NAIDOC Week

NAIDOC Week (/ˈneɪdɒk/ NAY-dok) is an Australian observance lasting from the first Sunday in July until the following Sunday. The acronym NAIDOC stands for National Aboriginal and Islanders Day Observance Committee. NAIDOC Week has its roots in the 1938 Day of Mourning, becoming a week-long event in 1975.

NAIDOC Week celebrates the history, culture, and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia. The week is observed not just by Indigenous Australian communities but also by government agencies, schools, local councils, and workplaces.

In 1984, NADOC (the forerunner of NAIDOC) requested that National Aboriginal Day be made a national public holiday to help celebrate and recognise the rich cultural history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia. There is no national public holiday in NAIDOC Week, but there have been calls by some Indigenous leaders to create one.