Boxing Day

「Boxing Day」をご存知ですか？
クリスマスは有名ですが、クリスマスの次の日
Boxing Dayはあまり知られていません。
今日はCraigがBoxing Dayについて
紹介してくれます。

When is Boxing Day?
Boxing Day is on December 26th, the day
after Christmas. It is a public holiday in
many countries like Australia, New Zealand,
Canada, the UK, Germany and Hong Kong.
The USA doesn't have Boxing Day.

Do people fight on Boxing Day?
No! It was originally the day when wealthy
people gave money or gifts to the poor.
Now, Boxing Day has become just a day of
rest after Christmas. Many shops have big
sales on Boxing Day, so it's a good day for
shopping too!

Why is it called 'Boxing' Day?
Nobody is sure why it has this name, but
we know the name comes from the word
'box' (箱), not the violent sport!

Here are some possible origins of the name:

1. Hundreds of years ago, rich people gave boxes
of fruit to their servants on this day.

2. Servants carried boxes to work and their
masters put coins in them. On Boxing Day, the
servants opened the boxes and it was like a
Christmas bonus.

3. There were boxes in churches which
people put money in. On Boxing Day, the boxes
were opened and the money was given to
the poor.

4. People put their leftovers in
boxes after Christmas and delivered
them to their relatives who
lived far away.

I wonder which one is true?

public holiday: 公休日
wealthy: 裕福な
origin: 由来
servant: 使用人
leftovers: 残り物
relatives: 親類