[edit]

The exact etymology of the term "boxing" is unclear. There are several competing theories, none of which is definitive.^[1] The European tradition, which has long included giving money and other gifts to those who were needy and in service positions, has been dated to the Middle Ages, but the exact origin is unknown. It may come from a custom in the late Roman/early Christian era, wherein metal boxes placed outside churches were used to collect special offerings tied to the Feast of Saint Stephen,^[2] which in the Western Church falls on the same day as Boxing Day.

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.^[3] This is mentioned in Samuel Pepys' diary entry for 19 December 1663.^[4] This custom is linked to an older English tradition: Since they would have to wait on their masters on Christmas Day, the servants of the wealthy were allowed the next day to visit their families. The employers would give each servant a box to take home containing gifts and bonuses, and sometimes leftover food.

[edit]Date

Boxing Day is a secular holiday that is traditionally celebrated on 26 December, the day after Christmas Day, which is also St. Stephen's Day, a religious holiday.^[5][6][7] However, when 26 December falls on a Sunday, Boxing Day in many places is moved to 27 December. In the UK, where Boxing Day is a bank holiday, if Boxing Day falls on a Saturday, a substitute bank holiday is given on the following Monday, but if 26 December falls on a Sunday – which means that Christmas Day, another holiday, fell on a Saturday – then the Statutory Holiday for Christmas is moved.

In Scotland, Boxing Day has been specified as an additional bank holiday since 1974,^[8] by Royal Proclamation under theBanking and Financial Dealings Act 1971.^[9]

In Ireland – when it was part of the UK – the Bank Holidays Act 1871 established the feast day of St. Stephen as a non-movable public holiday on 26 December. Since Irish Independence, the name 'Boxing Day' is used only by the authorities in Northern Ireland, which remains part of the UK. There, Boxing Day is a movable public holiday in line with the rest of the UK.

In New Zealand, Boxing Day is a public holiday, and is observed on the following Monday if it falls on a Saturday or Sunday.

In the Australian state of South Australia, 28 December is a public holiday known as Proclamation Day and Boxing Day is not normally a public holiday. The holiday for Proclamation Day is observed on the first weekday after Christmas Day or the Christmas Day holiday.^[10]

In some Canadian provinces, Boxing Day is a statutory holiday^[11] that is always celebrated on 26 December. In Canadian provinces where Boxing Day is a statutory holiday, and it falls on a Saturday or Sunday, compensation days are given in the following week.^[11]

[edit]Shopping

In Britain,^[12] Canada,^[13] New Zealand and Australia,^[14] Boxing Day is primarily known as a shopping holiday, much like the day after Thanksgiving in the United States. It is a time where shops have sales, often with dramatic price reductions. For many merchants, Boxing Day has become the day of the year with the greatest amount of returns. In the UK in 2009 it was estimated 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 would revert to 17.5% from 1 January).^[15]

Many retailers open very early (typically 5 am 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 26 December, hours before the opening of shops holding the big sales, especially at big-box consumer electronics retailers.^[13] Many stores have a limited quantity of big draw or deeply discounted items.^[16] Because of the shoulder-to-shoulder crowds, many choose to stay home and avoid the hectic shopping experience. The local media often cover the event, mentioning how early the shoppers began queueing up, providing video of shoppers queueing and later leaving with their purchased items.^[17] The High Street sales have the potential for customer stampedes, injuries and even fatalities.^[18] As a result, 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.^[16]

In recent years, retailers have expanded deals to "Boxing Week." While Boxing Day is 26 December, many retailers will run the sales for several days before or after 26 December, often up to New Year's Eve. Notably, in the recession of late 2008, a record number of retailers were holding early promotions due to a weak economy.^[19]

Canada's Boxing Day has often been compared with the American Super Saturday, the Saturday before Christmas, as well asBlack Friday in the United States. Compared to Canada's Boxing Day, Black Fridays in the U.S. seem to provide deeper or more extreme price cuts than Canadian retailers, even for the same international retailer, and soon many Canadian retailers have often run Black Friday sales with similar promotions to Boxing Day.

In some areas of Canada, particularly in Atlantic Canada and parts of Northern Ontario (including Sault Ste. Marie^[20] andSudbury), most retailers are prohibited from opening on Boxing Day, either by provincial law or municipal bylaw, or instead by informal agreement among major retailers in order to provide a day of relaxation following Christmas Day. In these areas, sales otherwise scheduled for 26 December are moved to the 27th.^[21][22]

In Ireland, since 1902, most stores have until recently remained closed on St. Stephen's Day, as with Christmas Day. In 2009, some stores decided to open on this day, breaking a 107-year-old tradition. Most stores now start their January sales on this day.

[edit]Cyber Boxing Day

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. This was derived from the American holiday, the cyber Monday.^[23][24]

[edit]Sport

In England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, it is traditional for thePremier League, Scottish Premier League and Irish Premier Leaguerespectively, as well as the lower divisions and rugby leagues, to hold a full programme of football and Rugby League matches on Boxing Day. Traditionally, matches on Boxing Day are played against local rivals. This was originally to avoid teams and their fans having to travel a long distance to an away game on the day after Christmas Day. It also makes the day an important one in the sporting calendar. In Australia and South Africa, much anticipated test cricket matches are played on Boxing Day.

In horse racing, there is the King George VI Chase at Kempton Park Racecourse in Surrey. It is the second most prestigious chase in England, after the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

Boxing Day is a popular day in the UK and U.S. for mounted fox hunters. Despite fox hunting being banned in the UK by the Hunting Act since 2004, Boxing Day remains the biggest meet of the year for most hunts, who use Drag hunting instead of live quarry.

Australia holds the first day of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne at theMelbourne Cricket Ground and the start to the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.

Several ice hockey contests are associated with the day. The IIHF World U20 Championship typically begins on 26 December, while the Spengler Cup also begins on 26 December in Davos, Switzerland; the Spengler Cup competition includes HC Davos, Team Canada, and other top European Hockey teams. The National Hockey League tends to have close to a full slate of games (11 were played in 2010), following the league-wide days off given for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Although Boxing Day is not celebrated in the U.S., some American colleges usually play their last non-conference college basketball games, particularly crosstown or cross-regional rivalries on the 26th, while others participate in regular season tournaments on this day. A number of college football bowl games are also played on the day after Christmas, unless the 26th is a Sunday and conflicts with the NFL schedule - in that case they, along with the aforementioned basketball games, are played on the 27th.

In some African Commonwealth nations, particularly Ghana, Uganda, Malawi, Zambia and Tanzania, prize fighting contests are held on Boxing Day. This practice has also been followed for decades in Guyana and Italy.^[25]

Australia and South Africa also have longstanding traditions of playing a cricket match on the 26th on home turf. Australia prefers to play a five-day test match whereas South Africa plays any of the three formats.