International Women's Day around the world in 2025


  How long until International Women's Day?
International Women's Day
  Dates of International Women's Day around the world
2026 Various Mar 8, Mar 9
AngolaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
ArmeniaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
Azerbaijan Mar 8, Mar 9
AzerbaijanMon, Mar 9National Holiday (in lieu)
AzerbaijanSun, Mar 8National Holiday
BelarusSun, Mar 8National Holiday
Burkina FasoSun, Mar 8National Holiday
CambodiaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
ChadSun, Mar 8National Holiday
ChinaSun, Mar 8Not A Public Holiday
Equatorial Guinea Mar 8, Mar 9
Equatorial GuineaMon, Mar 9National Holiday (in lieu)
Equatorial GuineaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
EritreaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
GeorgiaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
Germany Mar 8
BerlinSun, Mar 8Regional Holiday
Mecklenburg-VorpommernSun, Mar 8Regional Holiday
Guinea-BissauSun, Mar 8National Holiday
KazakhstanSun, Mar 8National Holiday
KiribatiSun, Mar 8National Holiday
KyrgyzstanSun, Mar 8National Holiday
LaoSun, Mar 8National Holiday
MoldovaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
MongoliaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
NepalSun, Mar 8National Holiday
North KoreaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
Russia Mar 8, Mar 9
RussiaMon, Mar 9National Holiday (in lieu)
RussiaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
Sierra LeoneSun, Mar 8National Holiday
TajikistanSun, Mar 8National Holiday
TurkmenistanSun, Mar 8National Holiday
UgandaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
UkraineSun, Mar 8National Holiday
UzbekistanSun, Mar 8National Holiday
ZambiaSun, Mar 8National Holiday
2025 Various Mar 8, Mar 9, Mar 10
AngolaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
ArmeniaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
Azerbaijan Mar 8, Mar 10
AzerbaijanMon, Mar 10National Holiday (in lieu)
AzerbaijanSat, Mar 8National Holiday
BelarusSat, Mar 8National Holiday
Burkina FasoSat, Mar 8National Holiday
CambodiaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
ChadSat, Mar 8National Holiday
ChinaSat, Mar 8Not A Public Holiday
Equatorial Guinea Mar 8, Mar 10
Equatorial GuineaMon, Mar 10National Holiday (in lieu)
Equatorial GuineaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
EritreaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
GeorgiaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
Germany Mar 8
BerlinSat, Mar 8Regional Holiday
Mecklenburg-VorpommernSat, Mar 8Regional Holiday
Guinea-BissauSat, Mar 8National Holiday
KazakhstanSat, Mar 8National Holiday
KiribatiSat, Mar 8National Holiday
KyrgyzstanSat, Mar 8National Holiday
LaoSat, Mar 8National Holiday
MoldovaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
MongoliaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
NepalSat, Mar 8National Holiday
North KoreaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
Russia Mar 8, Mar 9
RussiaSun, Mar 9National Holiday (in lieu)
RussiaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
Sierra LeoneSat, Mar 8National Holiday
TajikistanSat, Mar 8National Holiday
TurkmenistanSat, Mar 8National Holiday
UgandaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
UkraineSat, Mar 8National Holiday
UzbekistanSat, Mar 8National Holiday
ZambiaSat, Mar 8National Holiday
2024 Various Mar 8
AngolaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
ArmeniaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
AzerbaijanFri, Mar 8National Holiday
BelarusFri, Mar 8National Holiday
Burkina FasoFri, Mar 8National Holiday
CambodiaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
ChadFri, Mar 8National Holiday
ChinaFri, Mar 8Not A Public Holiday
Equatorial GuineaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
EritreaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
GeorgiaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
Germany Mar 8
BerlinFri, Mar 8Regional Holiday
Mecklenburg-VorpommernFri, Mar 8Regional Holiday
Guinea-BissauFri, Mar 8National Holiday
KazakhstanFri, Mar 8National Holiday
KiribatiFri, Mar 8National Holiday
KyrgyzstanFri, Mar 8National Holiday
LaoFri, Mar 8National Holiday
MoldovaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
MongoliaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
NepalFri, Mar 8National Holiday
North KoreaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
RussiaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
Sierra LeoneFri, Mar 8National Holiday
TajikistanFri, Mar 8National Holiday
TurkmenistanFri, Mar 8National Holiday
UgandaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
UkraineFri, Mar 8National Holiday
UzbekistanFri, Mar 8National Holiday
ZambiaFri, Mar 8National Holiday
2023 Various Mar 8
AngolaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
ArmeniaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
AzerbaijanWed, Mar 8National Holiday
BelarusWed, Mar 8National Holiday
Burkina FasoWed, Mar 8National Holiday
CambodiaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
ChadWed, Mar 8National Holiday
ChinaWed, Mar 8Not A Public Holiday
Equatorial GuineaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
EritreaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
GeorgiaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
Germany Mar 8
BerlinWed, Mar 8Regional Holiday
Mecklenburg-VorpommernWed, Mar 8Regional Holiday
Guinea-BissauWed, Mar 8National Holiday
KazakhstanWed, Mar 8National Holiday
KiribatiWed, Mar 8National Holiday
KyrgyzstanWed, Mar 8National Holiday
LaoWed, Mar 8National Holiday
MoldovaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
MongoliaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
NepalWed, Mar 8National Holiday
North KoreaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
RussiaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
Sierra LeoneWed, Mar 8National Holiday
TajikistanWed, Mar 8National Holiday
TurkmenistanWed, Mar 8National Holiday
UgandaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
UkraineWed, Mar 8National Holiday
UzbekistanWed, Mar 8National Holiday
ZambiaWed, Mar 8National Holiday
2022 Various Mar 7, Mar 8
AngolaTue, Mar 8National Holiday (in lieu)
ArmeniaTue, Mar 8National Holiday
AzerbaijanTue, Mar 8National Holiday
Belarus Mar 7, Mar 8
BelarusTue, Mar 8National Holiday
BelarusMon, Mar 7National Holiday (bridge day)
Burkina FasoTue, Mar 8National Holiday
CambodiaTue, Mar 8National Holiday (additional day)
ChadTue, Mar 8National Holiday
ChinaTue, Mar 8Not A Public Holiday
Equatorial GuineaTue, Mar 8National Holiday
EritreaTue, Mar 8National Holiday
GeorgiaTue, Mar 8National Holiday
GermanyTue, Mar 8Regional Holiday
Guinea-BissauTue, Mar 8National Holiday
Kazakhstan Mar 7, Mar 8
KazakhstanTue, Mar 8National Holiday
KazakhstanMon, Mar 7National Holiday (bridge day)
KiribatiTue, Mar 8National Holiday
KyrgyzstanTue, Mar 8National Holiday
LaoTue, Mar 8National Holiday
MoldovaTue, Mar 8National Holiday
MongoliaTue, Mar 8National Holiday
NepalTue, Mar 8National Holiday
North KoreaTue, Mar 8National Holiday
Russia Mar 7, Mar 8
RussiaTue, Mar 8National Holiday
RussiaMon, Mar 7National Holiday (bridge day)
Sierra LeoneTue, Mar 8National Holiday
TajikistanTue, Mar 8National Holiday
TurkmenistanTue, Mar 8National Holiday
UgandaTue, Mar 8National Holiday
Ukraine Mar 7, Mar 8
UkraineTue, Mar 8National Holiday
UkraineMon, Mar 7National Holiday (bridge day)
UzbekistanTue, Mar 8National Holiday
ZambiaTue, Mar 8National Holiday (in lieu)
  Summary

The UN has declared March 8th to be a day to celebrate, recognise and remember women

  Which countries observe International Women's Day in 2025?

When is International Women's Day?

International Women's Day is celebrated on March 8th.

27 countries (mainly former Soviet republics) have adopted International Women's Day as a national holiday, and it is widely observed in several others.

For most of the countries who observe this holiday, if it falls on a weekend, it will be moved to the following Monday. If it falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, several countries will bridge the holiday to the weekend by declaring an additional public holiday on the Monday or Friday - though often this is compensated for by making a Saturday a working day.

In China since 2014, women are entitled to a half-day holiday for Women's Day. In Madagascar and Nepal, the day is also an official women-only holiday.

History of International Women's Day

International Women's Day was first established at the 1910 International Socialist Women's Conference in Copenhagen. German women's rights activist and Marxist theorist Clara Zetkin was the one who tabled the idea.

Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Denmark celebrated the holiday for the first time on March 19th 1911, with the Soviet Union the first to make it a public holiday in 1917. The date of 8th March was adopted internationally in 1921.

In 1977, the United Nations declared 8th March as International Women's Day, a day each year when the world should celebrate, recognize and remember women and the accomplishments they have made to society. Each year has a theme:

  • The theme of International Women’s Day 2024 is Inspire Inclusion. When we inspire others to understand and value women’s inclusion, we forge a better world. And when women themselves are inspired to be included, there’s a sense of belonging, relevance and empowerment. The aim of the IWD 2024 #InspireInclusion campaign is to collectively forge a more inclusive world for women.

  • 2023: EmbraceEquity
  • 2022: #BreakTheBias.
  • 2021: Choose To Challenge
  • 2020: An equal world is an enabled world..
  • 2019: #BalanceforBetter;  a call-to-action for driving gender balance across the world.
  • 2018: #PressforProgress

Full list of International Women's Day Themes

It is often said that the date chosen for International Women's Day marks a mass protest that took place in New York on March 8th 1857, when women from sewing and shoe factories demonstrated for the same rights as men. Men had recently won a 10-hour workday, but women had been overlooked in the legislation and left on a 16-hour workday. As as a result, 8th March became a traditional day for regular demonstrations in the US and Europe.

However, recent reports have cast doubt on whether this event ever took place, with newspapers of the time not reporting any such march. Nevertheless, the protests are the reason that the United States celebrates National Women's History Month in March.

Given how the holiday began in Russia, a more plausible source for the date is 1917 when Russian women marched to protest for 'Bread and Peace' on the last Sunday in February (which was March 8th in the Gregorian calendar in use in the rest of Europe). This march contributed to the Czar abdicating four days later and the new government granted women the right to vote. It would be three years later before women in the US had the same rights.

What are the colours of International Women’s Day?

The official colours of International Women’s Day are purple, green and white. These originated from the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) in the UK back in 1908, according to the International Women's Day website. "Purple signifies justice and dignity. Green symbolizes hope. White represents purity, albeit a controversial concept,” it states.

International Women's Day Quiz

Test your knowledge of International Women's Day and the inspiring women who have shaped history. Discover new facts about the incredible achievements of women around the world. From trailblazing aviators to pioneering performers, this quiz is sure to inspire and educate. So grab a cup of coffee and take a break from your day with our International Women's Day quiz!

Other Women's Days

The following countries observe a Woman's Day as a public holiday, but don't follow the March 8th date:

Gabon

On April 17th, this holiday marks the appointment of the first female to the Government in Gabon.

Mozambique

On April 7th, Mozambique marks the anniversary of Josina Machel's death in 1971. Josina was a key figure in the struggle for the emancipation of African women.

South Africa

The holiday commemorates the national march of women on August 9th 1956 to petition against legislation that required African persons to carry the pass

Tunisia

This day commemorates the promulgation of a series of women's rights that were established within the Code of Personal Status on August 13th 1956. 

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