Golden Week

Golden Week (ゴールデンウィーク Gōruden Wīku^?), often abbreviated to simply GW and also known as Ōgon Shūkan (黄金週間^?, "Golden Week") or "Large Consecutive Holiday" (大型連休 Ōgata Renkyū^?) is a Japanese term applied to the period containing the following public holidays:

• April 29
  • The Emperor's Birthday (天皇誕生日 Tennō Tanjōbi^?), until 1988^[1]
  • Greenery Day (みどりの日 Midori no Hi^?), from 1989 until 2006^[2]
  • Shōwa Day (昭和の日 Shōwa no Hi^?), from 2007^[2]
• May 3
  • Constitution Memorial Day (憲法記念日 Kenpō Kinenbi^?)
• May 4
  • Holiday^† (国民の休日 Kokumin no Kyūjitsu^?), from 1985 until 2006
  • Greenery Day (みどりの日 Midori no Hi^?), from 2007^[2]
• May 5
  • Children's Day (こどもの日 Kodomo no Hi^?), also customarily known as Boys' Day (端午の節句 Tango no Sekku^?).
  
  Many Japanese take paid time off on the intervening work days, but some companies also close down completely and give their employees time off. Golden Week is the longest vacation period of the year for many Japanese jobs. 
• Golden Week is an extremely popular time to travel.

Silver Week

Silver Week (シルバーウィーク Shirubā Wīku^?) is a new Japanese term applied to a string of consecutive holidays in September. In 2009, the term gained popularity^[1], referring to the unusual occurrence that year of a weekend followed by three Japanese public holidays in September. The holidays were:

• Respect for the Aged Day, third Monday of September
• Autumnal Equinox Day, astronomically determined, but usually September 23
• Kokumin no kyūjitsu, the day in between the two other holidays

The five-day break occurs in the following years:

• September 19 – September 23: 2009, 2015, 2026, 2037, 2043, 2054, 2071, 2099
• September 18 – September 22: 2032, 2049, 2060, 2077, 2088, 2094

Historians have identified Silver Week itself as a commercial invention of the 1950s film industry, keen to promote cinema attendance during the holiday by reference to the popularity of leisure pursuits during the better-established Golden Week^[5], yet another invention of the Japanese film industry.^[6]