Your complete guide to Saudi National Day
It’s right around the corner
Saudi National Day 2025 is coming up super soon, and if you’ve always wondered what the history of the holiday and how it came to be, you’ve come to the right place. This is your ultimate Saudi National Day guide.
Every year, Saudi Arabia celebrates Saudi National Day on September 23 to celebrate the renaming of the Kingdom of Nejd and Hejaz as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932.
What is Saudi National Day?
This year, Saudi National Day will be celebrated on Tuesday September 23. The day commemorates the proclamation that renamed the Kingdom of Nejd and Hejaz as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which dates back to 1932, making this the 95th Saudi National Day.
It was made a public holiday by King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz in 2005 and is one of the three non-religious holidays observed in the country, the others being Saudi Founding Day and Saudi Flag Day.
The history
The establishment of Saudi Arabia happened after King Abdulaziz was able to conquer the oases of Riyadh in 1902 and al-Hasa in 1913, and by 1925. He then unified both Nejd and the Hejaz after defeating the forces of Sharif Hussein. On 23 September 1932, King Abdulaziz changed the name of his realm to that of his family, the House of Saud.
Afterwards, in 1965, September 23 was first celebrated in the government sector for the first time during the reign of King Faisal bin Abdulaziz, who issued a royal decree in August to formally mark it as the Saudi National Day.
Then, in 2007, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz announced Saudi National Day as an official holiday. And then in 2015, the holiday was officially celebrated in the country.
How is Saudi National Day different from Saudi Founding Day?
Saudi Founding Day is not an alternative to National Day, which celebrates the unification of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932. Instead, Saudi Founding Day aims to recognise the beginning of the Saudi state’s history with a new event that celebrates the deep historical roots of the Kingdom.
How is Saudi National Day celebrated?
Traditionally, Saudi National Day is celebrated with folk dances, concerts, and fireworks. In recent years, the country has also hosted drone shows, aeroplane shows, and more.
All over the country, buildings are lit up in a gorgeous, bright green. Restaurants all over the country also celebrate with iconic specials and money-saving offers too. Stay tuned to What’s On Saudi Arabia for our guide to celebrating the holiday.
The most important question: When are we getting a holiday?
According to the Ministry of Human Resources, workers are entitled to the Saudi National Day holiday. If this day coincides with a weekend day, the worker shall be compensated for the previous or following day.
This year, the day falls on a Tuesday, meaning that we’re likely only getting that off, and there are unfortunately no long weekends in sight currently (much to my dismay).
Images: What’s On archive
