2009 Religious, Cultural Events and Civic Holidays
*bold denotes statutory holiday in Ontario

January
1st*	New Year's Day – first day of 2009
6th	Epiphany (Christian) – 1 of 3 major Christian festivals, along with Christmas and Easter
11th	Mahayana New Year (Buddhist) – spans 3 days
26th	Chinese New Year (Chinese) – 2009 Year of the Ox – the most important celebration in the Chinese calendar
February
14th	Saint Valentine’s Day (Christian) – commonly known as Valentine’s Day
16th*	Family Day – New annual holiday in Ontario
25th	Ash Wednesday (Christian) – observance to begin the 40-day season of Lent; Ashes are marked on worshippers as a sign of penitence
March
10th	Purim (Jewish) – celebration of deliverance of the Jewish minority in Persia from genocide
11th	Holi (Hindu) – spring festival dedicated to the god of pleasure; people shower each other with colored water and smear red and green powder on each other
17th	Saint Patrick's Day (Christian) - celebration of Patrick who brought Christianity to Ireland in early days of the faith
23rd	Maha Shivaratri (Hindu) – festival in honour of Lord Shiva and his marriage to Goddess Parvati
27th	Hindi New Year (Hindu) – spring festival dedicated to the God of Pleasure; observed in a colourful and boisterous manner
April
5th	Palm Sunday (Christian)
9th-10th	Pesach (Passover) (Jewish) – First 2 days – celebration of the deliverance of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt
9th-12th	Theravadin New Year (Buddhist)
10th	Good Friday (Christian)
12th	Easter (Christian)
13th	Easter Monday (Christian)
14th	Baisakhi (Vaisakhi) (Sikh) – start of the New Years; greetings that wish good life in coming days are exchanged
15th-16th	Pesach (Passover) (Jewish) – Final two days – celebration of the deliverance of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt
May
9th	Buddha Day - Buddhist marking of the birth, enlightenment and death (attainment of Nirvana) of Lord Buddha.
18th*	Victoria Day
29th-30th	Shavuot (Jewish) – celebration of Moses' descent from Mt Sinai with the ten commandments
31st	Pentecost (Christian)
June
11th	Corpus Christi - Christian (Roman Catholic) celebration in recognition of the Eucharist - the Blessed Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ. The real presence of the body and blood of Jesus is honored.
July
1st*	Canada Day
August
3rd*	Civic Holiday
14th	Krishna Janmashtami (Hindu) – commemoration of the birth of Krishna
22nd	Ramadan begins (Islam) - devoted to commemoration of Muhammad's reception of the divine revelation recorded in the Qur'am
September
7th*	Labour Day
19th-20th	Rosh Hashanah - Jewish New Year; time of introspection, abstinence, prayer and penitence
20th	Eid Al Fitr (Islam) – Islamic event marking the close of Ramadan; a festival of thanksgiving to Allah for enjoying the month of Ramadan
28th	Yom Kippur - Jewish Day of Atonement; this holiest day of the Jewish year is observed with strict fasting and ceremonial repentance
October
3rd-9th	Sukkot - Jewish Feast of Tabernacles which celebrates the harvest and the protection of the people of Israel as they wandered in the desert
12th*	Thanksgiving Day
17th	Diwali (Deepavali) - Hindu Festival of Lights symbolizing the human urge to move toward the light.
31st	All Hallows Eve – commonly known as Halloween
November
11th	Remembrance Day
13th	Birthday of Guru Nanak Dev Sahib (Sikh)
27th	Eid ul-Adha - Islamic Feast of Sacrifice; the most important feast of Islam
December
12th-19th	Hanukkah – Jewish Festival of Lights; the eight candle Menorah is lighted
18th	Hijra – Islamic New Year
25th*	Christmas Day
26th*	Boxing Day

Disclaimer: The above listings of cultural and religious events and holidays reflects holidays brought to our attention,together with statutory holidays for the Province of Ontario as possibly impacting the holding of director/unit owner meetings and the undertaking of maintenance and/or repairs for condominium corporations.
This is not intended tobe a comprehensive list.
For further information on other cultural and religious holidays, please go to: www.interfaithcalendar.org