2012 Public Holidays  

We live in a beautiful diverse world, and almost each day of the year is a sacred time for someone, somewhere. HuffPost Religion is proud to present an interfaith, inclusive religious calendar for nine major world religions: Baha'i, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, Islam, Paganism, Shinto and Sikhism. We hope you will come to this page regularly to learn about the festivals of your religious tradition as well as your neighbors'.

Please note that, unless otherwise noted, Jewish holidays start at sundown and continue through sunset the next day. If this list does not include your sacred observance, please email religion@huffingtonpost.com with a brief description of the holiday so that we can add it here.

Click on each link for festivals and holy days of that religion.

Baha'i Holidays 2012
Buddhist Holidays 2012
Christian Holidays 2012
Hindu Holidays 2012
Jewish Holidays 2012
Muslim Holidays 2012
Pagan Holidays 2012
Shinto Holidays 2012
Sikh Holidays 2012


Baha'i Holidays 2012:
Jan 15 - World Religion Day
Mar 2-20: Baha'i Fast
Mar 20 - Nowruz (Baha'i, Zoroastrian, Iranian New Year)
Apr 21- May 2 - Rivan
May 29 - Ascension of Baha'u'llah
July 9 - The Martyrdom of the Bab
Oct 20 - Birth of the Bab
Nov 12 - Birth of Baha'u'llah


Buddhist Holidays 2012:
Jan 9-12: Mahayana New Year
Feb 8 - Nirvana Day
Apr 6 - Theravada New Year
May 5 - Wesak
Dec 8 - Bodhi Day


Christian Holidays 2012 (all denominations):
Jan 1 - Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God (Catholic)
Jan 1 - Feast of St. Basil (Orthodox Christian)
Jan 6 - Epiphany
Jan 6 - Feast of Theophany (Orthodox Christian)
Jan 6 - Nativity of Jesus (Armenian Orthodox)
Jan 7 - Christmas Day (Orthodox Christian)
Jan 20 - Timkat (Ethiopian Orthodox Christian)
Jan 25 - Conversion of St. Paul
Feb 2 - Candlemas
Feb 11 - Feast Day of Our Lady of Lourdes (Catholic)
Feb 22 - Ash Wednesday (Catholic)
Feb 27 - Clean Monday (Orthodox Christian)
Mar 17 - St. Patrick's Day (Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran)
Mar 25 - Annunciation
Apr 1 - Palm Sunday
Apr 5 - Maundy Thursday
Apr 6 - Good Friday
Apr 7 - Holy Saturday
Apr 8 - Easter (Protestant, Catholic)
Apr 15 - Eastern (Orthodox Christian)
May 17 - Ascension of Christ
May 27 - Pentecost
June 3 - Trinity Sunday
Jun 7 - Corpus Christi (Catholic)
June 29 - St. Peter and St. Paul's Day
July 22 - Feast of Mary Magdalene
Aug 6 - Transfiguration of Jesus
Aug 15 - Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Catholic)
Aug 15 - Dormition of the Theotokos (Orthodox Christian)
Sept 8 - Nativity of the Theotokos / Birth of Virgin Mary
Nov 1 - All Saints Day / All Hallows' Day
Nov 2 - All Souls' Day
Nov 15 - Nativity Fast starts
Dec 2 - Advent Sunday
Dec 8 - Feast of Immaculate Conception (Catholic)
Dec 12 - Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Dec 24 - Christmas Eve (Western Churches)
Dec 25 - Christmas Day (Western Churches)


Hindu Holidays 2012:
Jan 14 - Makar Sankranti
Jan 28 - Saraswati Puja
Feb 20 - Shivratri
Mar 8 - Holi
Apr 1 - Ram Navami
Apr 6- Hanuman Jayanti
Aug 2 - Raksha Bandhan
Aug 10 - Janmasthami
Sept 23 - Radhasthami
Oct 16-24 - Navratri
Oct. 24 - Dussehra
Nov 13 -17 - Diwali (Hindu, Jain)


Jewish Holidays 2012:
Feb 7 - Tu B'Shevat
Mar 7 - Purim
Apr 6-13 - Passover
May 26-27 - Shavuot
July 28 - Tisha B'Av
Sept 16-18 - Rosh Hashanah
Sept 25 - Yom Kippur
Sept 30 - Oct 7 - Sukkot
Oct 8 - Simchat Torah
Dec 8-16 Hanukkah


Muslim Holidays 2012:
Feb 3 - Mawlid al-Nabi
July 20 - Ramadan Starts
Aug 14 - Lailat al Qadr
Aug 19 - Eid-ul-Fitr
Oct 26 - Eid-ul-Adha
Nov 15 - Al-Hijira (Islamic New Year)
Nov 24 - Ashura


Pagan Holidays 2012:
Feb 2 - Imbolc
Mar 20 - Spring Equinox
May 1 - Beltane
June 20 - Summer Solstice
Sept 22 - Autumn Equinox
Oct 31 - Samhain
Dec 21 - Winter Solstice (Yule)


Shinto Holidays 2012:
Jan 1 - Gantan-Sai
Feb 3 - Setsubun


Sikh Holidays 2012:
Jan 5 - Guru Gobind Singh Jayanti
Jan 13 - Lohri
Jan 28 - Vasant Panchami
Mar 9 - Hola Mohalla
Apr 13 - Vaisakhi
Nov 13 - Bandi Chhor Divas
Nov 24 - Martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur
Nov 28 - Birthday of Guru Nanak