Martin Luther King Day is the third Monday in January.
Martin Luther King Day is a federal holiday in the United States. It is observed on the third Monday of January each year, which means that it falls on January 21st in 2020 and will fall on January 18th in 2021. The day was first celebrated as a federal holiday in 1986 and commemorates Martin Luther King Jr., an American civil rights activist who was born on January 15th 1929. He was assassinated on April 4th 1968, and his birthday has been observed as a national holiday since 1986.
The day has been observed since 1986, but there were two years when it fell on another date. In 17 years between 1976 and 1984, the third Monday of January fell on a date other than Martin Luther King Day. This was due to changes made by Ronald Reagan when he became President in 1981. As part of his attempt to cut down on federal spending, Reagan moved 10 holidays from their traditional dates to Mondays so that they would not fall during weekends or other holidays.
