SOUTH AFRICAN PUBLIC HOLIDAYS CALENDAR 2024/2025

The dates on which Good Friday and Easter Sunday fall are determined according to the ecclesiastical moon. That varies each year but they fall at some point between late March and late April.

21 March [Human Rights Day]

The Bill of Rights contained in the Constitution is the cornerstone of democracy in South Africa.

The Constitution provides for the establishment of the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC). The aim of the Commission is to promote respect for human rights, promote the protection, development and attainment of human rights, and to monitor and assess the observance of human rights in SA. The SAHRC was launched on 21 March 1996, 35 years after the fateful events of 21 March 1960 when demonstrators in Sharpeville were gunned down by police.

The Native Laws Amendment Act of 1952 extended Government control over the movement of Africans to urban areas and abolished the use of the Pass Book (a document which Africans were required to carry on them to 'prove' that they were allowed to enter a 'white area') in favour of a reference book which had to be carried at all times by all Africans.

Failure to produce the reference book on demand by the police, was a punishable offence. The Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) proposed an anti-Pass campaign to start on 21 March 1960. All African men were to take part in the campaign without their passes and present themselves for arrest.

Campaigners gathered at police stations in townships near Johannesburg where they were dispersed by police. At the Sharpeville police station a scuffle broke out. Part of a wire fence was trampled, allowing the crowd to move forward. The police opened fire, apparently without having been given a prior order to do so. Sixty-nine people were killed and 180 wounded.

In apartheid South Africa this day became known as Sharpeville Day and although not part of the official calendar of public holidays the event was commemorated among anti-apartheid movements.

27 April [Freedom Day]

Freedom Day commemorates the first democratic elections held in South Africa on 27 April 1994. Read more about Freedom Day celebrations.

16 June [Youth Day]

In 1975 protests started in African schools after a directive from the then Bantu Education Department that Afrikaans had to be used on an equal basis with English as a language of instruction in secondary schools. The issue, however, was not so much the Afrikaans as the whole system of Bantu education which was characterised by separate schools and universities, poor facilities, overcrowded classrooms and inadequately trained teachers. On 16 June 1976 more than 20 000 pupils from Soweto began a protest march. In the wake of clashes with the police, and the violence that ensued during the next few weeks, approximately 700 hundred people, many of them youths, were killed and property destroyed.

Youth Day, previously known as Soweto Day, commemorates these events.

More information.

9 August [National Women's Day]

This day commemorates 9 August 1956 when women participated in a national march to petition against pass laws (legislation that required African persons to carry a document on them to 'prove' that they were allowed to enter a 'white area').

More information

24 September [Heritage Day]

"The day is one of our newly created public holidays and its significance rests in recognising aspects of South African culture which are both tangible and difficult to pin down: creative expression, our historical inheritance, language, the food we eat as well as the land in which we live.

"Within a broader social and political context, the day's events…are a powerful agent for promulgating a South African identity, fostering reconciliation and promoting the notion that variety is a national asset as opposed to igniting conflict.

"Heritage has defined as "that which we inherit: the sum total of wild life and scenic parks, sites of scientific or historical importance, national monuments, historic buildings, works of art, literature and music, oral traditions and museum collections together with their documentation."

(Statement issued by the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology, 17 September 1996)

In an address marking Heritage Day in 1996, (former) President Mandela stated:

"When our first democratically-elected government decided to make Heritage Day one of our national days, we did so because we knew that our rich and varied cultural heritage has a profound power to help build our new nation.

We did so knowing that the struggles against the injustice and inequities of the past are part of our national identity; they are part of our culture. We knew that, if indeed our nation has to rise like the proverbial phoenix from the ashes of division and conflict, we had to acknowledge those whose selfless efforts and talents were dedicated to this goal of non-racial democracy."

Government determines a theme for each year's celebrations.

More on Heritage Day

16 December [Day of Reconciliation]

In apartheid South Africa 16 December was known as Day of the Vow, as the Voortrekkers in preparation for the battle on 16 December against the Zulus took a Vow before God that they would build a church and that they and their descendants would observe the day as a day of thanksgiving should they be granted victory. With the advent of democracy in South Africa 16 December retained its status as a public holiday, however, this time with the purpose of fostering reconciliation and national unity.

During the earlier part of the 19th century, many Afrikaner farmers left the eastern cape and moved inland. Among them was the Voortrekkers, a group of Afrikaners protesting British colonialism and seeking independent republics on what was reputedly empty land. But the land was not empty and clashes between these Afrikaners and indigenous peoples were inevitable.

Late in 1837 one of the Voortrekker leaders, Piet Retief, entered into negotiations for land with Dingane, the Zulu king. In terms of the negotiations Dingane promised the Voortrekkers land on condition they returned cattle to him stolen by Sekonyela (the Tlokwa chief). This Retief did and apparently he and Dingane signed a treaty on 6 February 1838. During the ceremony Dingane had Retief and his entourage murdered - an event which was witnessed by Francis Owen, a missionary who described the scene in his diary.

In ensuing battles between Zulus and Voortrekkers over the next few months numerous lives were lost on both sides.

On 16 December 1838 about 10 000 troops under the command of Dambuza (Nzobo) and Nhlela attacked the Voortrekkers, but the 470 Voortrekkers, with the advantage of gun powder, warded them off. Only three Voortrekkers were wounded, but more than 3 000 Zulus were killed during the battle.

Source: http://www.gov.za/about-sa/public-holidays

IMPORTANT SOCIAL DAYS
	2024	2025
Chinese New Year	Saturday 10 February	Wednesday 29 January
St. Valentine's Day	Wednesday 14 February	Friday 14 February
St. Patrick's Day	Sunday 17 March	Monday 17 March
March Equinox	Wednesday 20 March	Thursday 20 March
Mother's Day	Sunday 12 May	Sunday 11 May
Father's Day	Sunday 16 June	Sunday 15 June
June Solstice	Thursday 20 June	Saturday 21 June
National Secretary's Day	Wednesday 04 September	Wednesday 03 September
September Equinox	Sunday 22 September	Monday 22 September
National Boss's Day	Wednesday 16 October	Thursday 16 October
Halloween	Thursday 31 October	Friday 31 October
Guy Fawkes	Tuesday 05 November	Wednesday 05 November
Thanksgiving Day	Thursday 28 November	Thursday 27 November
Black Friday	Friday 29 November	Friday 28 November
December Solstice	Saturday 22 December	Sunday 21 December

CHRISTIAN HOLY DAYS CALENDAR 2024
Epiphany Day	Satrurday 06 January
Baptism of the Jesus Day	Sunday 07 January
Candlemas Day	Friday 02 February
St. Valentine's Day	Wednesday 14 February
Ash Wednesday	Wednesday 14 February
St. Patrick's Day	Sunday 17 March
St. Joseph's Day	Tuesday 19 March
Palm Sunday	Sunday 24 March
Maundy (Holy) Thursday	Thursday 28 March
Good Friday	Friday 29 March
Easter Sunday	Sunday 31 March
Easter Monday	Monday 01 April
Ascension Day	Thursday 09 May
Pentecost Day	Sunday 19 May
Whit Monday	Monday 20 May
Trinity Sunday	Sunday 26 May
Corpus Christi Day	Thursday 30 May
Saints Peter and Paul Day	Saturday 29 June
Saint Vladimir Day	Monday 15 July
St. James the Great Day	Friday 25 July
The Assumption of Mary Day	Thursday 15 August
Holy Cross Day	Saturday 14 September
Michael and All Angels Day	Sunday 29 September
All Hallows Eve	Friday 31 October
All Saints Day	Friday 01 November
All Souls Day	Saturday 02 November
Advent Sunday (commence)	Sunday 01 December
Christ the King Day	Monday 24 November
St. Andrew's Day	Saturday 30 November
St. Nicholas Day	Friday 06 December
Christmas Eve	Tuesday 24 December
Christmas Day	Wednesday 25 December
Holy Innocents Day	Saturday 28 December
Watch Night	Tuesday 31 December
JEWISH HOLY DAYS CALENDAR 2024 Please note that all the Holy Days begin at sunset on the previous and end at nightfall
Tu-B'shvat	Wednesday 24 January - Thursday 25 January
Fast of Esther	Thursday 21 March
Purim	Thursday 23 March - Sunday 24March
Pesach (Day 1-8)	Monday 22 April - Wednesday 30 April
Yom Hazikaron	Sunday 12 May - Monday 13 May
Yom Ha'atzmaut	Monday 13 May - Tuesday 14 May
Lag B' Omer	Saturday 25 May - Sunday 26 May
Yom Yerushalayim	Tuesday 04 June - Wednesday 05 June
Shavuot	Tuesday 11 June - Thursday 13 June
Fast of Tammuz	Tuesday 23 July
Tish B'Av (Fast of 10th of Av)	Monday 12 August - Tuesday 13 August
Rosh Hashanah (1st Day)	Wednesday 02 October - Friday 04 October
Fast of Gedalya	Saturday 05 October
Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement)	Friday 11 October - Saturday 12 October
Sukkot	Wednesday 16 October - Wednesday 23 October
Hoshana Rabbah	Tuesday 22 October - Wednesday 23 October
Shemini Atzeret	Wednesday 23 October - Friday 25 October
Shimchat Torah	Thursday 24 October - Friday 25 October
Fast of Tevet	Friday 22 December
Hanukkah (1st Day)	Thursday 25 December - Frifay 02 January
ISLAMIC HOLY DAYS CALENDAR 2024 Islamic fasts and festivals are determined by an actual sighting of the appropriate new moon.
Laylat Al Miraj (eve)	Tuesday 06 February - Wednesday 07 February
Lailat al Bara'ah	Saturday 24 February- Sunday 25 February
Ramadaan	Saturday 09 March - Monday 08 April
Laylat al Qadr	Saturday 06 April
Eid-Ul-Fitr	Tuesday 09 April - Wednesday 10 April
Waqf al Arafa - Hajj	Saturday 15 June - Sunday 16 June
Eid-Ul-Adgha	Sunday 16 June - Thursday 20 June
Al Hijra - Islamic New Year	Saturday 06 July
Day of Ashura / Muharram	Tuesday 16 July
Milad un Nabi	Sunday 15 September - Monday 16 September
HINDU HOLY DAYS CALENDAR 2024
Makarsankranti / Pongal	Monday 15 January
Thaipusam	Thursday 25 January
Vasant Panchami	Wednesday 14 February
Maha Shivaratri	Friday 08 March
Hindi New Year	Wednesday 20 March
Holika Dahan	Sunday 24 March
Holi	Monday 25 March
Ugadi / Gudi Padwa / Telugu New Year	Tuesday 09 April
Vaisakhi / Baisakhi / Vishu	Saturday 13 April
Ramanavami	Wednesday 17 April
Vaisakhi / Baisakhi / Vishu	Saturday 13 April
Tamil New Year	Saturday 13 April
Bengali New Year / Bihu	Sunday 14 April
Ramanavami	Wednesday 17 April
Akshaya Tritiya	Friday 10 May
Savitri Pooja	Thursday 06 June
Puri Rath Yatra	Sunday 07 July
Guru Purnima	Sunday 21 July
Nag Panchami	Friday 09 August
Varalakshmi Vrat	Friday 16 August
Raksha Bandhan	Monday 19 August
Krishna Janmashtami	Monday 26 August
Onam	Thursday 05 September - Tuesday 17 September
Ganesh Chaturthi	Monday 16 September
Vishwakarma Puja	Wednesday 17 September
Mahalaya Amavasya	Wednesday 02 October
Navaratri begins	Thursday 03 October
Navaratri ends / Maha Navami	Saturday 12 October
Dusshera	Sunday 12 October
Sharad Purnima	Wednesday 16 October
Karwa Chauth	Sunday 20 October
Dhanteras	Tuesday 29 October
Diwali	Friday 01 November
Bhai Dooj	Sunday 03 November
Chhath Puja	Thursday 07 November
Kartik Poornima	Friday 15 November
Gita Jayanti	Wednesday 11 December
Dhanu Sankranti	Sunday 15 December