Religious Observance Calendar

At Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), we understand that our students come from diverse backgrounds and have various religious beliefs. To ensure a welcoming and inclusive environment for all, we have created this calendar to highlight the dates of important religious observances throughout the year. Please note that this list is not exhaustive. If you have additional observances you wish to add, please email the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), Associate Director of DEI, Dr. Mia Harper, at mharper@nvcc.edu.

At NOVA, we also have a policy on religious accommodation that aims to support students, faculty and staff in practicing their faith. If you have any questions or concerns regarding religious accommodation, please refer to the policy or contact Dr. Mia Harper at mharper@nvcc.edu for further assistance.
Thank you for helping us foster a respectful and inclusive community at NOVA.

2023 Date	Holiday	Religion
January 1	Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God	Roman Catholic
January 1	Oshogatsu	Shinto
January 3	Asara B'Tevet	Judaism
January 6	Epiphany or Three Kings Day	Christian
January 13	Maghi	Sikh
January 15	Makar Sankranti	Hindu
January 15	World Religion Day	Baha'i
January 22	Lunar New Year	Buddhist
February 2	Imbolc	Pagan and Wiccan
February 3	Setsubun	Shinto
February 5 - 6	Tu BiShvat	Judaism
February 15	Nirvana Day	Buddhist
February 17 - 18	Lailat al Miraj	Islam
February 18	Maha Shivaratri	Hindu
February 22	Ash Wednesday	Christian
February 22 - April 8	Lent	Christian
February 25 - March 1	Festival of Ayyam-i-Ha	Baha'i
March 6	Ta'anit Esther	Judaism
March 6 - 7	Purim	Judaism
March 7 - 8	Mid-Sha'ban	Islam
March 8 - 10	Hola Mohalla	Sikh
March 8	Holi	Hindu/Sikh/Buddhist/Jain
March 13	Birthday of L. Ron Hubbard	Scientology
March 19	Feast of St. Joseph	Roman Catholic
March 21	Ostara	Pagan and Wiccan
March 21	Naw Rúz	Baha'i/Zoroastrian
March 22 - April 21	Ramadan	Islam
March 30	Magha Puja	Buddhist
April 2	Palm Sunday	Christian
April 4	Mahavir Jayanti	Jain
April 4	Memorial of Jesus’ Death	Christian (Jehovah’s Witness)
April 6	Maundy (Holy) Thursday	Christian
April 5 - 13	Passover	Judaism
April 7	Good Friday	Christian
April 8	Holy Saturday	Christian
April 9	Easter Sunday	Christian
April 14	Vaisakhi	Hindu/Sikh
April 16	Easter/Pascha (Orthodox)	Christian
April 17 - 18	Yom HaShoah	Judaism
April 18	Laylat al-Qadr	Islam
April 21 - 22	Eid al-Fitr	Islam
April 24 - 25	Yom HaZikaron	Judaism
April 25 - 26	Yom HaAtzma'ut	Judaism
May 1	Beltaine	Pagan and Wiccan
May 5	Vesak	Buddhist
May 8 - 9	Lag B'Omer	Judaism
May 23	Declaration of Bab	Bahá'í
May 25 - 27	Shavuot	Judaism
May 26	Buddha's Birth	Buddhist
May 28	Pentecost Sunday	Christian
May 28 - 29	Ascension of Baha'u'lláh	Bahá'í
June 16	Martyrdom of Guru Arjan Dev Sahib	Sikh
June 24	Litha	Pagan and Wiccan
June 26 - July 1	The Hajj	Islam
June 28 - 29	Eid al-Adha	Islam
July 5 - 6	Fast of Tammuz	Judaism
July 7	Eid Al-Ghadir	Shia Muslim
July 9	Martyrdom of Báb	Baha'i
July 18 - 19	Islamic New Year	Islam
July 24	Pioneer Day	Christian
July 26 - 27	Tisha B'Av	Judaism
July 28	Day of Ashura	Shia Muslim
August 1	Lughnasadh	Pagan and Wiccan
August 15	Feast of the Assumption	Roman Catholic
September 5 - 6	Arba'een	Islam
September 6 - 7	Krishna Janmashtami	Hindu
September 15 - 17	Rosh Hashanah	Judaism
September 18	Tzom Gedaliah	Judaism
September 21 - 29	Mabon	Pagan and Wiccan
September 24 - 25	Yom Kippur	Judaism
September 26 - 27	Mawlid	Islam
September 29 - October 6	Sukkot	Judaism
October 6 - 8	Shemini Atzeret	Judaism
October 7 - 8	Simchat Torah	Judaism
October 15 - 24	Navaratri	Hindu
October 16	Birthday of Báb	Baha'i
October 17	Birthday of Baha'u'llah	Baha'i
October 24	Dussehra	Hindu
October 31	Samhain	Pagan and Wiccan
November 1	All Saints Day	Christian
November 2	All Souls' Day	Christian
November 12	Diwali	Hindu/Sikh/Jain
November 24	Martyrdom of Guru Bahadur	Sikh
November 28 - January 6	Christmas Fast	Christian
December 3 - 24	Advent	Christian
December 7 -15	Hanukkah	Judaism
December 8	Feast of the Immaculate Conception	Roman Catholic
December 8	Bodhi Day	Buddhist
December 12	Our Lady of Guadalupe (Feast Day)	Christian
December 16 - 24	Las Posadas	Christian
December 21 - January 1	Yule	Pagan and Wiccan
December 22	Asara B'Tevet	Judaism
December 24	Christmas Eve	Christian
December 25	Christmas Day	Christian
December 26	St. Stephen's Day	Christian

Drexel University (n.d.). Religious observance holiday. Office of Provost. Retrieved May 2, 2023, from https://drexel.edu/provost/policies-calendars/religious-observances/