The Day of the Covenant is the day when Bahá'ís celebrate the appointment of `Abdu'l-Bahá as the Centre of Baha'u'llah's Covenant. It occurs yearly on November 26. `Abdu'l-Bahá had stated that since May 23 was also the day that the Báb declared his mission, and should be exclusively associated with him, that that day should under no circumstances be celebrated as his day of birth. However, as the Bahá'ís begged for a day to be celebrated as `Abdu'l-Bahá's birthday, he gave them November 26, 180 days after the ascension of Bahá'u'lláh, to be observed as the day of the appointment of the Centre of the Covenant. The holiday was originally known as the Jashn-i-A’zam in Persian (The Greatest Festival), because `Abdu'l-Bahá was known as the Greatest Branch; in the West, the holiday became known