Menstrual Hygiene Day
Next: May 28, 2027
Periods are nothing to hide.
The story
Where it comes from
Menstrual Hygiene Day began with a social media campaign. In May 2013 the Berlin-based non-profit WASH United ran a 28-day campaign called May #MENSTRAVAGANZA, and the warm response persuaded it and its partners to create a global day. The first Menstrual Hygiene Day, on 28 May 2014, drew 155 partner organisations and 89 pieces of media coverage. The date is a small code: May is the fifth month, a period often lasts about five days, and a cycle averages about 28 days.
How it's celebrated
Partners hold workshops, rallies, film screenings and talks, and media around the world publish stories about periods. Instead of a new theme each year, the movement now unites behind one long-term mission, 'Together for a #PeriodFriendlyWorld': a world without stigma, where everyone can get the products, education and health care they need. It is a good day to talk about periods openly.
Did you know
- WASH United still coordinates the day, and by 2025 it counted more than 1,300 partner organisations and over 25,000 pieces of media coverage.
- In Indonesia, the Manpower Act of 2003 says a worker in menstrual pain who tells her employer need not work on the first and second days of her period.
- Japan's Labour Standards Act of 1947 says an employer must not make a woman work on the days of her period if she finds work especially difficult and asks for leave.
Coming up next
- International Everest Day · May 29, 2027
- International Day of Potato · May 30, 2027
- Kaamatan · May 30, 2027
- World Parrot Day · May 31, 2027
- Global Day of Parents · June 1, 2027
- Children's Day · June 1, 2027