Columbus Day is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating Italian explorer Christopher Columbus’s landing in the Americas on October 12, 1492. Since 1971, it has been observed annually on the second Monday of October. In 2025, Columbus Day will fall on Monday (October 13).

The holiday celebrates Columbus’s contributions to exploration and the Age of Discovery, as well as Italian-American heritage. However, in recent decades, the observance has become controversial due to the historical consequences of European colonization on Indigenous peoples.

National holiday: US President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared Columbus Day a national holiday in 1937.

Italian-American Heritage: Columbus, a native of Genoa, Italy, became a symbol of Italian-American pride, especially following the

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