The Complete Guide to November's Obscure Holidays
November moves from Halloween's aftermath straight into Thanksgiving, with genuine institutional weight along the way — World Toilet Day is an official UN observance, Guy Fawkes Day marks a real 1605 conspiracy, and Beaujolais Nouveau Day releases at precisely 12:01 AM on the third Thursday every year.
This guide walks through all 62, day by day, with a bit of history or context for each one and a link to the full write-up — complete fun facts, ways to celebrate, and sourcing — on its own page.
Why does November have so many obscure holidays?
A striking number of November's holidays are anchored to exact historical dates and events — Tutankhamun's Tomb Discovery Day, Mickey Mouse's 1928 debut, Mariner 4's 1964 Mars flyby, AT&T's 1963 Touch-Tone launch. The month also builds directly toward Thanksgiving, with a genuine cluster of dessert, bread, and pie holidays landing in the final two weeks.
How to use this guide
Holidays are grouped by date below. Each entry gets a short original write-up — not a repeat of the fact sheet — plus a link to the full holiday page if you want the deeper dive: complete fun facts, ways to celebrate, and sourcing.
November 1
✍️ National Author’s Day
First proposed in 1928 by Nellie Verne Burt McPherson, a member of a small Illinois women's club, after she started corresponding directly with author Irving Bacheller. Full holiday page →
🍤 National Deep Fried Clams Day
Credited to Lawrence “Chubby” Woodman of Woodman's in Essex, Massachusetts, who reportedly invented the dish in 1916. Full holiday page →
November 2
🥚 Deviled Egg Day
The word “deviled” has described spicy or pungent food since the 18th century. A close precursor was already a popular appetizer in ancient Rome. Full holiday page →
⭕ Look for Circles Day
The wheel, arguably humanity's single most transformative circular invention, dates back to at least 3500 BCE. Full holiday page →
November 3
🙄 Cliché Day
The word itself comes from French printing, originally describing a stereotype plate used to print the same image or text repeatedly. Full holiday page →
🥪 National Sandwich Day
Marks John Montagu's birthday, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, who supposedly requested meat between two slices of bread so he wouldn't have to leave a card game to eat. Full holiday page →
November 4
🤔 Common Sense Day
Genuinely lacks any formal recognition or documented origin, unlike most holidays on this calendar. Thomas Paine's 1776 pamphlet remains the most famous work to carry the phrase in its title. Full holiday page →
🍬 National Candy Day
Timed right after Halloween, when candy is already top of mind. The average American reportedly eats about 25 pounds of candy a year. Full holiday page →
November 5
🏈 American Football Day
Walter Camp, often called the “Father of American Football,” introduced foundational rule changes in the late 19th century, including the line of scrimmage and the system of downs. Full holiday page →
🎆 Guy Fawkes Day
Marks the failed 1605 Gunpowder Plot, when Fawkes was caught guarding explosives beneath Parliament before he could detonate them. Full holiday page →
November 6
🧀 National Nachos Day
Invented in 1943 by Ignacio “Nacho” Anaya, a maître d' at the Victory Club in Piedras Negras, Mexico — originally named “Nachos especiales” after its creator. Full holiday page →
🎷 Saxophone Day
Marks Adolphe Sax's birthday. Despite typically being made of brass, the saxophone is technically a woodwind instrument, since it produces sound through a single-reed mouthpiece like a clarinet. Full holiday page →
November 7
🍫 Bittersweet Chocolate with Almonds Day
Bittersweet chocolate typically runs 60 to 80% cocoa solids or higher. Nuts and chocolate have been paired since early Mesoamerican chocolate drinks. Full holiday page →
🐻 Hug a Bear Day
The most expensive teddy bear ever sold, a Steiff “Louis Vuitton” bear, fetched $2.1 million at auction in 2000. Full holiday page →
November 8
🦴 International Radiography Day
Marks Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen's 1895 discovery of X-rays, and his very first X-ray image was of his own wife's hand, clearly showing her bones and wedding ring. Full holiday page →
☕ National Cappuccino Day
The name comes from the Capuchin friars, whose brown habits reportedly resembled the drink's color. Full holiday page →
November 9
🎨 Go to an Art Museum Day
The Louvre remains the world's most visited art museum by a wide margin. Florence's Uffizi Gallery, established in 1581, is one of the oldest museums still operating today. Full holiday page →
🗣️ International Tongue Twister Day
MIT researchers once identified “Pad kid poured curd pulled cold” as potentially the hardest tongue twister in English to say quickly. Full holiday page →
November 10
💙 Forget-Me-Not Day
The flower's name traces to the German “Vergissmeinnicht,” tied to a medieval legend about a knight who drowned retrieving the flowers for his beloved. Full holiday page →
🧁 Vanilla Cupcake Day
The earliest known “cup cake” recipe appears in Amelia Simmons's 1796 cookbook “American Cookery.” Full holiday page →
November 11
🍨 National Sundae Day
Both Ithaca, New York and Two Rivers, Wisconsin claim to have invented the sundae in the late 19th century. The name likely emerged as a workaround for “blue laws” that banned selling ice cream sodas on Sundays. Full holiday page →
🕊️ Origami Day
The date ties to two things at once: the approximate publication of “Senbazuru Orikata,” the first known dedicated origami instruction book from 1797, and Sadako Sasaki's story of a thousand paper cranes. Full holiday page →
November 12
🍹 Happy Hour Day
The term actually originated in the U.S. Navy during World War I, referring to scheduled entertainment time for sailors. Full holiday page →
🍕 National Pizza with the Works Except Anchovies Day
Most pizzerias just call this a “Supreme” or “Deluxe” pizza. The specific anchovy exclusion nods to how polarizing the topping is. Full holiday page →
November 13
🍮 Indian Pudding Day
The “Indian” in the name refers to cornmeal, historically called “Indian meal” by colonists adapting British hasty pudding with what was locally available. Full holiday page →
❤️ Sadie Hawkins Day
Traces to a specific comic strip: Al Capp's “Li'l Abner,” which introduced the concept on November 13, 1937. Full holiday page →
November 14
🥒 National Pickle Day
Pickled cucumbers date back to Mesopotamia as early as 2030 BC. During World War II, the U.S. government actually rationed pickles, believing they helped combat scurvy. Full holiday page →
🥑 Spicy Guacamole Day
The word “guacamole” comes from the Aztec Nahuatl “ahuacamolli,” meaning “avocado sauce.” Full holiday page →
November 15
🧊 Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day
Deliberately timed just before Thanksgiving, to clear space ahead of the holiday cooking rush. Full holiday page →
🍪 National Spicy Hermit Cookie Day
The “hermit” name is genuinely debated — some trace it to the cookie's ability to keep well for long periods, others to its plain, unassuming look. Full holiday page →
November 16
🐻 Have a Party with Your Bear Day
The first teddy bears were created almost simultaneously and independently by Morris Michtom in the US and Richard Steiff in Germany. Full holiday page →
🍔 National Fast Food Day
White Castle, founded in 1921, is widely considered America's first fast-food chain. Full holiday page →
November 17
🍞 Homemade Bread Day
Bread is one of the oldest prepared foods on record, with archaeological evidence suggesting it existed as far back as 30,000 years ago. Full holiday page →
🍯 National Baklava Day
The earliest known layered dessert resembling baklava traces back to ancient Assyria, around the 8th century BCE. Some recipes call for as many as 40 ultra-thin layers of filo dough. Full holiday page →
November 18
🐭 Mickey Mouse Day
Marks his official 1928 debut in “Steamboat Willie.” Walt Disney originally wanted to name him Mortimer Mouse. Full holiday page →
☎️ Push-button Phone Day
Marks AT&T's 1963 commercial Touch-Tone launch, which debuted first in just two Pennsylvania cities. Full holiday page →
November 19
🍷 Beaujolais Nouveau Day
Released at exactly 12:01 AM on the third Thursday of November each year, sparking the famous slogan “Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivé!” Full holiday page →
😠 Have a Bad Day Day
Functions as a deliberate ironic counterpoint to the standard “have a good day” well-wish. Full holiday page →
🚽 World Toilet Day
Formally recognized by the UN General Assembly in 2013, after originating in 2001 through the World Toilet Organization. Full holiday page →
November 20
🤪 Absurdity Day
The holiday's defining trait, fittingly, is a complete lack of any documented origin or formal recognition. Full holiday page →
🥜 National Peanut Butter Fudge Day
Many recipes are genuinely “no-bake,” relying entirely on properly cooking and cooling a sugar syrup rather than an oven. Full holiday page →
November 21
🍪 National Gingerbread Cookie Day
Ginger reached Europe as a highly valued spice brought back by Crusaders. Queen Elizabeth I is often credited with creating the first gingerbread “men.” Full holiday page →
👋 World Hello Day
Founded in 1973 by two brothers, directly in response to the Yom Kippur War between Egypt and Israel. Full holiday page →
November 22
🎶 National Jukebox Day
The first coin-operated phonograph, the jukebox's direct precursor, was installed by Louis Glass in 1889 at a San Francisco saloon. Full holiday page →
🎶 Saint Cecilia's Day
Honors Saint Cecilia, a 3rd-century Roman martyr who became associated with music after an account describing her singing “in her heart to the Lord” during her own forced wedding. Full holiday page →
November 23
🔢 Fibonacci Day
The date, 11/23, is chosen because it visually spells out the sequence's first four numbers: 1, 1, 2, 3. Full holiday page →
☕ National Espresso Day
The word “espresso” means “expressed” or “pressed out” in Italian, describing exactly how it's made. Full holiday page →
November 24
⭐ Celebrate Your Unique Talent Day
Research consistently shows that even innate aptitude still requires deliberate, sustained practice to fully develop. Full holiday page →
🐟 National Sardines Day
Named after the Mediterranean island of Sardinia, where they were historically abundant. Full holiday page →
November 25
🍨 National Parfait Day
The word literally means “perfect” in French. Traditional French parfaits are actually a frozen egg-yolk-and-cream dessert, closer to a mousse than the layered version most Americans picture. Full holiday page →
👒 Saint Catherine's Day
In France, unmarried women turning 25 traditionally become “Catherinettes,” wearing elaborate green and yellow hats to mark the occasion. Full holiday page →
November 26
🍰 National Cake Day
The word “cake” traces to the Old Norse “kaka.” Ancient Egyptians are often credited among the first to demonstrate real baking technique. Full holiday page →
🦃 Thanksgiving Day
The original 1621 feast between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag reportedly lasted three days, and turkey wasn't necessarily the star — venison and seafood were just as prominent. Sarah Josepha Hale campaigned for 36 years before Thanksgiving finally became a national holiday. Full holiday page →
🏺👑 Tutankhamun's Tomb Discovery Day
Marks the exact 1922 moment Howard Carter peered into the antechamber and, asked if he could see anything, reportedly replied “Yes, wonderful things!” The tomb was discovered almost entirely intact, a genuine rarity. Full holiday page →
November 27
🎈 First Macy's Christmas Parade Day
The original 1924 parade featured live animals from the Central Park Zoo, walking a six-mile route. The now-iconic giant balloons didn't appear until three years later, in 1927. Full holiday page →
🥧 National Bavarian Cream Pie Day
Despite the name referencing Bavaria, the dessert is widely credited to French chef Marie-Antoine Carême, a pioneer of early 19th-century haute cuisine. Full holiday page →
November 28
🍞 National French Toast Day
The earliest known version appears in the 4th-century Roman cookbook “Apicius,” under the name “aliter dulcia.” In France it's called “pain perdu” — “lost bread.” Full holiday page →
🚀 Red Planet Day
Marks the 1964 launch of Mariner 4, the first spacecraft to successfully fly by Mars, transmitting 21 close-up images back to Earth. Full holiday page →
November 29
📧 Electronic Greetings Day
The very first email was sent by Ray Tomlinson in 1971. E-cards specifically took off in the mid-1990s, as home internet access became widespread. Full holiday page →
🕺💃 Square Dance Day
The dance traces back to a blend of European folk traditions, including French quadrilles and English country dances. Wyoming was the first state to adopt it as an official state dance, in 1955. Full holiday page →
November 30
🔒 Computer Security Day
Launched in 1988 by the Washington, D.C. chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery — the same year as the Morris Worm, one of the first major internet worms. Full holiday page →
🍮 National Mousse Day
The word “mousse” is simply French for “foam,” a literal description of its airy texture. Full holiday page →
Frequently asked questions
How many obscure holidays are there in November?
62, spread across all 30 days — including Beaujolais Nouveau Day, which moves each year to the third Thursday of the month.
What's the most historically significant holiday in November?
Tutankhamun's Tomb Discovery Day (Nov 26) marks Howard Carter's actual 1922 discovery — one of the best-documented archaeological finds in history, right down to his famous exchange with Lord Carnarvon.
Are there a lot of Thanksgiving-adjacent holidays in November?
Yes — National Cake Day, National Bavarian Cream Pie Day, National French Toast Day, and Thanksgiving itself all land within days of each other in the last week of the month.
Where can I find the full history and fun facts for each holiday?
Every holiday name in this guide links to its own dedicated page with a longer write-up, sourced fun facts, and ideas for how to celebrate.
About this guide
This guide is part of the Obscure Holiday Calendar project — the same database that powers the iOS and Android apps and the individual holiday pages on this site. It exists to give a single, readable overview of an entire month at once, instead of requiring 62 separate page visits.