We’ve been publishing an annual list of public holidays in Russia on this blog for 10 years now and every time I find I ought to explain why Russian winter festivities are so out of sync with the West. It’s all to do with Christmas: Russian Christmas is not celebrated on 25th December. The Russian Orthodox Church follows the older, Julian calendar, unlike most other Christian churches which switched to the Gregorian calendar many centuries ago.
So in Russia winter fun begins on New Year’s Eve – 31st December 2021 – which officially starts the winter holidays right up to 9th January. Within this period Russians will first celebrate New Year’s Day on 1st January, many people’s favourite, and Russian Christmas on 7th January.
23rd February is the Defender of the Fatherland Day. Russia takes pride in its military might and still practises the conscription system.
Tuesday 8th March is International Women’s Day. In 2022 the government will make Saturday 5th March a working day, moving a day off to Monday 7th March instead. Why? So that people can have 3 days off work in a row.
1st May is May Day or the Day of Spring and Labour, and with a few calendar manipulations we get further two days off on 2nd and 3rd May.
9th May is Victory Day, but Tuesday 10th May is also a non-working day. If you are struggling to follow all of this scheduling, I totally understand. Even when I write about it, I have to get my head around these dates, this is exactly why we’ve been publishing these public holiday lists for years – to make it easier for you if you do business with Russia.
12th June – Russia Day – falls on a Sunday, therefore the following day – Monday 13th June – is a day-off in lieu.
4th November is National Unity Day.
Churchill once described Russia as “a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma” but hopefully this concise guide to public holidays in Russia will give you some insight into the Russian culture.
[Tip: Contact Talk Russian with any Russian translation requirements you may have in the coming year, on 0207 043 6940 or enquiry@talkrussian.com]