National Spouses Day — 26 January

The origin of National Spouses Day is unknown, but it is assumed that a married person came up with the idea. Some say it originated from the establishment of Military Spouses Day which was created in 1984, but only started becoming popular around the millennium. The day is celebrated as a national holiday on January 26 officially in the USA and UK, but many other countries celebrate it too.

The foundation of this day derives from the idea of showing thanks to your partner. Some workplaces even encourage couples to go on leave to celebrate the day and spend some quality time with their spouses.

Unlike Valentine’s day, this is a day created for giving time rather than gifts and celebrating your spouse. Due to this, couples are encouraged to spend alone time and to reflect on their journey so far. Scientific research has shown that twenty minutes of holding hands with your partner or cuddling even, can release hormones that leaves you both happier and feeling good. In turn, this relieves stress and makes you feel closer to one another.

National Spouse Day has become well known for igniting many media sources to survey couples’ behaviors and relationships and has managed to find out many interesting facts. This includes the fact that two million people get married every year in the U.S alone. Also, that 17% of them have previously been married.

Many couples have expressed feeling as though life can get too busy, and so a day like National Spouse Day is key to revitalizing relationships at the start of the new year. Others feel that your spouse should be celebrated everyday, but that an official day to commemorate your husband or wife is also seen as an honor.