National Holidays

National holidays are days in that the government has designated to honor the country. Some examples of days that would be national holidays are the day in which the country gained its independence, the day in which the constitution was signed or any other day in which a major event happened.

In the United States, there are no days that are considered national holidays; however, the United States Congress has declared several days of the year to be federal holidays. All of the federal holidays in the United States are designed to pay respect or to honor a particular aspect of the national heritage.

There are several days that the United States Congress have declared as federal holidays and include Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Flag Day, Veterans Day, Columbus Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day and President's Day.

While most of the federal holidays are celebrated on the day in which the fall, some federal holidays are only celebrated on the same day each year. For example, Christmas Day is always celebrated on December 25, regardless of the day of the week on which it falls. However, Thanksgiving Day is always on the fourth Thursday in November, regardless of the date.

Memorial Day is always celebrated on the last Monday in May and is celebrated to honor the men and women who have lost their lives protecting the United States. This holiday was first created to honor the Union soldiers of the Civil War; however, after World War I, the holiday was expanded to include any casualty of war or other military action.

Labor Day is always celebrated on the first Monday in September and Columbus Day is always celebrated on the first Monday in October while Independence Day is always celebrated on July 4th, regardless of the day of the week.