Civics question 127 of 128
What is Memorial Day?
Official answer
- A holiday to honor soldiers who died in military service
Source: official USCIS question list for the 2025 version of the civics test. This site is independent and not affiliated with USCIS.
Background
Memorial Day is a holiday to honor soldiers who died in military service, and it falls on the last Monday in May. The observance began after the Civil War, when communities decorated the graves of the dead, and it was called Decoration Day for decades; Southern states kept separate observances well into the twentieth century. Congress fixed the current date in 1971, creating the three-day weekend that now marks the unofficial start of summer. Keep it distinct from Veterans Day, which the test asks about separately: Memorial Day is for those who died, while Veterans Day honors everyone who served, living or dead. Armed Forces Day, in the middle of May, honors those currently in uniform.
This background section is written by US Citizenship Test Practice to explain the civics fact. It is not part of the USCIS question list, and the official answer above is the one to give at the interview.
Where this question sits
It is part of Holidays, inside the Symbols And Holidays section of the test.