All Souls' Day

American  

noun

1. a day of solemn prayer for all dead persons, observed by Roman Catholics and certain Anglicans, usually on November 2.

---

All Souls' Day British  

noun

1. RC Church a day of prayer (Nov 2) for the dead in purgatory

---

Etymology

Origin of All Souls' Day

First recorded in 1550–60

Example Sentences

However, some traditional religious feasts - including All Souls' Day - remain popular, and are marked by both believers and atheists alike.

From BBC • Oct. 20, 2023

This would almost always take place around November 2, which was All Souls' Day, "a time for honoring the dead."

From Salon • Oct. 31, 2022

Día de Muertos falls on Nov. 1 and 2 — which, not coincidentally, are All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day in Catholicism.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 25, 2021

Today is All Souls’ Day in the Christian tradition, the Day of the Dead in Mexico and, a bit less known, Plan Your Epitaph Day.

From New York Times • Nov. 2, 2015

And the day after, he told himself, he and Julie would go for All Souls’ Day to pray for Papi and Mami.

From "The Dead and the Gone" by Susan Beth Pfeffer