When is Father’s Day celebrated?

History of Father’s Day

In the United States, the driving force behind the establishment of the celebration of Father’s Day was Mrs. Sonora Smart Dodd. Her father, the Civil War veteran William Jackson Smart, as a single parent raised his six children in Spokane, Washington. She was inspired by Anna Jarvis’s efforts to establish Mother’s Day. Although she initially suggested June 5, the anniversary of her father’s death, she did not provide the organizers with enough time to make arrangements, and the celebration was deferred to the third Sunday in June. The first Father’s Day was celebrated on June 19, 1910, in Spokane, Washington.

Unofficial support from such figures as William Jennings Bryan was immediate and widespread. Woodrow Wilson was personally so feted by his family in 1916, and Calvin Coolidge recommended it as a national holiday in 1924. The all-male U.S. Congress, however, was mindful that passing a measure so favorable to males could be seen as a conflict of interest. In 1966, Lyndon Johnson made Father’s Day a holiday to be celebrated on the third Sunday of June. The holiday was not officially recognized until the presidency of Richard Nixon in 1972.

When is Father’s Day celebrated?

In the USA, Father’s Day is celebrated on the 3rd Sunday of June but there are different dates for different countries.

Countries that observe Father’s Day on the third Sunday of June include

Argentina, Canada, Chile, Cuba, France, Hong Kong S.A.R., India, Pakistan, Ireland, Japan, Macao S.A.R., Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, Peru, the Philippines, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Venezuela.

Countries with other celebration dates:

Austria: second Sunday of June
Australia: first Sunday of September
Belgium: St Joseph’s day (March 19), and the second Sunday of June (Secular)
Brazil: second Sunday of August
Bulgaria: June 20
Denmark: June 5 (also Constitution Day)
Dominican Republic: last Sunday of July
Estonia: second Sunday of November
Finland: second Sunday of November
Germany: Ascension Day
Italy: March 19
Lithuania: first Sunday of June
New Zealand: first Sunday of September
Norway: second Sunday of November
Poland: June 23
Portugal: March 19
Russia: February 23 (Defender of the Fatherland Day, a military holiday, seen by many as a men’s day)
South Korea: May 8 (Parents’ Day)
Spain: March 19
Sweden: second Sunday of November
Thailand: December 5 (birthday of King Bhumibol Adulyadej)
Taiwan: August 8