Boxing Day | Gentle Bedtime Reading For Sleep

Welcome to the I Can't Sleep Podcast,

Where I help you drift off one fact at a time.

I'm your host,

Benjamin Boster,

And today's episode is about Boxing Day.

Boxing Day,

Also known as Offering Day,

Is a holiday celebrated on the 26th of December,

The day after Christmas Day.

Boxing Day was once a day to donate gifts to those in need,

But it has evolved to become a part of Christmas festivities.

It originated in the United Kingdom and is celebrated in several Commonwealth nations.

The attached bank holiday or public holiday may take place on the 27th or 28th of December,

If necessary,

To ensure it falls on a weekday.

Boxing Day is also concurrent with the Christian festival St.

Stephen's Day.

In parts of Europe,

Such as East Spain,

The Czech Republic,

Germany,

Austria,

Hungary,

The Netherlands,

Italy,

Poland,

Slovakia,

Slovenia,

Croatia,

Denmark,

Finland,

Romania,

Sweden,

Belgium,

Norway,

Latvia,

And Ireland,

The 26th of December is St.

Stephen's Day,

Which is considered the second day of Christmas.

There are competing theories for the origins of the term,

None of which is definitive.

The European tradition of giving money and other gifts to those in need,

Or in service positions,

Has been dated to the Middle Ages,

But the exact origin is unknown.

It may refer to the alms box placed in the narthex of Christian churches to collect donations for the poor.

The tradition may come from a custom in the late Roman and early Christian era wherein alms boxes placed in churches were used to collect special offerings tied to the feast of St.

Stephen,

Which in the Western Christian churches falls on the same day as Boxing Day,

The second day of Christmas tide.

On this day it is customary in some locations for the alms boxes to be opened and distributed to the poor.

The Oxford English Dictionary gives the earliest attestation from Britain in 1743,

Defining it as the day after Christmas Day,

And saying,

Traditionally on this day,

Tradespeople,

Employees,

Etc.

,

Would receive presents or gratuities,

A Christmas box,

From their customers or employers.

The term Christmas box dates back to the 17th century,

And among other things meant a present or gratuity given at Christmas.

In Great Britain,

Usually confined to gratuities given to those who are supposed to have a vague claim upon the donor,

For services rendered to him as one of the general public by whom they are employed and paid,

Or as a customer of their legal employer.

The undefined theory being that as they have done offices for this person,

For which he has not directly paid them,

Some direct acknowledgement is becoming at Christmas.

In Britain,

It was a custom for tradesmen to collect Christmas boxes of money or presents on the first weekday after Christmas,

As thanks for good service throughout the year.

This is mentioned in Samuel Pepe's diary entry for the 19th of December 1663.

This custom is linked to an older British tradition in which the servants of the wealthy were allowed the next day to visit their families,

Since they would have had to serve their masters on Christmas Day.

The employers would give each servant a box to take home containing gifts,

Bonuses,

And sometimes leftover food.

Until the late 20th century,

There continued to be a tradition among many in the UK to give a Christmas gift,

Usually cash,

To vendors,

Although not on Boxing Day,

As many would not work on that day.

St.

Stephen's Day,

A religious holiday,

Also falls on the 26th of December.

In the United Kingdom,

Boxing Day could not fall on Sunday the 26th of December.

Instead,

Boxing Day would be celebrated on Monday the 27th of December,

With the preceding Sunday called Christmas Sunday.

This rule was independent of the rule of bank holidays being taken in lieu.

Over time,

Sunday the 26th of December increasingly became referred to as Boxing Day.

Unlike the contemporary understanding of Boxing Day itself,

The associated bank holiday or public holiday always falls on a weekday.

When December 25th falls on a Saturday and December 26th falls on a Sunday,

The Christmas Day substitute holiday is observed on Monday December 27th,

With the Boxing Day substitute holiday observed on Tuesday December 28th.

When Christmas Day is a Sunday,

The Boxing Day holiday is still observed on Monday December 26th,

With the substitute holiday for Christmas Day observed on Tuesday December 27th.

The Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971,

Which regulates UK bank holidays,

Does not officially name the December 26th bank holiday as Boxing Day,

But states that it falls on December 26th,

If it be not a Sunday.

In Australia,

Boxing Day is a public holiday in all jurisdictions except the state of South Australia,

Where a public holiday known as Proclamation Day is celebrated on the first weekday after Christmas Day,

Or the Christmas Day holiday.

Both the Boxing Day Test Cricket match held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground and the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race begin on Boxing Day.

In Canada,

Boxing Day is a federal statutory holiday for employees of federally regulated industries or workplaces.

It is also recognized as a statutory holiday in the province of Ontario.

In New Brunswick,

Boxing Day is a holiday listed as a prescribed day of rest in the province's Days of Rest Act,

But it is not a statutory holiday because it is not classified as a paid public holiday under New Brunswick's Employment Standards Act.

In Hong Kong,

Despite the transfer of sovereignty from the UK to China in 1997,

Boxing Day is a general holiday as the first weekday after Christmas.

Starting in 2024,

Boxing Day became a statutory holiday in the territory.

In Indonesia,

Boxing Day is not a public holiday,

But since 2023 was included as a joint holiday.

In Ireland,

When the entire island was part of the United Kingdom,

The Bank Holidays Act 1871 established December 26th as a bank holiday.

The day is referred to as St.

Stephen's Day in most of Ireland and as Boxing Day in most of Ulster,

Especially in Northern Ireland and County Donegal.

In New Zealand,

Boxing Day is a statutory holiday.

On these holidays,

People who must work receive one and a half times their salaries,

And a day in lieu is provided to employees who work.

In Nigeria,

Boxing Day is a public holiday for working people and students.

When it falls on a Saturday or Sunday,

There is always a holiday on the following Monday.

In Scotland,

Boxing Day has been specified as an additional bank holiday since 1974 by Royal Proclamation under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971.

In Singapore,

Boxing Day was a public holiday for working people and students.

When it fell on a Saturday or Sunday,

There was a holiday on the following Monday.

However,

Boxing Day is no longer a public holiday.

In South Africa,

December 26th is the Day of Goodwill,

A public holiday.

In Trinidad and Tobago,

Boxing Day is a public holiday.

In the UK,

Outside Scotland,

December 26th,

Unless it is a Sunday,

Has been a bank holiday since 1871.

When December 26th falls on a Saturday,

The associated public holiday is on the following Monday,

December 28th.

When December 26th falls on a Sunday,

The public holiday is the following Tuesday,

December 28th.

With the substitute day for Christmas Day being observed on the Monday.

The same practice is observed in Canada.

In the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda,

The costume Gombe dancers perform throughout the mid-Atlantic island on Boxing Day,

A tradition believed to date back to the 18th century,

When slaves were permitted to gather at Christmas.

In Massachusetts,

U.

S.

Governor William F.

Weld declared in 1996 that every December 26th is Boxing Day,

In response to the efforts of a coalition of British citizens to transport the English tradition to the United States,

But not an employee holiday.

The holiday is otherwise not widely celebrated in the United States.

In the United Kingdom,

Canada,

Australia,

New Zealand,

And Trinidad and Tobago,

Boxing Day is a popular shopping holiday.

Boxing Day sales are common,

And shops often allow dramatic price reductions.

For many merchants,

Boxing Day has become the day of the year with the greatest revenue.

In the UK,

It was estimated in 2009 that up to 12 million shoppers appeared at the sales,

A rise of almost 20% compared to 2008,

Although this was also affected by the fact that the VAT was about to revert to 17.

5% from January 1,

Following the temporary reduction to 15%.

Many retailers open very early,

Typically 5 a.

M.

Or even earlier,

And offer doorbuster deals and loss leaders to draw people to their stores.

It is not uncommon for long queues to form early in the morning of December 26,

Hours before the opening of shops holding the big sales,

Especially at big box consumer electronics retailers.

Many stores have a limited quantity of big draw or deeply discounted items.

Because of the shoulder-to-shoulder crowds,

Many choose to stay at home and avoid the hectic shopping experience.

Local media often covers the event,

Mentioning how early the shoppers began queuing up,

And showing videos of shoppers queuing and later leaving with their purchased items.

Many retailers have implemented practices aimed at managing large numbers of shoppers.

They may limit entrances,

Restrict the number of patrons in a store at a time,

Provide tickets to people at the head of the queue to guarantee them a hot ticket item,

Or canvass queued-up shoppers to inform them of inventory limitations.

In some areas of Canada,

Particularly in Atlantic Canada and parts of Northern Ontario,

Most retailers are prohibited from opening on Boxing Day,

Either by provincial law or by municipal by-law,

Or by informal agreement among major retailers to provide a day of relaxation following Christmas Day.

In these areas,

Sales otherwise scheduled for December 26 are moved to the 27th.

The City Council of Greater Sudbury,

Ontario,

Which was the largest city in Canada to maintain this restriction as of the early 2010s,

Formally repealed its store hours by-law on December 9,

2014.

While Boxing Day is December 26,

Many retailers run the sales for several days before or after December 26,

Often up to New Year's Eve,

Branding it as Boxing Week.

Notably,

In the recession of late 2008,

A record number of retailers held early promotions because of the weak economy.

In 2009,

Many retailers with both online and high-street stores launched their online sales on Christmas Eve and their high-street sales on Boxing Day.

In terms of seasonal or holiday shopping traditions,

Boxing Day sales have been compared to the U.

S.

Phenomenon of Black Friday sales,

Black Friday being the Friday following the American Thanksgiving holiday in late November.

In the late 2000s,

When the Canadian and United States dollars were near parity,

Many Canadian retailers began to hold Black Friday promotions in an effort to discourage shoppers from crossing the border to visit the United States stores.

This may have been a contributory factor since 2013 in a relative decline of traditional Canadian Boxing Day sales when compared to sales on Black Friday.

The traditional Boxing Day sales in the United Kingdom were never as large an event as the Black Friday sales are in the United States.

However,

Many British retailers began to see an opportunity to import the Black Friday tradition into the UK,

Not to replace Boxing Day sales,

But as an addition to their overall seasonal promotions.

However,

Black Friday and Boxing Day are close enough together that spending on one sale was likely to affect spending on the other.

Ultimately,

The result was a marked decline in traditional Boxing Day sales in the UK.

The change was initially facilitated,

Although not necessarily by design,

By U.

S.

-owned retailers such as Amazon and Asda,

Then a subsidiary of U.

S.

-based Walmart.

This phenomenon was furthered by a general decline in traditional high-street shopping and a growing online marketplace,

Which is more international by nature.

This led,

In 2015,

To greater November retail sales in the UK than in December for the first time.

In 2019,

A retail analysis firm estimated that there was a 9.

8% drop in British store traffic on Boxing Day in comparison to 2018,

The largest year-over-year drop since 2010,

Citing several factors such as the weather,

The increased prominence of online shopping,

Uncertainties in the wake of the general election,

And the growing prominence of Black Friday sales.

Boxing Day sales are not a prominent tradition in the United States,

Although many retailers often begin after-Christmas sales that day.

It is typically the earliest starting day after Christmas for people to return unwanted gifts for exchanges or refunds and to redeem gift cards.

In the United Kingdom,

It is traditional for the home nation's major football leagues,

Including most prominently the Premier League,

Scottish Premiership,

And NIFL Premiership,

To hold a full program of fixtures on Boxing Day.

Originally,

Matches on Boxing Day were played against local rivals so that teams and their fans would not have to travel long distances to away games on the day after Christmas.

The 2022 Premier League Boxing Day fixtures saw the return of domestic top-flight football for the 2022-2023 Premier League season following the six-week break for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

In Italy,

Boxing Day football was played for the first time in the 2018-19 Series A season.

The experiment was successful,

With Italian stadiums 69% full on average,

More than any other match day in December 2018.

In Rugby League,

Festive fixtures were a staple of the traditional winter season.

Since the transition to a summer season in the 1990s,

No formal fixtures are now arranged on Boxing Day,

But some clubs,

Such as Wakefield Trinity,

Arrange a traditional local derby-friendly fixture instead.

Since 1980,

The Australian cricket team has traditionally opened one of the test matches of its summer season on Boxing Day at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

While several test matches had occasionally been held at the MCG around Boxing Day,

It was not until 1980 that the concept was formalized by the Australian Cricket Board.

The Sydney to Hobart yacht race is also traditionally held on Boxing Day.

In horse racing,

There is the King George VI Chase at Kempton Park Racecourse in Surrey,

England.

It is the second most prestigious chase in Britain after the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

In addition to the prestigious race at Kempton in Britain,

It is usually the day with the most racing meetings of the year.

It was eight in 2016,

In addition to three more in Ireland.

In Barbados,

The final day of horse racing is held on Boxing Day at the historic Garrison Savanna,

A UNESCO World Heritage Site.

This tradition has been going on for decades in this former British colony.

Boxing Day is one of the main days in the hunting calendar for hunts in the UK and US,

With most hunts both mounted foxhound or harrier packs and foot packs of beagles or bassets holding meats,

Often in town or village centres.

Several ice hockey contests are associated with the day.

The IIHF World Junior Championship typically begins on December 26,

While the Spangler Cup also begins on December 23 in Davos,

Switzerland.

The Spangler Cup competition includes HC Davos,

Team Canada,

And other top European hockey teams.

The National Hockey League traditionally had close to a full slate of games.

Ten were played in 2011,

Following the league-wide days off given for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

However,

The 2013 Collective Bargaining Agreement,

Which followed a lockout,

Extended the league mandate of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off to include Boxing Day,

Except when it falls on a Saturday,

In which case the league can choose to make December 23 a league-wide off day instead for that year.

In Sweden,

The related sport of bandy is also associated with the day,

With St.

Stephen's Day bandy games having become an established tradition.

In some African Commonwealth nations,

Particularly Ghana,

Uganda,

Malawi,

Zambia,

And Tanzania,

Professional boxing contests are held on Boxing Day.

This practice has also been followed for decades in Guyana and Italy.

In the UK,

It is common to eat leftovers from the previous day's Christmas dinner,

With turkey often being used in a Boxing Day sandwich or curry.

St.

Stephen's Day,

Also called the Feast of St.

Stephen,

Is a Christian Saints' Day to commemorate St.

Stephen,

The first Christian martyr or proto-martyr,

Celebrated on December 26 in Western Christianity and December 27 in Eastern Christianity.

The Eastern Orthodox churches that adhere to the Julian calendar mark St.

Stephen's Day on December 27,

According to that calendar,

Which places it on January 9 of the Gregorian calendar used in civil contexts.

In Western Christian denominations,

St.

Stephen's Day marks the second day of Christmastide.

St.

Stephen's Day is the second day of Christmastide and is celebrated in honor of one of the first Christian martyrs,

St.

Stephen.

In the Republic of Ireland,

St.

Stephen's Day is one of ten official public holidays.

Its name is sometimes shortened to Stephen's Day,

Particularly in informal contexts.

St.

Stephen's Day is also called Wren Day in parts of Ireland.

Traditionally,

Men and boys hunted a wren and placed it on top of a staff decorated with holly,

Ivy,

And ribbons.

This was paraded around the neighborhood by a group of wren boys,

Typically dressed in straw masks and costumes,

Who sang songs and played music in exchange for donations.

Today,

The wren is no longer hunted,

But Wren Day has survived or been revived in a few towns,

Where groups of wren boys hold small parades and carry around a staffed or fake wren.

A Mummers Festival is held at this time every year in the village of New Inn,

County Galway,

And Dingle in County Kerry.

Mumming is also a big tradition in County Fermanagh.

St.

Stephen's Day is a popular day for visiting family members and going to the theater to see a pantomime.

In most of Ulster,

The north of Ireland,

The day is usually known as Boxing Day,

Especially in Northern Ireland and County Donegal.

Traditionally,

A wren was hunted on the Isle of Man every St.

Stephen's Day,

Like in Ireland.

The wren's body would be hung inside a frame of holly or ivy wreaths,

Called the wren bush,

Or displayed in a small decorated wooden box with windows,

Called the wren house.

These wren bushes or wren houses were held aloft on poles and taken around the neighborhood by wren boys,

Some of whom were decked in greenery.

Singing Hunt the Wren and beating drums,

They went from house to house asking for coins.

At the end of the day,

A funeral was held for the wren.

Today,

People sing and dance around a decorated wren bush or wren pole in which a staffed or fake wren is placed.

St.

Stephen's Day in Wales is known as Gwyl San Steffan,

Celebrated every year on December 26.

One ancient Welsh custom discontinued in the 19th century included bleeding of livestock and homing by beating with holly branches of late risers and female servants.

The ceremony reputedly brought good luck.

St.

Stephen's Day on December 26 is a holiday in Catalonia.

It is traditionally celebrated with a festive meal that includes cannellons.

The pasta tubes are stuffed with ground meat that may include the leftovers of the previous day's escudella i carn d'olla,

Turkey,

Or capó.

In Catalan-speaking territories,

The day is also known as the Second Christmas Day or the Festa Mitjana.

In the Valencia area,

A tradition is to eat with the mother's side of the family on December 25 and on the 26 with the father's side.

Historically,

The Catalan holiday on the day after Christmas may be related to the practical need for time to return home after Christmas Day gathering and may date back to the days of the Carolingian Empire.

Christmas in Italy is one of the country's major holidays and begins on December 8 with the Feast of the Immaculate Conception,

The day on which traditionally the Christmas tree is mounted and ends on January 6 of the following year with the Epiphany.

In Italy,

St.

Stephen's Day became a public holiday in 1947,

Where previously it was a normal working day.

The Catholic Church also celebrates it as a religious holiday,

Even if not as a precept,

As it is in Germany and other German-speaking countries.

The reason for the public holiday in Italy,

Not required by the Catholic Church despite the fame of the saint,

Is to be found in the intention of prolonging the Christmas holiday,

Creating two consecutive public holidays,

Which also happens in the case of Easter Monday,

A non-religious holiday,

But which only wants to lengthen Easter.

Before 1947,

The two days were working days,

With banks and offices open.

St.

Stephen's Day is marked as a public holiday as part of its shared culture across the Rhine River with Germany.

Stefanatag is a public holiday in mainly Catholic Austria.

In the Archdiocese of Vienna,

The day of patron saint St.

Stephen is even celebrated on the Feast of the Holy Family.

Similar to the adjacent regions of Bavaria,

Numerous ancient customs still continue to this day,

Such as ceremonial horseback rides and blessing of horses,

Or the stoning,

Drinking rite celebrated by the young men after attending Mass.

December 26 is a second day of Christmas,

A public holiday in Poland,

Germany,

The Netherlands,

And the Czech Republic.