The primary meaning of Boxing Day is a day set aside to give gifts in boxes to staff, customers etc. Boxing Day, as the post-Christmas holiday is known in the United Kingdom, has been observed for centuries on 26 December 2020. But there are several theories and potential origin … Boxing Day traditions. The servants were given 26th December the day off to go home and visit their family, this is possibly the origin of leftovers on Boxing Day as the cook probably was off duty! For those living down under, the day after Christmas is all about the sport. A Jew who converted to Christianity, Stephen usually preached among Hellenist Jews and was known as a powerful orator. It's origins are obscure, but they date back centuries. Boxing Day in Australia. ORIGIN. Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated the day after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide. Boxing Day Holiday Origin The origin of Boxing Day is a mystery to the public. But the actual Xmas and boxing days are still the 25th and 26th. The Christmas period is linked to the holiday. Boxing Day is widely celebrated in countries that are part of the British Commonwealth. Boxing Day is a national holiday in the UK and Ireland and there are various theories as to its origin. Though it originated as a holiday to give gifts to the poor, today Boxing Day is primarily known as a shopping holiday. The ecclesiastical celebration stems from the appointment of Stephen by the Apostles as one of seven deacons to attend to the distribution of alms to the poorer members of the Church. Source(s): Boxing Day is ALWAYS the 26th of dec. if it falls on a Sunday then that means christmas falls on a Saturday and so Monday becomes Xmas public holiday and Tuesday becomes Boxing Day public holiday. Boxing Day is celebrated Wednesday with employers giving "boxed" gifts to their employees and stores offering discount sales. Traditionally, it was a day when employers distributed money, food, cloth (material) or other valuable goods to their employees. Boxing Day: Origin of the holiday and possible meaning behind the name thesouthafrican.com - Cheryl Kahla. Here are a few of the possible origins of the day: One possible origin is from metal boxes that were placed outside of churches during the Middle Ages.These boxes were for offerings to give to the poor on the Feast of St. Stephen, which is also celebrated on the 26th. Boxing is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined amount of time in a boxing ring.. Boxing Day has evolved into a day of relaxation and indulgence — and shopping. When they left to meet their families on this day, they were presented gifts in boxes, by the employers. As a result, the day is often an extension of Christmas celebrations and provides a great opportunity to … Boxing Day in the United Kingdom is the day after Christmas Day and falls on December 26. The view that Boxing Day was a day for pugilism gets some support via the earliest reference to the name that I can find, which is in The Sporting Magazine, Volume 25, 1805: On boxing-day, Dec. 26, a numerous assemblage of the holiday folk were amused by a hard fought battle, in St. Pancras-fields. Is There a Right Time to Take Down Your Christmas Decorations? Boxing Day has evolved from a charitable day to an extended Christmas afternoon. Boxing Day’s origins are thought to have begun centuries ago, when hard-working servants who had been preparing their masters’ celebrations would be given December 26 off. Boxing Day test 2018: The Boxing Day Test match is a game of cricket that is played between Australia and a visiting national cricket team at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). But this year, many of the sales started earlier in an effort to boost the slumping economy. We've looked through LOADS of bargains on … … History of Boxing Day No one is quite sure where Boxing Day got its start. In this day and age, Christmas has for many become a secular holiday, associated less with the birth of Jesus than with family get-togethers and the eager exchange of presents . In modern times, it is an important day for sporting events and the start of the post-Christmas sales. Boxing Day. The view that Boxing Day was a day for pugilism gets some support via the earliest reference to the name that I can find, which is in The Sporting Magazine, Volume 25, 1805: On boxing-day, Dec. 26, a numerous assemblage of the holiday folk were amused by a hard fought battle, in St. Pancras-fields. For years in which the holiday falls on a weekend, the celebration is moved to make sure workers still get a day off (except in Canada, where it remains Dec. 26) In the UK it's classed as a Bank Holiday. Origin. ... but the exact origin is unknown. The annual Boxing Day test match between Australia’s national team and an opposing side is a tradition many across the country tune in to watch, whilst those living in and around Sydney will head to the coast to watch the annual Sydney to Hobart yacht race. December 26 is not only a day for Santa Claus to catch his breath but a public holiday known as Boxing Day in the United Kingdom and other British Commonwealth. As per historians, in early periods, servants who worked on Christmas day took a day off on the next day. In more recent times, Boxing Day is a Bank Holiday, meaning that many people have a day off work and some people that do work are paid time and a half, or double. The … The custom is older than the phrase. Outside of the commonwealth, the 26th of December is known as Saint Stephens Day. It's Boxing Day – one of the biggest sales of the year where you can enjoy huge discounts on tons of products! It is a time of meals, dinners and family gatherings enjoying the holidays, although the coronavirus means that this year not everything is the same. Amateur boxing is both an Olympic and Commonwealth Games sport and is a standard fixture in most international games—it also has its own World Championships. Boxing Day meaning has no confirmed origin regarding the etymology of the term Boxing Day. Boxing Day originated in England in the middle of the nineteenth century under Queen Victoria. Boxing Day (n.) 1809, "first weekday after Christmas," on which by an English custom postmen, employees, and others can expect to receive a Christmas present; originally in reference to the custom of distributing the contents of the Christmas box, which was placed in the church for charity collections.See box (n.1). And of course, there’s the shopping. St. Stephen and charity. The term Boxing Day according to history, started in Britain sometime in the early 1660s. Apart from India vs Australia Boxing Day Test, December 26, 2020, will also see New Zealand hosting Pakistan and South Africa welcoming Sri Lanka. 29 December, 2020 - 21:55 Nathan Falde. England and Canada’s Boxing Day evolved into a major shopping event in the 1980s — the equivalent of post-Thanksgiving Black Friday. In some attestations, Boxing Day was when servants, postment, and people of similar occupations received a Christmas box – a gratuity given at Christmas to service workers for their contribution to the general public – filled with money or presents on the day … ‘The first thing to say about Boxing Day is that its origins have nothing to do with boxing, hunting or shopping.’ Photograph: Luke Macgregor/Reuters Mon 26 Dec 2016 03.00 EST Boxing Day, also known as St. Stephen's Day, is celebrated on December 26 - the day after Christmas.It was a way for people to make contributions of cash or goods to those less fortunate. December 26 is … Boxing Day has been a national bank holiday in the UK since 1871 (1974 in Scotland), with the day off falling the following Monday if … It originated in the United Kingdom and is celebrated in a number of countries that previously formed part of the British Empire. 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