1. Mother’s Day Father’s Day Veterans’ Day
Holidays in the USA
Mother’s Day
Father’s Day
Veterans’ Day

2. New Year’s Day January, 1st
New Year’s Day celebrates the start of a new year. Americans celebrate New Year’s Day on the first day of January, but the celebration actually begins on December 31, New Year’s Eve, the night before New Year’s Day. Some people stay up all night. They blow horns and whistles at midnight to announce the beginning of the new year.

3. Martin Luther King’s Day January, third Monday
Martin Luther King was a famous fighter for civil rights for Afro-Americans. In the 1950s and 1960s he organized the civil rights movement. In 1968 he was assasinated.

4. St. Valentine’s Day February, 14th
St. Valentine’s Day is celebrated on the 14th of February. It is the day of sweethearts. On this day people send cards, candles or flowers to those whom they love.

5. Presidents’ Day February, third Monday
It is the day on which George Washington and Abraham Lincoln are honoured. They were born in February. George Washington was the first American president. Abraham Lincoln headed the country during the Civil War and put on end to slavery.

6. Washington’s Birthday February, 22nd
It’s a great day for shoppers. The department stores of Washington D.C. started a national tradition of sales marked by unusual bargains.

7. St. Patrick’s Day March, 17th
March 17 is the feast day of St. Patric, the patron saint of Ireland. The day is celebrated by Irish and Irish Americans. The Irish people have patriotic meetings, huge parades, musical and social events that make this day a gala event. The Irish wear green neckties and hair ribbons.

8. April Fool’s Day April, 1st
The fun of the holiday is to play silly but harmless jokes on family members and friends. The victim of these jokes is called an April fool.

9. Easter April or Early May
Easter is celebrated on a Sunday in April or May. The week before Easter Americans color eggs. On Easter Sunday children wake up to find that the Easter Bunny has left them a basket of candy.

10. Memorial Day May, last Monday
Memorial Day is dedicated to those who fell in the War of Independence, in World War I or as anti-fascist fighters in World War II. On this day, patriotic songs are also sung on radio and TV in honour of those who fought in the wars.

11. Mother’s Day May, one Sunday
Americans honour their mothers on the second Sunday in May. They usually buy nice greetings cards and flowers. Fathers make a big dinner and Americans eat it together with their grandparents.

12. Father’s Day June, one Sunday
Americans celebrate Father’s Day on the third Sunday in June. They honour their dads, because they are great. Every year on this holiday Americans give them greeting cards and new neckties.

13. Flag Day June, 14th
On that day in 1777, leaders of the American colonies voted to accept a new flag as the symbol of their country. The new flag had 13 stars on it instead – to stand for the 13 colonies.

14. Independence Day July, 4th
Independence day is the most important American holiday. They celebrate it on the 4th of July. On the 4th of July in 1776 the American colonies declared their independence from Britain. Americans usually have picnics on this day.

15. Labor Day September, first Monday
On the first Monday in September Americans celebrate Labor Day. They honour the American workers.

16. Columbus Day October, second Monday
Americans mark the coming of Columbus’s ship to America. They honour the man who was the discoverer of their country.

17. Halloween October, 31st
On this day children dress in fancy costumes as witches, ghosts and other monsters or characters from TV programmes. They go from house to house, knock at the door and say: “Trick or treat”. People give them sweets, fruit or cakes. If they don’t get something tasty, they play a trick on people.

18. Veterans’ Day November, 11th
During the Day there usually are parades and ceremonies held in honour of those who fell in the two World Wars. Veterans of World War II honour the Americans who died in the anti-fascist struggle.

19. Thanksgiving November, fourth Thursday
People go to church and families come together for the day. They decorate their houses with fruit and flowers of autumn and prepare traditional American food: roast turkey, potatoes and pumpkin. They thank God for many things. This holiday was first celebrated in 1621 by the colonists after their first good harvest.

20. Christmas Day December, 25th
Stores, post-offices, banks and business places close for this day. Schools and colleges close between Christmas and New Year’s Day’ and students have Christmas holidays. Long before Christmas Day people buy presents for their relatives and friends and send Christmas greetings.

21. New Year’s Eve December, 31st
It is not a national holiday, and people often go to work on this day. But in the evening many people go to parties. They stay up late and wait for the new year. They eat, drink and dance. People go to New Year’s eve parties. Some people are at home.