United Nations Day is an annual commemorative day, reflecting the official creation of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

on 24 October 1945. In 1947, the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...

declared 24 October, the anniversary of the

Charter of the United Nations The Charter of the United Nations (UN) is the foundational treaty of the UN, an intergovernmental organization. It establishes the purposes, governing structure, and overall framework of the UN system, including its six principal organs: the ...

, to "be devoted to making known to the people of the world the aims and achievements of the United Nations and to gaining their support for" its work. In 1971, the

adopted a further resolution (

United Nations Resolution A United Nations resolution (UN resolution) is a formal text adopted by a United Nations (UN) body. Although any UN body can issue resolutions, in practice most resolutions are issued by the Security Council or the General Assembly. Legal st ...

2782) declaring that United Nations Day shall be an

international observance Lists of holidays by various categorizations. Religious holidays Abrahamic holidays (Middle Eastern) Jewish holidays * Chag HaMatzot (Feast of Unleavened Bread – 7 days of consumption of matzo with wine and avoidance of leavened food ...

or international holiday and recommended that it should be observed as a public holiday by

United Nations member states United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...

World War II Allies' day

The first event called "United Nations Day" was a World War II Allies' day of solidarity and

military parade A military parade is a formation of soldiers whose movement is restricted by close-order manoeuvering known as drilling or marching. The military parade is now almost entirely ceremonial, though soldiers from time immemorial up until the la ...

s launched by US President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

tied to US Flag Day on 14 June 1942, six months after the

Declaration by United Nations The Declaration by United Nations was the main treaty that formalized the Allies of World War II and was signed by 47 national governments between 1942 and 1945. On 1 January 1942, during the Arcadia Conference, the Allied " Big Four"—the Unite ...

. It was observed in New York City as the " New York at War" parade, in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, and by the Soviet and Chinese governments. It was observed throughout World War II, during 1942–1944. Prior to the foundation of the UN itself, it was not directly connected to the current international observance.

Commemoration

U.N. Day has traditionally been marked throughout the world with meetings, discussions and exhibits about the achievements and goals of the organization. In 1971, the General Assembly recommended that member states observe it as a

public holiday A public holiday, national holiday, or legal holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year. Sovereign nations and territories observe holidays based on events of significance to their history ...

. Several international schools throughout the world would also celebrate the

diversity Diversity, diversify, or diverse may refer to: Business *Diversity (business), the inclusion of people of different identities (ethnicity, gender, age) in the workforce *Diversity marketing, marketing communication targeting diverse customers * ...

of their student body on United Nations Day (although the event is not necessarily celebrated on 24 October). Celebrations often include a show of cultural performances in the evening and a food fair, where food is available from all over the world. On United Nations Day in 1951, the United Nations Postal Administration issued the first UN Stamps, which were issued in U.S. Dollars at the U.N. Headquarters in New York. In the United States, the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

has issued a

proclamation A proclamation (Lat. ''proclamare'', to make public by announcement) is an official declaration issued by a person of authority to make certain announcements known. Proclamations are currently used within the governing framework of some nations ...

each year for United Nations Day since 1948. In

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

, which is administered by the Interim Administration Mission, United Nations Day is an official non-working day. In the Philippines, local schoolchildren customarily dress in the national costumes of member states and hold a programme on U.N. Day, which is the last school day before semestral break. Individual students, classes, or grade levels are assigned a country to represent and study; students handcraft their assigned country's flag, and prepare cultural presentations and food as part of the day's educational activities. Some schools hold

beauty pageant A beauty pageant is a competition that has traditionally focused on judging and ranking the physical attributes of the contestants. Pageants have now evolved to include inner beauty, with criteria covering judging of personality, intelligence, ...

s "Mr And Ms United Nations", that focus on the culture, talent and physical attributes.

References

External links

UN Day
{{United Nations United Nations days October observances Recurring events established in 1948 International organization days 1948 introductions Swedish flag flying days

World War II Allies' day

Commemoration

See also

References

External links