Every year after the first world war, the Red Cross of Czechoslovakia has set up a three-day during Easter "Red Cross truce", to carry forward the Red Cross humanitarian thought, at the same time, combined with national Red Cross business aspects such as health, welfare, child welfare propaganda activities. The initiative has been widely response. In 1921, the 10th international conference of the Red Cross in Geneva, Switzerland, the resolution to the national Red Cross recommends the practice of the Red Cross organization of the Red Cross truce of Czechoslovakia. Since then, the 11th and 14th, 15th and the 16th international conference of the Red Cross to sure the armistice day of the Red Cross for many times, makes the armistice day become common practice of the Red Cross.

After the second world war, the 19th the council was held in 1946, the international Red Cross in view of the chapter, the common organization the armistice day activities of the Red Cross, but the date of each are not identical, indicating association secretariat study to determine a fixed day for the international Red Cross. In 1948, the international federation of Red Cross executive committee recommendations to the international federation of Red Cross founder Henry dunant's birthday on May 8, for the global unification of the Red Cross. That same year, 20 times the international federation of Red Cross council was held in Stockholm, Sweden, approved the proposal. Since then, on May 8, officially became the world Red Cross day.

In 1984, due to the red crescent of Muslim countries, world Red Cross day officially changed its name to "world Red Cross and red crescent day".

一战结束后，捷克斯洛伐克红十字会首倡每年在复活节期间设立为期3天的“红十字休战日”，以弘扬红十字会的人道思想，同时结合红十字会业务开展全国性的卫生、救济、儿童福利等方面的宣传活动。该倡议得到了广泛的响应。1921年，第10届国际红十字大会在瑞士日内瓦召开，决议向各国红十字会推荐捷克斯洛伐克红十字会组织红十字休战日的做法。此后，第11届、第14届、第15届、第16届国际红十字大会多次对红十字休战日进行了肯定，使得红十字休战日成为普遍的做法。

二战结束后，第19次国际红十字会理事会于1946年举行，鉴于各国分会虽然普遍组织红十字休战日活动，但是日期各不相同的情况，指示协会秘书处研究确定一个固定的日子为国际红十字日。1948年，国际红十字会执行委员会建议以国际红十字会创始人亨利·杜南的生日5月8日为全球统一的红十字日。同年，第20次国际红十字会理事会在瑞典斯德哥尔摩举行，批准了这一建议。从此，5月8日正式成为世界红十字日。

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1984年，由于不断有穆斯林国家的红新月会加入，世界红十字日正式更名为“世界红十字和红新月日”。