Overview of Belgian legal holidays and customs

A travel manual brought back from Belgium said: "Belgium has the most legal holidays among EU member states, with a total of 11 throughout the year." But there are far more than 11 festivals in Belgium. Belgium officially provides as many as 15 official holidays in 2004, and many more are often implemented. Plus a month-long summer vacation.

In addition to Christmas, Easter and other religious festivals common in Western countries, as well as fixed New Year and National Day holidays, Belgium's three language areas also have their own holidays. For example, the "Gemeenschap" festival in the French-speaking region is held on September 27, and the "Gemeenschap" festival in the Dutch-speaking region and German-speaking region is held on July 11 and November 15 respectively. In addition, if a certain holiday happens to be a Thursday or Tuesday, people will "take advantage" of not going to work on Friday or Monday and go on vacation even for the weekend.

In Belgium, different districts or communities often have their own holidays. The most typical thing is that every spring, there are their own carnivals in various places. Every summer, EU institutions and Belgian ministries close their doors and work throughout August, leaving only a very small number of people on duty.

January 1 New Year's Day nl:Nieuwjaar, fr:Nouvel An, de:Neujahr) February Bansch Carnival in Belgium is one of the four famous carnivals in Europe that are on the same footing as the carnivals in Nice, France, Cologne, Germany and Venice, Italy. Its reputation has become famous around the world and attracts tourists from the world, especially from European countries, to participate and watch every year.

April 8 Easter nl:Pasen, fr:Pâques, de:Ostern) Easter (Lord Easter Day) is an important Western festival, which falls on the first Sunday after the full moon of the vernal equinox every year. Christians believe that Easter symbolizes rebirth and hope, commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ on the third day after his crucifixion between 30 and 33 AD. If there is an Easter holiday in the area, it is usually celebrated with Good Friday. Today, many Easter related folk customs such as the Easter bunny and Easter eggs are not of Christian origin. Jesus only commanded his disciples to remember his own death (Luke 22:19, 20).

May 1 International Labor Day nl:Dag van de arbeid, fr:Fête du Travail, de:Tag der Arbeit) May Cat Throwing Festival in the town of Ibor The second Sunday of May every year originated in the Middle Ages. It is said that when the plague was prevalent, people begged the mice in order to stop the plague, and threw cats, large and small, the natural enemies of the mice, from high places, to their deaths, in order to please the mice and ask them to spare them and give mankind a way of life. Later, people felt that the cats had died wrongly and had let them down, so they designated this day as Cat Day to commemorate those cats who died unjustly.

Ascension Day, the first Thursday 40 days after Easter

Pentecost is the seventh Sunday after Easter (Monday is also closed) May 27 Pentecost, nl:Pinksteren, fr:Pentecôte, de:Pfingsten) Pentecost or Reap is one of the three major festivals of the Jews and later became the Christian Pentecost (or Pentecost). Judaism observes the festival according to the Jewish calendar, commemorating the day when God awarded Moses the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai on the 50th day after the Israelites came out of Egypt; the Christian Pentecost is set on the 50th day after Easter and 10 days after the Ascension.

July 11, Flanders Community Festival (Flanders) nl: Feestdag van de Vlaamse Gemeenschap, fr: La fête de la communautéflamande, de: Feiertag der Flämischen Gemeinschaft) July 21 National Day nl:Nationale feestdag, fr:Fête nationale, de:Nationalfeiertag) In 1830, Belgium broke out in the Belgian independence movement, became a hereditary constitutional monarchy, and chose a German aristocrat, Prince Leopold of the Duchy of Saxony-Coburg-Gotha, as the first king of Belgium.

August 15, Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary nl:Pinkstermaandag, fr:Lundi de Pentecôte, de:Pfingstmontag) September 27, Walloon Day November 1, All Saints 'Day nl:Allerheiligen, fr:Toussaint, de:Allerheiligen) All Saints' Day is a holiday celebrated in both the Catholic and Orthodox churches. In the Catholic Church, All Saints 'Day falls on November 1st every year. In the Orthodox Church, Halloween is the first Sunday after Pentecost, thus marking the end of the Easter season. Saints is a Catholic term used for all loyal saints and martyrs, both known and unknown. This festival is the first day of the Catholic Spirit Refining Month. It is a festival celebrated in the name of saints, and this day is used to celebrate all saints who are included in the sacred items. The Roman Catholic Church sets the festival (Festum omnium sanctorum) on November 1, followed by the Day of All Souls on November 2, a first-level celebration that includes a vigil and an eight-day celebration.

November 11 Armistice Day nl: Wapenstillstand, fr:Jour de l'armistice, de:Waffenstillstand) Remembrance Day is celebrated every year on November 11, a commemorative holiday commemorating soldiers and civilians who died in World War I, World War II and other wars. The first Memorial Day was held throughout the British Commonwealth in 1919, originally known as "Armistice Day". It was founded on November 7, 1919 by King George V, to commemorate the end of World War I at 11 a.m. on November 11, 1918. Different places have different names for festivals: Memorial Day is popular in Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom; Poppy Day is commonly used in Malta and South Africa; Veterans Day is a name for Americans; the Japanese call it National Mourning Day; in France, New Zealand and other Commonwealth countries, it is called Armistice Day, which is also the original name of the festival and is internationally accepted.

November 15th King's Day is limited to civil servants only) nl:Koningsdag, fr:Fête du Roi, de:Festtag des Königs) Christmas is December 25th nl:Kerstmis, fr:Noël, de:Weihnacht) Christmas, also known as Christmas in Taiwan, is a traditional festival in the church calendar. It is a celebration day for Christians to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. On Christmas Day, most Catholic churches hold midnight Mass on Christmas Eve on December 24, that is, in the early morning of December 25, while some Christian churches hold good news and then celebrate Christmas on December 25; while the Christmas celebration of the Orthodox Church, another major branch of Christianity, is held on January 7 every year. According to the Catholic Gospels, Jesus was born of Mary, the Virgin Mary of Bethlehem, who was pregnant with the Holy Spirit. Mary and her husband Joseph were on their way to the Roman census and register. Jesus 'birth appears to believers to be the fulfillment of the Jewish prophetic plan for the coming of Messiah, because Bethlehem was the home of Joseph's ancestor, David. Christmas is also a public holiday in the Western world and in many other places, such as Hong Kong, Macau, Malaysia and Singapore in Asia. But the exact date of Jesus 'birth is controversial.

★ In addition to traditional Catholic festivals, other major festivals are concentrated in July and August

★ In addition, Belgium also has some unique festivals, such as the Cat Throwing Festival (the second Sunday of May every year).

★ There are many holidays in Belgium, so here, whether you are sending your children to school, going out for errands, or buying daily necessities, you must remember the date and time clearly. Otherwise, you will often get "closed door".

◆ Thursday is a holiday and Friday is off