman Catholic, Eastern and some Protestant churches observe a 40-day period with penitence and fasting.
International Women's Day (March 8): An internationally recognized day to celebrate womanhood and women's suffrage. The entire month of March is also recognized as National Women's History Month.
Purim (March 13-14): One of the most festive and popular of the Jewish holidays, Purim, also known as the “Festival of Lots,” celebrates the deliverance of the Jews from imminent doom at the hands of their enemies in ancient Persia as told in the biblical Book of Esther.
St. Patrick's Day (March 17): Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick, is a cultural and religious celebration held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick, the foremost patron saint of Ireland.
Nowruz (March 20): Also known as Persian or Iranian new year, Nowruz is celebrated on or around March 21 to mark the coming of spring in the northern hemisphere.
Eid al-Fitr (March 30-31): A Muslim holiday marking the end of Ramadan, celebrated with presents, new clothes, prayer, and visiting friends.
Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31): An awareness day dedicated to celebrating the accomplishments of transgender, non-binary and gender nonconforming people while raising awareness of the work that still needs to be done to achieve trans justice.
Day of Silence (April 11): A student-led national event where people take a vow of silence to highlight the silencing and erasure of LGBTQ+ people at school.
Passover (April 12-20): A major Jewish holiday commemorating the exodus of the Israelite people from slavery in Egypt. Passover lasts for seven days and eight nights and is traditionally held with a dinner called a Seder on the first night.
Palm Sunday (April 13): A Christian feast falling on the Sunday before Easter that commemorates Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
Good Friday (April 18): A Christian holiday commemorating the crucifixion and death of Jesus, held the Friday before Easter Sunday.
Easter (April 20): A major Christian holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ three days after his burial and crucifixion.
Eastern Orthodox Easter (April 20): Many Greek, Russian, and other Orthodox churches will observe Easter on Sunday on April 20 this year.
Holocaust Remembrance Day (April 23-24): The day commemorating the victims of the Holocaust. The full name is “Yom Hashoah Ve-Hagevurah,” and it is marked on the 27th day in the month of Nisan, a week after the seventh day of Passover.
Earth Day (April 22): An annual holiday to celebrate a healthy environment and show support for environmental protection.
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (all month): A month dedicated to celebrating Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States and their contributions to our culture and history.
Cinco de Mayo (May 5): A celebration originally held to commemorate the victory of Mexico over France in 1862, which has since become a celebration of Mexican American culture observed in the United States.
Memorial Day (May 26) - A federal and Duke holiday held to honor and mourn military personnel who have died while serving in the United States Armed Forces.
LGBTQ Pride Month (all month): Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) month is held each year as a celebration of the contributions the LGBTQ community has made to our history and culture and to honor the 1969 Stonewall Uprising, a catalyst for the gay rights movement in the United States.
Shavuot (June 1-3): A Jewish celebration of Moses' descent from Mount Sinai with the ten commandments. Plants and flowers are used in decorations.
Eid al-Adha (June 6-7): A major holiday celebrated in Islam that honors the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son Ismael as an act of obedience to God's command.
Juneteenth (June 19): A federal and Duke holiday celebrating the emancipation from slavery in the United States, held on the anniversary of June 19, 1865, when Union Army general Gordon Granger proclaimed freedom from slavery in Texas. Now a Duke holiday, Juneteenth will be observed on June 19 in 2024.
Islamic New Year (June 26): Also called the Hijri New Year or Arabic New Year, is the day that marks the beginning of a new lunar Hijri year, and the day on which the year count is incremented. The new year in the Islamic calendar will be 1447 AH on June 26, 2024.
Independence Day (July 4): A federal and Duke holiday commemorating the Declaration of Independence of the United States, on July 4, 1776.
World Population Day (July 11): This holiday established by the United Nations is dedicated to focusing on the importance of population issues.
National Disability Independence Day (July 26): This holiday commemorates the signing of the Americans With Disabilities Act.
Tisha B'Av (August 2-3): The major day of communal mourning in the Jewish calendar commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem.
Women's Equality Day (August 26): A day celebrating the adoption of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, which prohibits state or federal government from denying the right to vote based on sex.
Labor Day (September 1): A federal holiday celebrated on the first Monday of September to honor the American labor movements and its contributions to the United States.
Mawlid (September 5-6): A day celebrating the birth of the Prophet Muhammad in the Islamic faith, starting the evening of September 15 and lasting until the following sunset.
Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15-October 15): National Hispanic Heritage Month celebrates the cultures and contributions of Hispanic and Latinx Americans from all of Latin America.
Rosh Hashanah (September 22-24): The Jewish new year, traditionally celebrated with attending synagogue, personal reflection, and eating apples dipped in honey to evoke a sweet new year.
Yom Kippur (October 1-2) A Jewish day of atonement and repentance for one's personal sins and to many Jews the most important holiday of their faith. Jews traditionally observe Yom Kippur with fasting, attending synagogue, resting, and atonement.
Sukkot (October 6-13): Sometimes called the Feast of Tabernacles, is a seven-day Jewish holiday of thanks for the fall harvest.
Indigenous People's Day (October 13): A holiday celebrating and honoring the Indigenous people of North America as well as their culture and contributions to society.
Diwali (October 20): Diwali is the Hindu festival of lights, which typically lasts five days and is celebrated during the Hindu lunar month Kartika (between mid-October and mid-November). One of the most popular festivals of Hinduism, Diwali symbolizes the spiritual "victory of light over darkness, good over evil and knowledge over ignorance.”
Halloween (October 31): A celebration observed on the eve of the Catholic holiday All Saint's Day, which has also evolved into a secular celebration of the dead, scary stories, costumes, and "trick or treating" for candy.