Republic Day (Kazakhstan)

Republic Day (Kazakh: Республика күні, Respwblïka küni), observed on 16 December, is a public holiday in Kazakhstan, celebrating the independence of the country from the Soviet Union.

In the waning days of Soviet rule, individual republics of the Soviet Union sought greater autonomy. The Soviet Union agreed in early 1990 to give up its monopoly of political power. Following the lead of the Lithuanian SSR, the Russian SFSR and others, the Kazakh SSR declared its sovereignty on 25 October 1990, and Kazakhstan subsequently became independent on 16 December 1991 as the Soviet Union collapsed.