The following are public holidays in Haiti.[1] Many Vodou holidays are also celebrated, but are not considered public holidays.
The two most important holidays for Haitian Americans are Haitian Independence Day and Haitian Flag Day.[2]
Date | English name | Local name (in French) | Remarks |
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1 January | New Year's Day and Independence Day | Nouvel an / Jour de l'an / Premier de l'a et Jour de l'Indépendance | Commemorates the day in 1804 when Jean-Jacques Dessalines declared independence and restored the country's native name. |
2 January | Ancestry Day | Jour des Aieux | Commemorates ancestors and other loved ones who have died fighting for freedom. |
6 January | Epiphany | Le Jour des Rois | Celebrates the Three Wise Men's visit to see the newborn Christ. |
12 January | Remembrance Day | Jour De Remembrance | Celebrates the victims of the January 2010 earthquakes. |
moveable | Carnival/Mardi Gras | Carnaval/Mardi Gras | |
1 May | Labour and Agriculture Day | Fête du Travail / Fête des Travailleurs | International holiday |
18 May | Flag Day and Universities Day | Jour du Drapeau et de l'Université | Celebrates its educational system and commemorates the creation of the flag at the 1803 Arcahaye Conference. |
15 August | Assumption of Mary | L'Assomption de Marie | Roman Catholic holiday |
17 October | Dessalines Day[3] | Anniversaire de la mort de Dessalines | Commemorates the death of Jean-Jacques Dessalines. |
1 November | All Saints Day | La Toussaint | Roman Catholic holiday; commemorates the sainthood. |
2 November | All Souls' Day | Jour des Morts | Roman Catholic holiday; commemorates the faithful departed. |
18 November | Battle of Vertières Day | Vertières | Commemorates the victory over the French in the Battle of Vertières in the year 1803.[4] |
5 December | Discovery Day | Découverte d'Haïti | Commemorates Christopher Columbus' landing on Hispaniola in 1492. |
25 December | Christmas | Noël | Celebrates the nativity of Jesus. |
In addition, the following Christian holidays are celebrated; their dates vary according to the date of Easter each year.
Date | Name | Local name (in French) | Remarks |
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moveable | Ash Wednesday | Mercredi Des Cendres | |
moveable | Maundy Thursday | Jeudi saint | |
moveable | Good Friday | Vendredi saint | |
moveable | Easter Sunday | Pâques | |
moveable | Ascension Day | Ascension | Thursday, 40th day after Easter Sunday |
moveable | Corpus Christi | Fête-Dieu |
Public holidays in the Americas | ||
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Regions |
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Sovereign states |
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Public holidays in the Caribbean | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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West Indies |
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Caribbean Sea |
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Caribbean continental zone |
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Wider groupings may include: |
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N.B.: Territories in italics are parts of transregional sovereign states or non-sovereign dependencies.
^These three form the SSS islands that with the ABC islands comprise the Dutch Caribbean, of which *the BES islands are not direct Kingdom constituents but subsumed with the country of the Netherlands. †Physiographically, these continental islands are not part of the volcanic Windward Islands arc, although sometimes grouped with them culturally and politically. ǂDisputed territories administered by Guyana. ~Disputed territories administered by Colombia. #Bermuda is an isolated North Atlantic oceanic island, physiographically not part of the Lucayan Archipelago, Antilles, Caribbean Sea nor North American continental nor South American continental islands. It is grouped with the Northern American region, but occasionally also with the Caribbean region culturally. |