Discovery Day is the name of several holidays commemorating the discovery of land, gold, and other significant national discoveries.

The Bahamas

The Bahamas Discovery Day was a public holiday on October 12, that celebrated the arrival of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

in the

New World The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...

in 1492. It coincided with the

Columbus Day Columbus Day is a national holiday in many countries of the Americas and elsewhere, and a federal holiday in the United States, which officially celebrates the anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas. He went ashore at ...

celebrations of many other countries in the Americas. Columbus's initial landfall was on the now-unknown island of

Guanahani Guanahaní (meaning "small upper waters land") was the Taíno language, Taíno name of an island in the Bahamas that was the first land in the New World sighted and visited by Christopher Columbus' Voyages of Christopher Columbus#First voyage (14 ...

in the Bahamas in 1492. It was last observed as a holiday in 2012 and has been replaced by

National Heroes' Day Heroes' Day or National Heroes' Day may refer to a number of commemorations of national heroes in different countries and territories. It is often held on the birthday of a national hero or heroine, or the anniversary of their great deeds that ...

holiday, which is a public holiday observed on the second Monday in October.

Brazil

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, Discovery Day is observed on April 22 each year. This date commemorates the day when

Pedro Álvares Cabral Pedro Álvares Cabral (; born Pedro Álvares de Gouveia; ) was a Portuguese nobleman, military commander, navigator and explorer regarded as the European discoverer of Brazil. He was the first human in history to ever be on four continents, ...

became the first

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an to land in Brazil in 1500 (although this discovery is contested by some).

Canada

Yukon Yukon () is a Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada, bordering British Columbia to the south, the Northwest Territories to the east, the Beaufort Sea to the north, and the U.S. state of Alaska to the west. It is Canada’s we ...

, Discovery Day is a public holiday on the third Monday in August commemorating the anniversary of the discovery of gold in 1896, which started the Klondike Gold Rush. In

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the populatio ...

, it is observed on the Monday nearest June 24 and commemorates

John Cabot John Cabot ( ; 1450 – 1499) was an Italians, Italian navigator and exploration, explorer. His 1497 voyage to the coast of North America under the commission of Henry VII of England, Henry VII, King of England is the earliest known Europe ...

's discovery of

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

in 1497. In June 2020, it was announced that the name of the holiday would be changed in consultation with Indigenous groups in the province. As of 2023 no new name has been assigned, and it still has the temporarily designated name of "June Holiday".

Cayman Islands

Discovery Day in the

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located so ...

commemorates the discovery of the Sister Islands of

Cayman Brac Cayman Brac is an island that is part of the Cayman Islands. It lies in the Caribbean Sea about north-east of Grand Cayman and east of Little Cayman. It is about long, with an average width of . Its terrain is the most prominent of the thre ...

and Little Cayman by Christopher Columbus in 1503. The public holiday is celebrated on the third Monday in May.

Guam

March 6 marks the day in 1521 that Magellan's expedition dropped anchor in Umatac Bay.

Hispaniola

December 5, the date in 1492 when

landed on the island of

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ) is an island between Geography of Cuba, Cuba and Geography of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by List of C ...

in what is now Môle-Saint-Nicolas, Haiti, is called Discovery Day. Today the island is shared by two countries:

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

and the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...

which both recognize the holiday.

Puerto Rico

November 19, the date in 1493 when Columbus landed on the island is an official holiday. Not to be confused with

, which is celebrated on the 2nd Monday of October in the United States, including Puerto Rico.

References

{{Reflist March observances April observances May observances June observances August observances October observances December observances Public holidays in Canada Types of secular holidays Holidays and observances by scheduling (nth weekday of the month)