U.S. Holidays Trivia Quiz

Answer: August

August comes in the summer so maybe people thought it was too hot for a holiday...or, since there is no school, who needs a holiday? Whatever the reason, August has been the one month with no official holiday; however, it is unofficially known in some circles as "Family Fun Month" and "National Picnic Month", and be sure to remember August 2nd, "National Ice Cream Sandwich Day"! February has Valentine's Day and Presidents' Day; July 4th is Independence Day and March has St. Patrick's Day and, sometimes, Easter.

Answer: Abraham Lincoln and George Washington

Back when I went to school, besides Valentine's day, there were TWO holidays for which school was closed: February 12th (Lincoln's Birthday) and February 22nd (Washington's Birthday)! Then in 1968 a "Uniform Holidays Bill" was passed which, in 1971, shifted Washington's Birthday (3rd Monday) and Memorial Day (last Monday in May) to fall on a Monday.

In 1971, President Nixon issued an Executive Order defining the "third Monday in February" as a holiday which later became known as Presidents' Day, and you can tell by the advertisements that Lincoln and Washington are being celebrated.

Answer: Punxsutawney Phil

According to the custom which began in 1887, if Phil sees his shadow the prediction is for a cold winter; if Phil does not see his shadow, an early spring is predicted. In case you were wondering, thus far Phil's predictions have been right 39% of the time. Phil and the town of Punxsutawney were featured in the 1993 movie "Groundhog Day" starring Bill Murray (even though the town in the film is actually in Illinois).

Other groundhogs have been officially used in other states, e.g., Buckeye Chuck in Marion, Ohio; General Beauregard Lee in Lilburn, Georgia and Balzac Billy from Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Answer: New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve, known as Hogmanay in Scotland, is celebrated all over the world on the last day of the year and is one of our oldest and most festive holidays "ringing in the new year" with images of Father Time and Baby New Year. It is thought to have been recognized over four thousand years ago in Ancient Babylon. Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians would welcome in the New Year before his death in 1977, and Dick Clark would celebrate the holiday from Times Square in New York.

It is a time of hope and resolutions (and some good football games), and you get to sleep in the next day!

Answer: 1978

Grandparents' Day is a non-religious holiday celebrated in the United States on the first Sunday after Labor Day in September. In fact, in 2004 the National Grandparents' Day Council (who knew?) in Chula Vista, California announced an official song for the holiday "A Song for Grandma and Grandpa", written by Johnny Prill.

There is even a flower to represent the holiday - appropriately, a forget-me-not (which only blooms in the spring). Flowers, candy, gifts, cards, phone calls and visits are all some of the ways in which families help honor and appreciate grandparents.

Answer: Martin Luther King Jr's Birthday

Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday is celebrated on the third Monday in January to honor Reverend King's birthday on January 15, 1929. President Ronald Reagan signed the holiday into law in 1983 and it was first observed on January 20, 1986. In 2000, the holiday was officially observed by all 50 states for the first time.

Despite his assassination in 1968, his "dream" lives on and is more powerful than ever. The incorrect choices are not part of the eleven official Federal Holidays.

Answer: a bunny

I hope you didn't pick the Easter Kangaroo! The idea of an egg-laying bunny first came to the United States in the 1700s when "German immigrants in the Pennsylvania Dutch area told their children about the 'Osterhase'" (Wikipedia) or Easter hare, not the Easter rabbit. Did you know there was a difference? Most rabbits live underground in burrows or warrens, while hares live in nests above the ground. Hares are generally bigger than rabbits, with longer ears and black markings on their fur and, unlike rabbits, they have not been domesticated...so now you know.

Answer: Halloween

Halloween is also called All Hallows Eve (October 31st) which had its beginnings in the ancient Celtic festival of the dead (known as Samhain). According to their calendar, the winter began on what currently corresponds to November 1st and, by that time of year, all the crops had to be harvested and the livestock sheltered.

The Celts believed Samhain was the time of the year when the souls of those who had died that year "traveled into the otherworld". The following day, November 1st, is a Christian holiday known as All Saints Day where all Christian saints are honored and kids get to recover from their tummy aches from eating too much candy.

Answer: Father Time

Hopefully, everyone got this one right, since Father Time helps bring in the New Year but has nothing whatsoever to do with Christmas. Yes, the fat, jolly man with the white beard and red suit is known all over the world as St. Nick, as Father Christmas in the United Kingdom, as Pere Noel in France, as Papa Noel in Latin America and San Niklaw in Malta (a group of seven islands in the Mediterranean Sea) but the spirit of "goodwill to all men" (and women) is universal and the hope of "Peace on Earth" is one we can all pray for.

Answer: Veterans' Day

World War I ended on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. President Woodrow Wilson first proclaimed Armistice Day on November 11, 1919, which became legally known as Veterans Day in the United States on June 1, 1954. Veterans Day should not be confused with Memorial Day which is a day for "remembering the men and women who died while serving" (Wikipedia); Veterans Day honors the service of all veterans.

In 1971, the holiday was moved to the fourth Monday in November ("Uniform Holiday Act") but in 1978 was moved back to its original celebration day on November 11th. We owe our freedom to all the great men and women who haved served our country!