Boxing Day, celebrated on December 26, originates from Victorian-era Britain as a day when servants received "Christmas boxes" of money, gifts, or leftovers from employers. It also refers to the tradition of churches opening alms boxes to distribute charity to the poor. It has no connection to the sport of boxing.
Boxing Day is traditionally the day after Christmas day when wealthy people in the United Kingdom would give a box containing a gift to their servants.
While Boxing Day is most strongly associated with the UK, it's also officially recognised in several Commonwealth countries, including: Australia. Canada. New Zealand.
Contrary to popular belief, Boxing Day doesn't actually have anything to do with the sport of boxing. Its name is believed to come from Victorian times (the 1800s) when the rich used to box up presents to give to the poor, on the day after Christmas Day.
However, the best-known theory states that Boxing Day is named after the practice of wealthy aristocrats giving boxes and gifts to their servants one day after Christmas. Traditionally, servants would work on Christmas Day but were given the next day off to spend with their families.
What is Boxing Day Celebrated For? | Why is it Called Boxing Day?
Is Boxing Day a religious thing?
Boxing Day is also known as St Stephen's Day – Stephen was the first Christian martyr, stoned to death in c34 AD. Being a saint's day, it has charitable associations. Charitable boxes – collections of money – would have been given out at the church door to the needy.
Boxing Day, in Great Britain and some Commonwealth countries, particularly Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, holiday (December 26) on which servants, tradespeople, and the poor traditionally were presented with gifts.
In England the day is known as Boxing Day. The boxes refer to those in which alms were given to charity in medieval times. In Ireland, it is also known as Wren Day due to an association between Christ and the wren.
While there's no clear reason why the U.S. hasn't adopted Boxing Day as a national holiday, some speculate it's because America became an independent nation well before Britain established the day as an official holiday in 1871, according to Infoplease.
December 26. The feast of Saint Stephen, also known as boxing day. And a day of mummery. December 26, the day after Christmas, is the Feast of St Stephen, the first Christian martyr.
Early Boxing Day traditions emphasized charity, gratitude, and rest after the Christmas holiday. Churches opened alms boxes to distribute donations to the poor, and employers showed appreciation to workers. Common historical customs included: Giving food, money, or gifts to service workers.
Boxing evolved through the prizefights of the 16th - 18th-centuries, largely in Great Britain, to its modern forerunner in the mid-19th century, with the introduction of the Marquess of Queensberry Rules in 1867.
So what does happen on Boxing Day in Britain? Traditionally, it's a day for seeing the “other” set of parents or grandparents; for spending time with uncles, aunts and cousins; for playing board games and drinking mulled wine; for telling old family jokes and watching older James Bond movies.
No, Boxing Day is not only in the UK; it's a public holiday in many Commonwealth countries like Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, and while not always called Boxing Day, December 26th is also celebrated as St. Stephen's Day or the Second Day of Christmas in various European countries, maintaining similar traditions of charity or as a festive extension.
Despite the name, the holiday has nothing to do with the sport of boxing or returning boxes or presents. Britannica explains the origin of the holiday's name varies and some believe "it derived from the opening of alms boxes that had been placed in churches for the collection of donations to aid the poor."
Most retailers treat Boxing Day sales as "Black Friday Part 2." Same discount depth. Same urgency messaging. Same everything. But the customer walking into your store on Boxing Day is fundamentally different from the one on Black Friday.
Boxing Day gets its name from old traditions of giving "boxes" filled with gifts, money, or food to servants, tradespeople, and the poor the day after Christmas.
Boxing Day ( December 26th ) ...a day after Christmas Boxing Day is a holiday traditionally celebrated the day following Christmas Day, when servants and tradesman would receive gifts, known as a "Christmas box", from their bosses or employers, in the United Kingdom, Barbados, Canada, Hong Kong, Australia, Bermuda, New ...
Known in the United States as St Stephens Day, Boxing Day provides a day to recover from the excesses of Christmas in the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth countries, including Canada. Like the UK, Boxing Day in Canada provides families a chance to get together once again.
Seasons (1) A popular Christmas custom in Britain is "Boxing" on the feast of St. Stephen, December 26. Originating in medieval times, the priests would empty alms boxes in all churches on the day after Christmas and distribute the gifts to the poor.
Up until it became a public holiday in 1871, Boxing Day, in the UK, was more commonly known as St Stephen's Day or the Feast of St Stephen and still is in most of Europe. But confusingly, there is also another St Stephen's Day with no connection to the one formally acknowledged on 26th December.
This might sound like the start of a joke but, as legend has it, it's actually the beginning of Christmas in July in Australia. While this month is mid-summer for half the world, Australia is in the depths of winter and for many, that means it's time for tinsel, turkey and Yuletide tunes.
According to a survey of 64 major economies by human resources consulting firm Mercer LLC, India and Colombia have the most public holidays out of the countries studied, while Mexico has the least.
