National Day (; Yawm al watani) is celebrated on 2nd December each year in the United Arab Emirates. It marks the UAE's formal nationalisation from the British Protectorate Treaties which ended on 1 December 1971 and the eventual, federal unification of the seven emirates in 1971 which combined to form the modern-day country, headed by Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the federation's first president. Grand celebrations are held across the country to mark the event.