Holiday refers to the day set apart for religious observance or for the commemoration of some extraordinary event total stoppage of work and normal business activities, including feasting, parades and carnivals, or displays of flags and speechmaking.
假日是由于宗教儀式，或為紀念某些特殊事件或著名人物而特地指定的日子。假日的主要特點是部分或完全停止工作和常規(guī)商務活動。一般來說，假日往往伴有公眾或私人慶祝會，包括參加宴會、游行、狂歡會，或者參觀旗幟展覽和做演講等。

Originally, in ancient times, holidays were predominantly religious in character and linked to natural events such as the annual course of the sun or the phases of the moon. The word "holiday", in fact, is derived from "holy day". Subsequently, secular holidays commemorating historical occasions or distinguished persons outnumbered holy days, although many ancient religious rituals and customs have been carried over into modern times and incorporated into both secular and religious observations. Today, the outstanding holiday is one of religious observance and abstention from normal work routines, taking place on Sunday for Christians, Friday for Muslims, and Saturday for Jews. In the U.S., Sunday is not only a religious holiday but is also the only common-law holiday.
在古代，最初的假日主要以宗教為特色，與自然現(xiàn)象如每年的太陽運行過程或月相等相關。實際上，"假日"一詞是由"圣日"這個詞演變而來的。而在之后的歲月里，世俗假日如紀念歷史事件或著名人物的次數(shù)遠遠超過了圣日，盡管許多古老的宗教儀式和習俗一直流傳到現(xiàn)在，并且融于世俗和宗教儀式這兩者之中。今天，具有突出特點的假日是宗教慶典和遠離日常工作的日子：對于基督徒來說是星期日，穆斯林是星期五，猶太人則是星期六。在美國，星期日不僅是宗教節(jié)日而且還是惟一的習慣法定假日。

National holidays are set aside by official government proclamation to celebrate such occasions as the achievement of independence, the founding of the nation, the adoption of a constitution, the birthday of the ruler, or the national patron saint's day.
法定假日是由官方政府宣布的假日，用于慶祝特殊歷史事件，如獲得獨立，國家建立，憲法實施，統(tǒng)治者誕辰，或圣徒紀念日。

The U.S. has no national holidays as such legal holidays-on which banks, schools, or other public institutions and most places of business are closed-are designated by legislative enactment or by executive proclamation. Congress and the president designate the legal holidays for the District of Columbia and the federal territories but are without power to declare national holidays. Independence Day and other holidays are observed on a national scale as a result of action by the calendar date and requests national observance, and the states then usually enact the necessary legislation. Federal statutes often specify certain days as holidays for purposes related to the legislation.
美國沒有全國性的法定假日。法定假日，即銀行、學?；蚱渌矙C構和大多數(shù)商業(yè)場所都關門歇業(yè)的日子，是由立法機關制定或執(zhí)行宣布的。國會和總統(tǒng)有權指定哥倫比亞特區(qū)和聯(lián)邦領土內(nèi)的法定假日，但卻沒有宣布全國性法定假日的權力。由于州政府的參與，獨立日和其他節(jié)日得以在全國范圍內(nèi)進行。就拿感恩節(jié)來說吧，總統(tǒng)指定日歷上的日期，建議全國舉國歡慶。然后，州政府通常就開始立法并以頒布。聯(lián)邦政府法令往往明確規(guī)定假日的具體日期以便與立法相對應。

In order to give federal employees three-day weekends, a 1968 federal law made several changes in dates of holiday observances, effective in 1971: Washington's Birthday now falls on the third Monday in February; Memorial Day, on the last Monday in May; Columbus Day, on the second Monday in October. Individual states later adopted these Monday holidays.
為了給聯(lián)邦政府雇員提供為期三天的周末，1968年的一項聯(lián)邦法案對假日做了幾項修改，并于1971年生效。這項法案規(guī)定：華盛頓的誕辰日為2月的第3個星期一;陣亡將士紀念日是5月的最后一個星期一;哥倫布發(fā)現(xiàn)美洲紀念日為10月的第2個星期一;退伍軍人節(jié)是10月的第4個星期一。各個獨立州后來都采納了這些星期一假日。

A number of states commemorate important events in their history. In Vermont, for example, the Battle of Bennington, fought in the American Revolution, is commemorated annually on August 16; in Louisiana the Battle of New Orleans of the War of 1812 is commemorated on January 8; Patriot's Day, commemorating the first battle of the American Revolution, is celebrated on or about April 19 in Massachusetts and Maine; and several southern states celebrate a confederate Memorial Day on different days in the spring.
許多州都紀念本州發(fā)生的重要歷史事件。假如，在佛蒙特每年都會在8月16日紀念為美國獨立戰(zhàn)爭而戰(zhàn)的本寧頓戰(zhàn)役。路易斯安那州在1月8日紀念1821年戰(zhàn)爭中的新奧爾良戰(zhàn)役。為紀念美國獨立戰(zhàn)爭的首次戰(zhàn)役的愛國者日，于每年的4月19日左右在馬薩諸塞州和緬因州舉行慶?；顒?。每年春天的不同時候，南方各州會有聯(lián)邦陣亡將士紀念日。