Iran uses three official calendar systems, including the Solar Hijri calendar as the main and national calendar, the Gregorian calendar for international events and Christian holidays, and the Lunar Hijri calendar for Islamic holidays.
In 2008, the Iranian government's English-language newspaper Iran Daily wrote that "[the] problem of too many annual public holidays has perpetually been a subject of concern," pointing out that the government would often declare "unofficial holidays [...] to allow extended weekends" around the national holidays. "[I]f official and unofficial holidays are added to weekends, almost half the year the country is holidaying! The serious issue of so many holidays should not be tolerated [...]"
Iran is one of the countries with the most public holidays in the world, with 28 holidays. Many holidays' exact dates are determined by the Islamic calendar, and therefore their Gregorian dates vary from year to year.
Events + Solar Events Date Event Local name RemarksFarvardin 1-4 Nowruz (March 21-24) نوروز – Nowruz Iranian New YearFarvardin 12 Islamic Republic Day (April 1) روز جمهوری اسلامی – Ruz e Jomhuri ye EslāmiFarvardin 13 Sizdah Bedar (April 2) سیزده بدر Commonly pronounced and spelled Sizdah BedarKhordad 14 Death of Khomeini (June 4) روز فوت امام خمینی Erteholiday Khordad 15 Revolt of Khordad 15 (June 5) قیام ۱۵ خرداد – Qiām e Pānzdah e Xordād Bahman 22 Anniversary of Islamic Revolution (February 11) انقلاب اسلامی پنجاه و هفت – Enqelāb e Eslāmi Officially the Islamic RevolutionEsfand 29 Nationalization of the Iranian oil industry (March 20) ملی شدن صنعت نفت – Melli Šodan e Saneat e Naft
+ Lunar Events Date EventMuharram 9 TasuaMuharram 10 AshuraSafar 20 ArbaeenSafar 28 Death of Muhammad and Hasan ibn Ali (Mujtaba)Safar 29 or 30 Death of Ali al-RidaRabi'-ul-Awwal 8 Death of Hasan al-AskariRabi'-ul-Awwal 17 Birth of Muhammad and Ja'far al-SadiqJamaad-ath-Thaanee 3 Death of FatimaRajab 13 Birth of AliRajab 27 Mission of MuhammadSha'aban 15 Birth of MahdiRamadhan 21 Death of AliShawwal 1 Eid ul-Fitr (End of Ramadhan)Shawwal 2 Eid ul-Fitr (End of Ramadhan)Shawwal 25 Death of Ja'far al-SadiqDh-ul-Hajja 10 Eid ul-Adha (Ghurban)Dh-ul-Hajja 18 Eid al-Ghadeer
See also Student Day (Iran) Iranian calendar Al-Quds Day, the last Friday before the end of Ramadan Iranian festivals List of observances set by the Solar Hijri calendar List of observances set by the Islamic calendar
References