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What is Veterans Day? Origins, meaning and how Nov. 11 became a U.S. holiday

Educational Briefing · November 11, 2025

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Summary

Veterans Day is observed each Nov. 11 to honor U.S. armed service members. The date marks the 1918 armistice ending World War I; Congress acted in 1926 and 1938 to formalize observance, Congress expanded it in 1947 to honor all veterans, and in 1954 President Eisenhower approved the name change to "Veterans Day."

Speaker 1, presenter, opened the briefing by asking, "What is Veterans Day?" The program then explained that Veterans Day is observed each Nov. 11 to honor U.S. armed service members and that the date marks the armistice that ended World War I.

The briefing said the fighting that ended World War I stopped "at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" in 1918, giving the holiday its date. "The day isn't random and marks the end of World War 1," Speaker 6 stated, and Speaker 7 repeated the detail about the timing.

The presenters traced the holiday’s legal history: Speaker 8 noted that in 1926, the U.S. Congress passed a concurrent resolution asking the president to observe Nov. 11 with appropriate ceremonies. Speaker 3 said a congressional act in 1938 made Nov. 11 a legal holiday to be dedicated to world peace and known as Armistice Day. According to the briefing, in 1947 Congress expanded Armistice Day to include all veterans, and in 1954 President Eisenhower changed the name to Veterans Day.

Throughout the segment, multiple speakers closed by offering thanks to service members. "Thank you veterans for your service and sacrifice," Speaker 3 said, a line echoed by other presenters.

The program framed Veterans Day as an annual U.S. observance rooted in the armistice that ended World War I and later broadened by federal actions to honor all who have served. The transcript ends with brief, unrelated lines that do not change the holiday’s description.