The list of Alabama state holidays clearly what's being celebrated on Jan. 15.

The third Monday in January, according to the listing, is a day set aside to recognize the birthdays of Robert E. Lee and Martin Luther King. Jr.

Alabama's combined holiday - listing the name of the Civil War general next to that of the slain civil rights leader - is one of only two in the country.

Alabama and Mississippi are the only states that combine the King and Lee holiday. Arkansas ended the practice last year, with Gov. Asa Hutchinson saying discontinuing the practice provided the state "an opportunity bridge divides." Arkansas did not create a separate holiday for Lee.

Efforts are currently underway in Mississippi to separate the two days. No such efforts are currently underway in Alabama.

Alabama and Mississippi have commemorated Lee's birthday since the 1800s and King's since 1983. The Lee/King holiday is one of three Confederate-related days on Alabama's official holiday calendar. - the state also marks Confederate Memorial Day on the fourth Monday in April and the birthday of former Confederate President Jefferson Davis on the first Monday in June.

Lee was born on Jan. 19, 1807; King was born on Jan. 15, 1929.

Efforts to designate a day to honor King began shortly after his April 4, 1968 assassination. It took until 1983 for Congress to pass the measure, however, with then-President Ronald Reagan signing the bill into law that year. The first official Martin Luther King Jr. Day was observed on the third Monday of January 1986 but was only recognized by 27 states.

In 2000, Utah became the last state to recognize MLK Day by name, the same year South Carolina became the final state to make Martin Luther King Jr. Day a paid holiday for employees.

While Alabama and Mississippi are the only states to combine Lee and King's day, the King holiday does go by different names. In Arizona, it's known as "Martin Luther King Jr./Civil Rights Day;" in Idaho, it's "Martin Luther King Jr./Idaho Human Rights Day;" and in New Hampshire it's "Martin Luther King Jr. Civil Rights Day."