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If you schedule something on any of these dates, you will prevent some Jews from being able to attend your event. It may be hard to avoid them all, but please try! Note: in addition to the holidays listed here, every Friday night and Saturday, i.e., the Jewish Sabbath, is also included. Remember: Jewish holidays start before sunset the night preceding each listed date (see When Jewish holidays start and end below for more information).
Date Holiday Importance Thursday, February 25 Ta'anit Esther (see Fast days) Friday, February 26 Purim Thursday, March 25 Ta'anit Bechorot (see Fast days) Sunday, March 28 Passover I (see Food on Passover) Monday, March 29 Passover II (see Food on Passover) Tuesday, March 30 Passover III (see Food on Passover) Wednesday, March 31 Passover IV (see Food on Passover) Thursday, April 01 Passover V (see Food on Passover) Friday, April 02 Passover VI (see Food on Passover) Saturday, April 03 Passover VII (see Food on Passover) Sunday, April 04 Passover VIII (see Food on Passover) Monday, May 17 Shavuot I Tuesday, May 18 Shavuot II Sunday, June 27 Tzom Tammuz (see Fast days) Sunday, July 18 Tish'a B'Av (see Fast days) Tuesday, September 07 Rosh Hashana Wednesday, September 08 Rosh Hashana II Thursday, September 09 Tzom Gedaliah (see Fast days) Thursday, September 16 Yom Kippur (see Fast days) Tuesday, September 21 Sukkot I Wednesday, September 22 Sukkot II Thursday, September 23 Sukkot III Friday, September 24 Sukkot IV Saturday, September 25 Sukkot V Sunday, September 26 Sukkot VI Monday, September 27 Sukkot VII (Hoshana Raba) Tuesday, September 28 Shmini Atzeret Wednesday, September 29 Simchat Torah Monday, November 29 Chanukah I Tuesday, November 30 Chanukah II Wednesday, December 01 Chanukah III Thursday, December 02 Chanukah IV Friday, December 03 Chanukah V Saturday, December 04 Chanukah VI Sunday, December 05 Chanukah VII Monday, December 06 Chanukah VIII Tuesday, December 14 Asara B'Tevet (see Fast days)
Observant Jews can work on these days if they really must, but doing so will certainly make it more difficult and perhaps impossible for them to properly observe the holiday. Furthermore, many observant Jewish families use these days for annual family vacations or trips to visit relatives, so scheduling an event on one of these days would be similar to scheduling something between December 25 and January 1.
The holidays that fall into this category are:
Date Holiday Thursday, February 25 Ta'anit Esther (see Fast days) Thursday, March 25 Ta'anit Bechorot (see Fast days) Tuesday, March 30 Passover III (see Food on Passover) Wednesday, March 31 Passover IV (see Food on Passover) Thursday, April 01 Passover V (see Food on Passover) Friday, April 02 Passover VI (see Food on Passover) Sunday, June 27 Tzom Tammuz (see Fast days) Sunday, July 18 Tish'a B'Av (see Fast days) Thursday, September 09 Tzom Gedaliah (see Fast days) Thursday, September 23 Sukkot III Friday, September 24 Sukkot IV Saturday, September 25 Sukkot V Sunday, September 26 Sukkot VI Monday, September 27 Sukkot VII (Hoshana Raba) Tuesday, November 30 Chanukah II Wednesday, December 01 Chanukah III Thursday, December 02 Chanukah IV Friday, December 03 Chanukah V Saturday, December 04 Chanukah VI Sunday, December 05 Chanukah VII Monday, December 06 Chanukah VIII Tuesday, December 14 Asara B'Tevet (see Fast days)
The remaining holidays are:
Date Holiday Importance Friday, February 26 Purim Sunday, March 28 Passover I (see Food on Passover) Monday, March 29 Passover II (see Food on Passover) Saturday, April 03 Passover VII (see Food on Passover) Sunday, April 04 Passover VIII (see Food on Passover) Monday, May 17 Shavuot I Tuesday, May 18 Shavuot II Tuesday, September 07 Rosh Hashana Wednesday, September 08 Rosh Hashana II Thursday, September 16 Yom Kippur (see Fast days) Tuesday, September 21 Sukkot I Wednesday, September 22 Sukkot II Tuesday, September 28 Shmini Atzeret Wednesday, September 29 Simchat Torah Monday, November 29 Chanukah I
Observant Jews can work on these days if they must. However, they are very family-oriented holidays, and a Jew who works on one of them will be unable to celebrate the holiday properly with his family.
The holidays that fall into this category are:
Date Holiday Friday, February 26 Purim Monday, November 29 Chanukah I
The remaining holidays are:
Date Holiday Importance Sunday, March 28 Passover I (see Food on Passover) Monday, March 29 Passover II (see Food on Passover) Saturday, April 03 Passover VII (see Food on Passover) Sunday, April 04 Passover VIII (see Food on Passover) Monday, May 17 Shavuot I Tuesday, May 18 Shavuot II Tuesday, September 07 Rosh Hashana Wednesday, September 08 Rosh Hashana II Thursday, September 16 Yom Kippur (see Fast days) Tuesday, September 21 Sukkot I Wednesday, September 22 Sukkot II Tuesday, September 28 Shmini Atzeret Wednesday, September 29 Simchat Torah
The reality is that most Jews do not observe these holidays. However, the Jews who do observe them believe that their observance is commanded by God. If you schedule something on one of these days, it won't be merely inconvenient for these Jews to attent your event; it'll be impossible. Note: in addition to the holidays listed here, every Friday night and Saturday, i.e., the Jewish Sabbath, falls into this category.
The holidays that fall into this category are:
Date Holiday Monday, March 29 Passover II (see Food on Passover) Saturday, April 03 Passover VII (see Food on Passover) Sunday, April 04 Passover VIII (see Food on Passover) Tuesday, May 18 Shavuot II Wednesday, September 08 Rosh Hashana II Wednesday, September 22 Sukkot II Wednesday, September 29 Simchat Torah
See below for what's left.
Would you schedule your event on Christmas or Easter? If not, then don't schedule it on one of these days either. Remember: These holidays, like all the others listed above, include the previous night, starting a little while before sunset (see When Jewish holidays start and end below for more information).
The holidays that fall into this category are:
Date Holiday Importance Sunday, March 28 Passover I (see Food on Passover) Monday, May 17 Shavuot I Tuesday, September 07 Rosh Hashana Thursday, September 16 Yom Kippur (see Fast days) Tuesday, September 21 Sukkot I Tuesday, September 28 Shmini Atzeret
So, you're responsible for scheduling a conference, meeting, or some other event? Of course, you want as many people in your target audience to be able to attend, right? Well, if your target audience includes Jews, then this page is for you!
The Jewish calendar is extremely complex. There are many holidays of varying importance throughout the year. These holidays are based on the Jewish lunar calendar rather than the Gregorian calendar, which means that they fall on different Gregorian dates and days of the week each year. Some of the holidays are not widely observed by some Jewish denominations. Most Gregorian calendars do not show all Jewish holidays, and those that do fail to show how important or widely observed each one is.
Because of all this complexity, it's going to be hard for you to know which Jewish holidays you should avoid if you wish for Jews to be able to attend your event. This page should make it easier.
When you enter a Gregorian year and click “Submit”, several lists of holidays will be displayed with their Gregorian dates. Ideally, you should avoid scheduling events on any of these dates, so the first list includes all of them. However, the reality is that there are a lot of Jewish holidays, and you may be unable to avoid them all. Therefore, each subsequent list is a subset of the previous one, with some holidays removed based on their importance and how widely they are observed, until finally, the last list shows the holidays which you absolutely need to avoid.
Weekends are included in the lists of holidays, but since conflicts are more likely during the work week, weekdays are shown in bold.
Note that even the biggest list doesn't contain all the Jewish holidays. Trust me, you don't want to see that list.
Jewish holidays begin 18 minutes before sunset the previous night, and Jews who observe the holidays must get home before they begin. Please take this into account when scheduling a “traveling event” like a conference the day before a listed holiday. Unless you're in the habit of paying attention to when sunset occurs (and most people aren't), it's probably earlier than you think, especially in the winter. For example, in Boston, winter holidays can start as early as 3:54pm.
Jewish holidays end about an hour after sunset, unless the next day is also a holiday, in which case there is no "non-holiday" gap between the two. Jews who strictly observe the holidays can't usually travel to events until after the end of the holiday. This might be feasible the during standard time, when sunset could be as early as 4:15pm, but it's challenging in the summer, when, for example, the Sabbath can end as late as 10:00pm in some parts of the United States.
You've probably heard the phrase “keeping kosher”, but if you aren't Jewish, you may have almost no idea what it means. If you're curious, you can learn some of the details at Judaism 101. For the purposes of this holiday page, it's sufficient to know that if you plan an event involving food, some Jewish attendees will not be able to eat it.
To accommodate Jews who keep kosher at your events, you should at the very least ensure that they will be able to bring their own food to the event. Better, however, would be to find a way to provide food that they will be able to eat. This is often easier than it sounds. For example, if your event is being hosted by a hotel in any medium to large American city, the hotel's caterer probably already has an arrangement with a local kosher caterer or restaurant to deliver pre-prepared kosher food when needed; all you need to do is ask.
Strict observance of the holiday of Passover (in Hebrew Pesach) requires drastic changes in a a Jew's diet and a great deal of work before and after the holiday. Jews are commanded not to consume any “leavened” food, in Hebrew chametz, or indeed even to own it or allow it to be seen in their households, during Passover.
This prompts strictly observant Jews to clean their houses from top to bottom; to search every nook and cranny for chametz; to empty their kitchen drawers, cabinets and pantries and temporarily replace their dishes, flatware, pots and pans with Passover-only equipment; and to eliminate from their diets all foods other than matzah that might contain even a trace of grain.
Even many Jews who are not strictly observant and/or do not keep kosher during most of the year observe the dietary restrictions of Passover in some way. Therefore, if you must schedule an event which takes place during Passover and where food is served, please make an effort to be extra sensitive to the needs of Jewish attendees. See Accommodating dietary restrictions above for more about this.
Certain days in the Jewish calendar are designated as fast days. The so-called “minor fasts” are currently shown in the lists of holidays provided by this page; click here to hide them. The two most important fasts, Tish'a B'Av and Yom Kippur, are always included.
Do not confuse Jewish fasts with those of some other religions which permit some food and drink, e.g., bread and water, to be consumed during the fast. During a Jewish fast, no food or drink may be consumed. Furthermore, the two major fasts last for over 25 hours, from before sundown the previous night until well after sundown the day of the fast.
So, what can you do to accommodate Jews' observances if you need to schedule an event with food on a fast day? Not much, really, but please, do be sensitive to the awkwardness, discomfort and even physical illness that could be caused by making someone who hasn't eaten or drunk in twenty hours watch other people doing it, and do what you can to minimize it.
If you have any questions about this page, please contact me. You can make comments or suggestions about this page, or read what others have to say, at my blog. Please click here to visit my home page.
Date calculations for this page are performed by the very fine program hebcal. Many thanks to Danny Sadinoff for writing it and to him and Michael Radwin for maintaining it!!