Pascua Florida Day

Pascua Florida Day

On or near April 2

Although no one knows for certain the date on which Ponce de León (1460-1521) landed at Florida in 1513, it is widely believed that he first stepped ashore somewhere between St. Augustine and the mouth of the St. Johns River on April 2. He named the land Pascua Florida because it was Eastertime. Pascua is a Spanish word meaning "Easter," and Florida means "flowering" or "full of flowers." (In Scotland and northern England, another name for Easter was Pasch Day; among Orthodox Christians it is called Pascha.)
The Florida state legislature designated April 2 Florida State Day in 1953, but when it falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the holiday is observed on the preceding Friday or the following Monday. The week ending on April 2 is known as Pascua Florida Week, a time when both school children and adults are encouraged to attend special programs devoted to the area's discovery and history.

SOURCES:
AnnivHol-2000, p. 56
DictDays-1988, p. 87