What is Assumption Day?
Assumption Day celebrates the Catholic belief that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was taken body and soul into heavenly glory at the end of her earthly life. The doctrine was defined as a dogma by Pope Pius XII on 1 November 1950, though the feast itself and the belief are much older. It is one of the major Marian feasts and a holy day of obligation in many Catholic countries. In the Catholic Church, the feast is also called the Dormition in some traditions, and the date is a holy day of obligation in many countries.
In Italy the holiday is known as Ferragosto, and it is the heart of the summer break, when cities empty and families go to the seaside or the mountains. In France, Spain, Poland, Austria, Croatia, Portugal and other countries, church services, processions and the blessing of herbs and flowers mark the day, and in Poland the feast is also known as the Feast of Our Lady of the Herbs. The holiday also fills the middle of the summer holiday season, which gives it an unusual role as a social rather than purely religious occasion in countries like Italy and France.
Why it is observed
The celebration of Mary's death and her entry into heaven goes back to the fifth and sixth centuries in the East, where it was called the Dormition, the falling asleep, and by the seventh century it was kept in Rome on 15 August. The Western church shifted the emphasis to the Assumption. The Italian Ferragosto comes from the Latin Feriae Augusti, a rest period decreed by the Emperor Augustus in the first century BC, which the church later merged with the Marian feast. In Poland and elsewhere the date also overlaps with harvest customs.
How the date is set
Assumption Day is fixed on 15 August. Orthodox churches keep the same feast as the Dormition of the Mother of God on 15 August in their calendar, which is 28 August for churches using the Julian calendar.
How it is observed
Assumption Day is a public holiday in Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Monaco, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, San Marino and the Vatican, among others. Shops, banks and offices close, though in tourist areas many restaurants and shops stay open. Because it falls in the peak holiday period, travel is crowded, especially in Italy and France. In Orthodox countries the same date is observed as the Dormition. Pay and substitute days depend on the country and the contract. Check opening hours at attractions. Confirm local rules if travelling.
Andorra
Austria
Belgium
Croatia
France
Italy
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Monaco
Poland
Portugal
San Marino
Slovenia
Spain
Vatican City