Jewish Holidays 1996 for the Diaspora

Jewish Holidays 1996

Dates of major and minor Jewish holidays, observances and customs, holiday Torah readings.

Calendar year

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Asara B’Tevet

Tue, 2 January dawn - nightfall
10 Tevet 5756

Fast commemorating the siege of Jerusalem.

Tree planting growing on soil in child’s hand

Tu BiShvat 🌳

Sun, 4 February sunset - Mon, 5 February nightfall
15 Sh’vat 5756

New Year for Trees. Tu BiShvat is one of four “New Years” mentioned in the Mishnah.

Purim 🎭️📜

Mon, 4 March sunset - Tue, 5 March nightfall
14 Adar 5756

Celebration of Jewish deliverance as told by Megilat Esther. It commemorates a time when the Jewish people living in Persia were saved from extermination.

Ta'anit Esther: Mon, 4 March dawn - nightfall
Shushan Purim: Tue, 5 March sunset - Wed, 6 March nightfall

Traditional symbols on a seder plate for the Jewish festival of Passover

Pesach 🫓🍷

Wed, 3 April sunset - Thu, 11 April nightfall
15-22 Nisan 5756

Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Also called Chag HaMatzot (the Festival of Matzah), it commemorates the Exodus and freedom of the Israelites from ancient Egypt.

Pesach Sheni: Thu, 2 May sunset - Fri, 3 May nightfall

Crackling bonfire on a dark background, CC0, photo by Matheus Bertelli

Lag BaOmer 🔥

Mon, 6 May sunset - Tue, 7 May nightfall
18 Iyyar 5756

33rd day of counting the Omer. The holiday is a temporary break from the semi-mourning period the counting of the Omer. Practices include lighting bonfires, getting haircuts, and Jewish weddings.

Days of the Omer: Thu, 4 April sunset - Thu, 23 May nightfall

Milk, bread, fruits and dairy products on wooden table

Shavuot ⛰️🌸

Thu, 23 May sunset - Sat, 25 May nightfall
6-7 Sivan 5756

Festival of Weeks. Commemorates the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai.

Tish’a B’Av ✡️

Wed, 24 July sunset - Thu, 25 July nightfall
9 Av 5756

The Ninth of Av. Fast commemorating the destruction of the two Temples.

Tzom Tammuz: Thu, 4 July dawn - nightfall

Tu B’Av ❤️

Tue, 30 July sunset - Wed, 31 July nightfall
15 Av 5756

Minor Jewish holiday of love. Observed on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Av.

Rosh Hashana 🍏🍯

Fri, 13 September sunset - Sun, 15 September nightfall
1-2 Tishrei 5757

The Jewish New Year. Also spelled Rosh Hashanah.

Tzom Gedaliah: Mon, 16 September dawn - nightfall

Jewish person in a tallit prayer shawl against dramatic sky

Yom Kippur ✡️

Sun, 22 September sunset - Mon, 23 September nightfall
10 Tishrei 5757

Day of Atonement. The holiest day of the year in Judaism, traditionally observed with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer.

Lulav (date palm frond), hadass (myrtle), aravah (willow), and etrog (citron) on a red tablecloth

Sukkot 🌿🍋

Fri, 27 September sunset - Fri, 4 October nightfall
15-21 Tishrei 5757

Feast of Booths. Also called the Feast of Tabernacles, the seven-day holiday is one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals (Hebrew: שלוש רגלים, shalosh regalim).

Prayer shawl (tallit) with Torah scroll in a synagogue

Shmini Atzeret & Simchat Torah

Fri, 4 October sunset - Sun, 6 October nightfall
22-23 Tishrei 5757

Eighth Day of Assembly. Immediately following Sukkot, it is observed as a separate holiday in the Diaspora and is combined with Simchat Torah in Israel.

Shmini Atzeret: Fri, 4 October sunset - Sat, 5 October nightfall
Simchat Torah: Sat, 5 October sunset - Sun, 6 October nightfall

Menorah, doughnuts, chocolate coins and wooden dreidels

Chanukah 🕎

Thu, 5 December sunset - Fri, 13 December nightfall
25 Kislev - 3 Tevet 5757

Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of rededication. Also known as the Festival of Lights, the eight-day festival is observed by lighting the candles of a hanukkiah (menorah).

Asara B’Tevet

Fri, 20 December dawn - nightfall
10 Tevet 5757

Fast commemorating the siege of Jerusalem.

Modern holidays 🇮🇱

Modern Israeli holidays are national holidays officially recognized by the Knesset, Israel's parliament.

Holiday	Starts	Ends	Hebrew Date
Family Day	MondayMon, February 19Feb 19	TuesdayTue, February 20Feb 20	30 Sh’vat
Yom HaShoah	MondayMon, April 15Apr 15	TuesdayTue, April 16Apr 16	27 Nisan
Yom HaZikaron	MondayMon, April 22Apr 22	TuesdayTue, April 23Apr 23	4 Iyyar
Yom HaAtzma'ut	TuesdayTue, April 23Apr 23	WednesdayWed, April 24Apr 24	5 Iyyar
Yom Yerushalayim	ThursdayThu, May 16May 16	FridayFri, May 17May 17	28 Iyyar
Ben-Gurion Day	SaturdaySat, November 16Nov 16	SundaySun, November 17Nov 17	6 Kislev

Rosh Chodesh 🌒

רֹאשׁ חוֹדֶשׁ, transliterated Rosh Chodesh or Rosh Hodesh, is a minor holiday that occurs at the beginning of every month in the Hebrew calendar. It is marked by the birth of a new moon.

Note: the first day of Tishrei is not considered Rosh Chodesh. The holiday that occurs on the 1st day of Tishrei is called Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year. For the month of Tishrei, the major holiday of Rosh Hashana takes precedence over what would be a minor holiday.

Rosh Chodesh	Starts	Ends
Sh'vat	SundaySun, January 21Jan 21	MondayMon, January 22Jan 22
Adar	MondayMon, February 19Feb 19	WednesdayWed, February 21Feb 21
Nisan	WednesdayWed, March 20Mar 20	ThursdayThu, March 21Mar 21
Iyyar	ThursdayThu, April 18Apr 18	SaturdaySat, April 20Apr 20
Sivan	SaturdaySat, May 18May 18	SundaySun, May 19May 19
Tamuz	SundaySun, June 16Jun 16	TuesdayTue, June 18Jun 18
Av	TuesdayTue, July 16Jul 16	WednesdayWed, July 17Jul 17
Elul	WednesdayWed, August 14Aug 14	FridayFri, August 16Aug 16
Cheshvan	SaturdaySat, October 12Oct 12	MondayMon, October 14Oct 14
Kislev	MondayMon, November 11Nov 11	TuesdayTue, November 12Nov 12
Tevet	TuesdayTue, December 10Dec 10	WednesdayWed, December 11Dec 11

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