Public Holidays

Public holidays in Great Britain are called Bank Holidays. All the banks, offices, schools,
shops and factories are closed on these days. They are the following days Good !riday and
"aster #onday, $hit #onday, August Bank Holiday, %hrist&as 'ay and Bo(ing day.
Good Friday is the !riday before "aster. Whit Monday, se)en weeks after "aster when the
co&ing of the Holy Ghost is celebrated. August Bank Holiday is the &ost popular su&&er
holiday, because in that ti&e the school children are not at school and the fa&ilies can go to
the seaside or to the country and spend a long weekend there.
Christmas is the &ost beautiful of all the Bank Holidays. Preparations for %hrist&as start
&any weeks before. *pecial %hrist&as decorations, coloured lights and %hrist&as trees can
be seen in the streets and shops. +n %hrist&as ")e British ho&es are already decorated with
holly %hrist&as tree and coloured lights. %hildren hang their stockings at the foot of the bed
for *anta %laus to fill the&. ,n the &orning of %hrist&as 'ay the children get up early to find
and en-oy %hrist&as presents. #others prepare the traditional %hrist&as dinner filled turkey
or duck. The e)ening is spend in ga&es and entertain&ent. The following day is Bo(ing 'ay
when %hrist&as bo(es with presents are gi)en to post&en, and other people who do ser)ices
to the household.
New Years !"e and New Years #ay are not public holidays in "ngland. The people go to
work as usual. But on .ew /ear0s ")e &ost of the& stay up till &idnight to see the .ew /ear
co&ing. #any go to parties and dances.
There are other days of the year which are not public holidays in "ngland but the "nglish
people celebrate the& is so&e way.
,t is the 12
th
!ebruary, $t%&alentine's #ay, when friends and lo)ers send one another letters
or greeting cards e(pressing their lo)e. There is a wide choice of 3alentine cards a)ailable at
stationer0s shops long before the 12
th
!ebruary. *o&e of the& are serious, ro&antic, others
hu&orous, senti&ental.
The &ost i&portant public holidays in the 4*A, in the ter&s of A&erican history, is The
!ourth of 5uly or (nde)endence #ay. ,t celebrates independence of A&erican colonies fro&
the British.
The oldest A&erican holiday is *hanksgi"ing #ay, which is the fourth Thursday in
.o)e&ber. ,t was celebrated for the first ti&e in 1671.
Memorial #ay, celebrated on 89
th
#ay in &ost states, and also 3eteran0s 'ay are patriotic
holidays which co&&e&orate A&ericans who fought in wars for their country.
+abour #ay is celebrated on the first #onday in *epte&ber to honour our working people of
A&erica. This holiday is generally used for rest and recreation. 'uring the long weekend the
people usually )isit national parks or seashore resorts.
Birthdays of two great A&erican presidents, Abraha& :incoln and George $ashington are
celebrated too, which is Presidents #ay.
+ne of the &ost i&portant e)ents in A&erican history was the disco)ery of the continent by
%hristopher %olu&bus on +ctober 17, 12;7.
Halloween is a typical A&erican holiday celebrated on +ctober 81. According to an old
tradition it is a witches holiday. ,t is popular both a&ong young and old people, who dress
the&sel)es in fancy costu&es and go to parties to ha)e fun. Christmas is a typical winter
holiday and the best<lo)ed one, too. ,t is the occasion for &eeting with relati)es. !a&ily
&e&bers often tra)el great distances to be together during %hrist&as. The celebrations of =<
>&as are &uch the sa&e all o)er the 4.*. ,n towns are giant %hrist&as trees with decorations
and coloured lights. +n %hrist&as ")e the trees are also decorated in fa&ilies. *anta %laus
co&es on %hrist&as day and children open the bo(es with their presents. +n %hrist&as day
the traditional =<&as dinner is ser)ed. New Years !"e and New Years #ay are days of
celebration in the 4*A. People generally go to parties to welco&e the co&ing of the year.