Public holidays in Israel

Note: for exact dates in the Gregorian calendar see Jewish holidays 2000-2050.

Public holidays in Israel refers to national holidays officially recognized by the Knesset, Israel's parliament. The State of Israel has adopted most traditional religious Jewish holidays as part of its national calendar, while also having established new modern holiday observances since its founding in 1948. Of the religious and modern holidays below, some are bank holidays / federal holidays requiring all schools, government institutions, financial sector, and most retailers in Jewish Israeli society to be closed, while other holidays are marked as days of note or memorial remembrances with no breaks in public or private sector activities.

As is the case with all religious Jewish holidays, most public holidays in Israel generally begin and end at sundown, and follow the Hebrew calendar. Because of this, most holidays in Israel fall on a different Gregorian calendar date each year, which syncs every 19 years with the Hebrew calendar.

Shabbat, the weekly Sabbath day of rest, in Israel begins every Friday evening just before sundown, ending Saturday evening just after sundown. Most of the Israeli workforce, including schools, banks, public transportation, government offices, and retailers within Jewish Israeli society are shut down during these approximately 25 hours, with some non-Jewish retailers and most non-kosher restaurants still open.

Date in Hebrew calendar	English name	Hebrew name	Range of dates in Gregorian calendar	Status
Every Friday evening before sundown to Saturday evening after sundown	Sabbath	שבת Shabbat	Every week	Official holiday with all schools, government institutions, public transportation and most retailers shut down.
Tishrei 1-2	New Year	ראש השנה Rosh Hashanah	between Sept 5 & Oct 5	Official holiday (2 days)
Tishrei 3	Fast of Gedaliah	צום גדליה Fast of Gedalia		Business as usual
Tishrei 10	Day of Atonement	יום כיפור Yom Kippur	between Sept 14 & Oct 14	Official holiday, businesses close around noon on the holiday's eve. Absolutely all businesses nationwide are closed. Virtually no traffic on the streets with the exception of emergency vehicles. Non-emergency services that normally operate on holidays, e.g. airports, border crossings, broadcasting stations etc. suspend their work for about 28–30 hours.
Tishrei 15	Feast of Tabernacles	סוכות Sukkot	between Sept 19 & Oct 19	Official holiday
Tishrei 16-21	Feast of Tabernacles	חול המועד סוכות Chol HaMoed	between Sept 19 & Oct 19	School holiday, collective paid leave in many businesses and government offices
Tishrei 22	Simchat Torah/Shmini Atzeret	שמחת תורה/שמיני עצרת Simchat Torah/Shemini Atzeret	between Sept 26 & Oct 26	Official holiday
Heshvan 12	Rabin Day	יום רבין Rabin Day		National remembrance day, business as usual
Heshvan 29	Sigd	סיגד Sigd		Festival of the Ethiopian Jews, optional paid leave, business as usual
Kislev 6	Ben-Gurion Day	יום בן-גוריון Ben-Gurion Day		Day marked by the Knesset
Kislev 25-Tevet 2/3	Hanukkah	חנוכה Hanukkah	between Nov 27 & Dec 27	School holiday for the duration of the 8 day festival, business as usual
Tevet 10	Tenth of Tevet	צום עשרה בטבת Tsom Asarah b-Tevet		Business as usual
Shvat 15	Tu Bishvat (Arbor Day)	ט"ו בשבט Tu Bishvat		Business as usual
Adar 13	Fast of Esther	תענית אסתר Ta`anit Ester		School holiday, Business as usual
Adar 14 & (Adar 15 in certain cities that during ancient times were walled, such as Jerusalem, Tzfat, Tiveria, Hevron, & Shiloh)	Purim	פורים Purim	between February 24 & March 26	School holiday, optional paid leave
Nisan 10	Aliyah Day[1]	יום העלייה Yom HaAliyah	between March & April	Official holiday, Business as usual
Nisan 15	Passover	פסח Pesach	between March 26 & April 25	Official holiday
Nisan 16-20	Passover (intermediate days)	חול המועד פסח Chol HaMoed Pesach	between March 26 & April 25	School holiday, collective paid leave in many businesses and government offices
Nisan 21	Seventh day of Passover	שביעי של פסח Shvi'i shel Pesach	between April 1 & May 1	Official holiday
Nisan 22	Mimouna	מימונה Mimouna	between April 1 & May 1	Unpaid leave upon request[2]
Nisan 27	Holocaust Remembrance Day	יום הזיכרון לשואה ולגבורה Yom HaZikaron LaShoah VeLaGevurah	between April 7 & May 7	National remembrance day, business as usual except places of public entertainment
Varies (See Victory Day (9 May) in general)	Victory in Europe Day	יום הניצחון על גרמניה הנאצית Victory in Europe Day	May 9	National remembrance day, business as usual
Iyar 4	Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terrorism Remembrance Day	יום הזיכרון לחללי מערכות ישראל ונפגעי פעולות האיבה Yom Hazikaron	between April 14 & May 14	National remembrance day, business as usual except places of public entertainment
Iyar 5	Independence Day	יום העצמאות Yom Ha-Atzmaut	between April 15 & May 15.	Official Holiday
Iyar 10	Herzl Day	יום הרצל Herzl Day		Day marked by the Knesset
Iyar 18	Lag BaOmer	ל"ג בעומר Lag Ba'omer		School holiday
Iyar 28	Jerusalem Day	יום ירושלים Yom Yerushalayim		Optional paid leave
Sivan 6	Shavuot	שבועות Shavuot	between May 15 & June 14	Official holiday
Tammuz 17	Seventeenth of Tammuz, fast	שבעה עשר בתמוז Tsom Shiva` Asar b-Tammuz		Business as usual
Tammuz 29	Jabotinsky Day	יום ז'בוטינסקי Jabotinsky Day		Day marked by the Knesset
Av 9	Tisha B'Av, fast	תשעה באב Tisha B'Av		Optional paid leave, business as usual except places of public entertainment
Av 15	Tu B'Av (Fifteenth of Av)	ט"ו באב Tu B'Av		Business as usual

See also

• Jewish holidays
• Jewish and Israeli holidays 2000–2050 with Gregorian calendar dates

References

1. [http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.726833?v=25889A989187F43C1E25FBBF142DC48C Rank and file: Aliyah Day becomes official holiday, Haaretz
2. Jeffay, Nathan (12 April 2012). "Mimouna Revelries Mark End of Passover". The Jewish Daily Forward. Retrieved 22 July 2013.

External links

• National holidays in Israel (2013)
• Public Holidays, Israel, World Travel Guide