Day of the Maroons
🇸🇷 Suriname
- Public Holiday
- Countrywide
- Fixed date
Overview
Day of the Maroons is a public holiday in Suriname, observed on 10 October. It honours the Maroons, the descendants of enslaved Africans who escaped plantations and formed independent communities in the country's interior, and it celebrates their history and culture.
What It Is
Day of the Maroons is observed each year on 10 October as a public holiday in Suriname. The day is devoted to recognising Maroon heritage, and Maroon communities and others across the country mark it with commemorations of Maroon history and culture. It is a day to acknowledge the place of Maroon peoples within Suriname's diverse society.
Why It Matters
Enslaved Africans in colonial Suriname escaped the plantations and established free communities in the rainforest interior, resisting recapture for generations. On 10 October 1760, the colonial authorities signed a peace treaty with the Ndyuka Maroons, recognising their freedom, and similar treaties followed with other groups. The holiday commemorates this struggle for liberty and the resilience of the communities that kept African-rooted languages, traditions and social structures alive in the face of slavery.
Countries Celebrating
1 country
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