Observance guideSource-backed

Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan2026 · Date · History · Messages

Kazakhstan’s 2011 law created December 1 First President’s Day as a state holiday; 2022 legal changes removed it from the non-working holiday law and Government Resolution No. 956 retained December 1 on the separate official list of commemorative holiday dates.

Annual dateReviewed 2026-09-09Sensitive topic

About Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan

The Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan is marked on December 1. Under Kazakhstan’s current legal framework it remains listed as a commemorative holiday date, but it is no longer one of the national or state holidays that automatically create a non-working day.

The date refers to the December 1, 1991 presidential election in which Nursultan Nazarbayev was elected president.

Why Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan matters

The observance is part of Kazakhstan’s modern political history and its legal status has changed over time. Describing that change accurately is more useful than treating old public-holiday calendars as current.

Historical materials often emphasized Nazarbayev’s role in state-building; those assessments are political narratives and should be attributed rather than presented as neutral conclusions.

History of Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan’s 2011 Law No. 509-IV added December 1, Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, to the country’s state-holiday law.

The first celebration as a state public holiday took place on December 1, 2012.

In 2022, Kazakhstan amended the holidays law and removed First President’s Day from the list of national/state non-working holidays.

A November 2022 government resolution added December 1, Day of the First President, to the separate official list of holiday dates, preserving it as a commemorative date rather than a statutory non-working public holiday.

Institutional timeline

How the observance developed

This timeline uses documented milestones from reviewed sources. Missing stages are left out rather than guessed.

Establishment14 December 2011
Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan; law signed by President Nursultan Nazarbayev
Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 509-IV of 14 December 2011
First observance1 December 2012
First documented observance
Government and contemporaneous reporting identify 2012 as the first celebration after the late-2011 law.
Scope Change2022
First President’s Day was removed from the list of national/state holidays that create non-working days.
Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan · 2022 amendments to the Law on Holidays
Recognition28 November 2022
December 1, Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, was added to the separate official list of holiday dates.
Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan · Government Resolution No. 956

Origins & establishment

What the evidence establishes

Evidence & sources ↓

Confirmed institutional roles and milestones are shown first. Details that could not be established from the reviewed sources are listed separately below.

Proclaiming / establishing bodyParliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan; law signed by President Nursultan NazarbayevLaw No. 509-IV amended the holidays law to add December 1 as Day of the First President.

Original establishing instrument / decisionLaw of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 509-IV of 14 December 2011The law added Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan — December 1 — to Article 3.

Original instrument adoption / decision date14 December 2011The official legal record dates Law No. 509-IV to December 14, 2011.

First observance1 December 2012Government and contemporaneous reporting identify 2012 as the first celebration after the late-2011 law.

Why this exact date?1 December marks the 1 December 1991 presidential election in KazakhstanKazakhstan government material explicitly links the observance date to the 1991 election.

4 fields not established in reviewed sources

Originator / proposerThe reviewed legal sources establish the law and adopting bodies but do not identify one proposal author whose role should be treated as the sole originator.

Current facilitator / coordinatorNo single exclusive current facilitator is established for the commemorative date.

Former nameNo former official name is established in the reviewed legal sources.

Former dateThe date remained December 1 through the status change.

Later institutional actions

Later recognition, renaming, mergers or date changes are kept separate from original establishment.

Scope ChangeFirst President’s Day was removed from the list of national/state holidays that create non-working days.Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan · 2022 amendments to the Law on Holidays · 2022The current holidays law no longer lists December 1 among national or state holidays.

RecognitionDecember 1, Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, was added to the separate official list of holiday dates.Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan · Government Resolution No. 956 · 28 November 2022The Adilet record adds item 44-1 to the government list of holiday dates.

Source qualityHigh confidence

4 Primary institutional / legal1 Supporting context

View all sources ↓

Names

Also known as

Kazakhstan’s First President’s Day

How to Observe Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan

Read the current holiday law together with the separate government list of commemorative holiday dates so the present legal status is clear.

Study the December 1, 1991 election in the broader chronology of Kazakhstan’s independence and constitutional development.

Compare official historical narratives with independent scholarship while keeping factual legal status separate from political evaluation.

For workplace or travel planning, use the current official non-working holiday calendar rather than assuming December 1 is automatically a day off.

Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Facts

Fact 01

The observance date is December 1.

Fact 02

The date is tied to the December 1, 1991 presidential election.

Fact 03

A 2011 law created First President’s Day as a state holiday.

Fact 04

The first state-holiday edition was observed in 2012.

Fact 05

Since legal changes in 2022, December 1 remains a commemorative holiday date but is not one of Kazakhstan’s national/state non-working holidays.

Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Messages

May historical commemoration be approached with accurate dates, current law and room for readers to form their own views.

Classification

Topic and context

Civic, Remembrance & History →

Civic, Remembrance & History Remembrance Civic Law Rights

Accuracy notes

What this page does not assume

Keep the source-defined country, community, organizer or institutional scope; do not silently broaden it.
Do not treat the title alone as proof of government recognition or public-holiday status.
Do not add a creator, founding story or origin claim unless the supporting evidence establishes it.
Remembrance Civic Context Care.

Evidence

Evidence & sources

Source policy →

Sources used across the guide are gathered here. Labels show how each source supports the page, and contextual references are kept separate from primary evidence.

Source 01old.adilet.zan.kz

Adilet — current Law on Holidays (opens in a new tab)

Primary institutional / legalGuide sources

Source 02adilet.zan.kz

Adilet — current list of holiday dates (opens in a new tab)

Primary institutional / legalGuide sources

Source 03adilet.zan.kz

Adilet — Government Resolution No. 956 of 28 November 2022 (opens in a new tab)

Primary institutional / legalGuide sources

Source 04adilet.zan.kz

Adilet — Law No. 509-IV of 14 December 2011 (opens in a new tab)

Primary institutional / legalGuide sources

Source 05www.adilet.zan.kz

Adilet — 2011 law adding First President’s Day to the holidays law (opens in a new tab)

Observance record

Official Legal Information System

Source 06adilet.zan.kz

Adilet — current Law on Holidays in the Republic of Kazakhstan (opens in a new tab)

Observance record

Official Legal Information System

Source 07www.adilet.zan.kz

Adilet — current list of holiday dates in Kazakhstan (opens in a new tab)

Observance record

Official Legal Information System

Source 08www.gov.kz

Kazakhstan government portal — December 1 First President Day background (opens in a new tab)

Supporting context

Questions & connections

Understand it, compare it, then explore further

Start with the most common factual questions, then compare closely related observances and explore useful connections.

Reader questions

Frequently asked questions

When is Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan?

1 December The documented recurrence rule is: 1 December.

Does Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan fall on the same date every year?

Yes. It uses a fixed annual date unless stronger evidence changes the pattern.

Is Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan an official public holiday?

Within the reviewed scope, it is identified as Kazakhstan / official commemorative holiday date; no longer a non-working national/state public holiday under the current holidays law. That status is not automatically extended to other countries or jurisdictions.

Who established or recognizes Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan?

The reviewed sources identify Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan; law signed by President Nursultan Nazarbayev as the proclaiming or establishing body.

Is Day of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan international or country-specific?

This observance is specific to Kazakhstan. Its fuller verified scope is: Kazakhstan / official commemorative holiday date; no longer a non-working national/state public holiday under the current holidays law.

How is this page verified?

The factual information is checked against reviewed sources, including the date pattern, scope and institutional history. This page was checked on 2026-09-09.

Is First President’s Day still a public holiday in Kazakhstan?

It remains an official commemorative holiday date on December 1, but under the current holidays law it is not one of the national or state holidays that automatically create a non-working day.

Why is it on December 1?

The date marks the December 1, 1991 presidential election in which Nursultan Nazarbayev was elected president.

When was the observance created?

Kazakhstan enacted the establishing amendment in December 2011, and the first state-holiday edition was observed on December 1, 2012.

What changed in 2022?

The holiday was removed from the national/state non-working holiday law and then retained on a separate government list of commemorative holiday dates.

Same date