The 2026 Kwanzaa stamp is the 11th since 1997 in a series honoring the Pan-African holiday that is observed by millions of Americans from December 26 to January 1 each year.

Founded in the United States in 1966, a time of social upheaval, Kwanzaa was meant to help unify African Americans from a wide array of religious and cultural backgrounds. With its name derived from the Swahili phrase matunda ya kwanza, meaning “first fruits,” Kwanzaa draws on ancient and modern first-harvest festivities occurring across the African continent.

Each day of the holiday is dedicated to one of seven principles: Unity (Umoja); Self-Determination (Kujichagulia); Collective Work and Responsibility (Ujima); Cooperative Economics (Ujamaa); Purpose (Nia); Creativity (Kuumba); and Faith (Imani).

Kwanzaa is a time for remembering past hardships and contemplating how history can inform and impact future happiness, but the holiday also has a festive side, when families and communities may rejoice in the prospect of health, prosperity, and good luck in the coming year.

Since this was going to be the 11th Kwanzaa stamp, art director Antonio Alcalá hoped to feature art that would bring a fresh take on the celebration. He chose Cannaday Chapman for the job, having followed the artist’s work for many years and admiring its distinctive spirit.

For his part, Chapman decided to focus on the family aspect of Kwanzaa, not least because he’s a new father to a daughter. He also has fond childhood memories of celebrating the holiday with his family, including lighting the candles and wearing traditional clothing. Due to the small size of a stamp, it made sense to include just two people — and thus we have the first Kwanzaa stamp highlighting a father-daughter pair.

The stamp’s color scheme is another first. “I wanted to use colors that felt fresh and unexpected compared to the traditional Kwanzaa palette,” Chapman explains. “The lime green, pink, and yellow combination is intended to be a vibrant, updated take on the traditional green, red, and black.”

His artwork incorporates two of the seven Kwanzaa symbols: the daughter holds a gift (zawadi), while her father holds a unity cup (kikombe cha umoja). The other five are the candleholder (kinara), seven candles (mishumaa saba), crops (mazao), mat (mkeka), and corn (muhindi).

“My goal for Kwanzaa stamps is that they honor the celebration and the celebrants and appeal to the general public,” Alcalá says.

The Kwanzaa stamp is being issued as a Forever® stamp. This Forever stamp will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail® one-ounce price.

Collect all six issuances from the 2026 World Expo