Public holidays in South Africa
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A list of holidays in South Africa:[1]
| Date | English Name |
| January 1 | New Year's Day |
| March 21 | Human Rights Day |
| The Friday before Easter Sunday | Good Friday |
| The Monday following Easter Sunday | Family Day |
| April 27 | Freedom Day |
| May 1 | Workers' Day |
| June 16 | Youth Day |
| August 9 | National Women's Day |
| September 24 | Heritage Day |
| December 16 | Day of Reconciliation |
| December 25 | Christmas Day |
| December 26 | Day of Goodwill |
The Public Holidays Act (Act No 36 of 1994)[2] determines that whenever any public holiday falls on a Sunday, the Monday following it will be a public holiday.[1]
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[edit] Once-off holidays
December 31, 1999 and January 2, 2000 were declared public holidays to accommodate the Y2K changeover, and January 3, 2000 was automatically a public holiday because the previous holiday was a Sunday.[3]
May 2, 2008 was declared a public holiday when Human Rights Day and Good Friday fell on the same day on March 21, 2008.[4]
April 22, 2009 was declared a public holiday to accommodate national elections that are scheduled for that date.[5]
[edit] Historical public holidays
South Africa's present calendar of public holidays was introduced in 1994. During the period between Union in 1910, and the establishment of the present republic in 1994, the following were the official public holidays:
| Date | English Name |
| January 1 | New Year's Day (1910-present) |
| The Friday before Easter Sunday | Good Friday (1910-present) |
| The Monday following Easter Sunday | Easter Monday (1910-1979), Family Day (1980-present) |
| April 6 | Van Riebeeck's Day (1952-1974), Founder's Day (1980-1994) |
| 1st Friday in May | Workers' Day (1987-1989) |
| May 1 | Workers' Day (1990-present) |
| 40th day after Easter | Ascension Day (1910-1993) |
| May 24 | Empire Day (1910-1951) |
| May 31 | Union Day (1910-1960), Republic Day (1961-1993) |
| 2nd Monday in July | Queen's Birthday (1952-1960) |
| July 10 | Family Day (1961-1974) |
| 1st Monday in August | King's Birthday (1910-1951) |
| 1st Monday in September | Settlers' Day (1952-1979) |
| October 10 | Kruger Day (1952-1993) |
| December 16 | Dingaan's Day (1910-1951), Day of the Covenant (1952-1979), Day of the Vow (1979-1993), Day of Reconciliation (1994-present) |
| December 25 | Christmas Day (1910-present) |
| December 26 | Boxing Day (1910-1979), Day of Goodwill (1980-present) |
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Public holidays". Government Communications (GCIS). 2008-03-28. http://www.info.gov.za/aboutsa/holidays.htm. Retrieved on 2008-03-29.
- ^ http://www.info.gov.za/acts/1994/a36-94.pdf
- ^ "Media release on public holidays". Government Communications (GCIS). 1999-10-25. http://www.info.gov.za/speeches/1999/991028409p1002.htm. Retrieved on 2008-03-29.
- ^ "T Mbeki declares 2 May 2008 public holiday". Government Communications (GCIS). 2008-03-25. http://www.info.gov.za/speeches/2008/08032517421001.htm. Retrieved on 2008-03-29.
- ^ "K Motlanthe declares 22 April a public holiday". Government Communications (GCIS). 2009-03-19. http://www.info.gov.za/speeches/2009/09031917151001.htm. Retrieved on 2009-03-20.
[edit] External links
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