День России Russia Day
Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin on Russia Day 2001
Official name	День принятия Декларации о государственном суверенитете Российской Федерации Day of adoption of the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian Federation День России Russia Day
Observed by	Russian Federation
Type	National Day
Date	June 12
Related to	Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian Federation

Russia Day ([День России, Den' Rossii] Error: ((Lang-xx)): text has italic markup (help)) is the national holiday of the Russian Federation, celebrated on June 12. It has been celebrated every year since 1992.^[1] The First Congress of People's Deputies of the Russian Federation adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic on June 12, 1990.

History

The idea of the declaration was born in the Democratic Russia movement, in which proponents of evolutionary market reform and strong statehood based on Russia's national interests started opposing the Communist monopoly on power. In addition, by the late 1980s, society had begun to doubt the Politburo's ability to carry out meaningful socio-economic reforms.

The creation of the post of the President of the Russian Federation and the adoption of the new Russian Constitution to reflect the new political reality, along with the national flag, anthem and emblem of the Russian Federation, were major landmarks in the consolidation of Russian statehood. The country's new name- the Russian Federation (Russia)- was adopted on December 25, 1991. The day when the declaration was adopted- June 12 - was proclaimed as national holiday by Supreme Soviet of Russia in 1992,^[1] and again proclaimed Russia's national holiday by the Russian President's decree of June 2, 1994. Under the presidential decree of June 16, 1998, it was called the Day of Russia. In 2002, the new Labor Code gave official seal to this title.

The Russians' attitude towards this holiday is ambivalent. Many see adoption of Declaration of state sovereignty as a negative historic event which accelerated dissolution of the Soviet Union.^[2]

Customs

People may attend concerts and fireworks that take place in many cities throughout the country. Prominent Russian writers, scientists and humanitarian workers receive State Awards from the President of Russia on this day. Most public offices and schools are closed on June 12. If the day falls on a weekend, the public holiday shifts to the following Monday. Public transport schedules may vary depending on events taking place in each city on the holiday.