Amazing Boxing Day Facts

Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the 26 December (or the second day of Christmastide).

Did you know that in South Africa, Boxing Day is all about giving to the less fortunate and is known as the "Day of Goodwill".

Check out more facts about Boxing Day.

12 Boxing Day Facts

1. There is no official reason as to why the day that follows Christmas Day is known as “Boxing Day”. The roots of the holiday go back to the Middle Ages but the name has many different histories. In Victorian England, servants would get money or gifts on the day after Christmas called "Christmas boxes". The day was also associated with charity and alms boxes for the poor. But the exact origin of the name is basically unknown.
   
   
2. The Boxing Day public holiday is the following Monday if December 26 falls on a Saturday. When December 26 falls on a Sunday, it is a holiday on the following Tuesday because that Monday is a holiday for Christmas Day.
   
   
3. In the UK, 26 December (unless it is a Sunday) has been a bank holiday since 1871. In Scotland, Boxing Day did not become an additional bank holiday until 1974.
   
   
4. Saint Stephen's Day, also called the Feast of Saint Stephen, is a Christian saint's day also celebrated in Western Christianity on December 26. It commemorates one of the first Christian martyrs, Saint Stephen, who was stoned to death in 36 AD.
   
   
5. The first match in the history of football was played on December 26th, 1860. Sheffield FC played neighbouring club Hallam FC. at Hallam's home ground, Sandygate Road. Sandygate still exists and has been recognised by the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest football ground in the world.
   
   
6. It is also a time for the British to show their eccentricity by participating in all kinds of silly Boxing Day traditions and activities. These include bizarre annual events such as icy winter dips into the sea in fancy dress, and barrel racing, in Granthchester, near Cambridge.
   
   
7. Boxing Day is known as a shopping bank holiday. Sales are common and shops often give dramatic price reductions.
   
   
8. The United States release date of the horror movie "The Exorcist" was December 26, 1973.
   
   
9. The Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union formally dissolved the Soviet Union on Boxing Day, 1991.
   
   
10. Mummer's Day is a traditional Cornish midwinter celebration that's celebrated every year on Boxing Day and New Year's Day in Padstow, Cornwall.
    
    
11. Hunts are a Boxing Day tradition in the UK. And after the 2004 ban on fox hunting several Boxing Day meets using modified forms of hunting still take place each year. Boxing Day is also a traditional day in the horse racing calendar.
    
    
12. It's mainly countries with a close connection to the United Kingdom that celebrate Boxing Day, such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, and other countries in Europe. Some countries such as Germany, the Netherlands and Poland, celebrate the day and know it as a second Christmas Day.