Australians’ attitudes towards special events and holidays
Christmas is the most meaningful public holiday of the year for Australians (37%), followed closely by Anzac Day (30%). When it comes to special events and occasions, Mum’s the word, with half (48%) of us seeing this special day as most meaningful –10 times more than those who selected Father’s Day (5%)! But Halloween has us spooked, with 2 in 5 seeing it as the least meaningful event of the year.
Click here to download the Social Analysis.
Public Holidays
It’s nearly been 100 years since the battle at Gallipoli that birthed ANZAC day and the interest and respect for this public holiday is as strong as ever. In fact, over a quarter of us (30%) feel Anzac Day is the most meaningful public holiday to them. Comparatively, other Christian holidays such as Easter were considered less meaningful, with just 15% selecting the Easter long weekend…that’s just 4% more than those whom selected Australia Day!
While we all appreciate the work-life balance afforded by our 8 hour work day, 29% felt Labour Day was the least meaningful public holiday of the lot – second only to the Queen’s Birthday (34%)! In fact, just 1 in 100 Australians feel Labour Day is the most important public holiday of the year!
“This study is a fascinating insight into what matters to Australians – and there are certainly some surprises. While the spirit of courage and mateship as exemplified by the Aussie digger still rings strongly, with Anzac Day and Remembrance Day deeply significant for us, the interest in 19th century labour reforms as celebrated by Labour Day and May Day has waned.”
– Mark McCrindle
Special events and festivals
Highlighting that Halloween may never achieve significant traction in Australia, just 2% of respondents rated it as the most meaningful to them, while 2 in 5 (41%) saw it as the least significant event of the year.
Mother’s Day was by far the most meaningful day, with nearly half of all respondents saying this day mattered most for them (48%). Sadly for the nation’s Dads, for every respondent who selected Father’s Day (5%), 19 said celebrating their Mum held the most meaning to them.
Similar to Anzac Day, our nation is certainly patriotic about our troops and the freedoms they have fought for, with 28% seeing Remembrance Day as the most important special occasion day of the year.
While National Sorry Day has only been around for 14 years, already 1 in 20 Australians see it as most meaningful to them – around the same amount who ranked Valentine’s Day as number 1. However, it has yet to achieve national importance, with the second highest number of “least meaningful” responses, after Halloween.
“In this Land of the Long Weekend, Australians still love a public holiday, however meaningful reflection and heartfelt celebration is not easily given. In Australia, Jesus, mums and our Diggers still hold a revered place as demonstrated by the strong meaning attached to Christmas Day, Mother’s Day, ANZAC Day and Remembrance Day compared to all other special days in the year.”
– Mark McCrindle
For media commentary contact us on 02 8824 3422 or at [email protected]
