Bank holiday

A bank holiday is a national public holiday in the United Kingdom and the Crown Dependencies, and a colloquial term for a public holiday in the Republic of Ireland. In the United Kingdom, the term refers to all public holidays, be they set out in statute, declared by royal proclamation, or held by convention under common law. In the Republic of Ireland, there are some bank holidays which are not public holidays.

The term "bank holiday" refers to the fact that banking institutions typically close for business on such holidays, as they once used to do on certain saint's days.