Straddling Britain and Ireland means switching Christmas hats… so St Stephen’s Day v Boxing Day which is better?
Just one of the many cultural differences between the two islands is in what we call the Day After Christmas.
Being the first Christian martyr, St Stephen, of course, came before the consumerist Boxing Day.
And he has the jump on the alternative by dint of being by appointment to the Almighty.
With the Church decreeing early that the first martyr should bank the day after the day of Jesus’s birthday.
While Boxing Day had to wait until 1833, with Queen Victoria’s seat still warm on the throne.
When the aristocracy handed down some crumbs from their table.
From Melbourne to Massachussetts
The upper classes would box up gifts and give them to their servants, the poor or tradespeople the day after Christmas Day.
Now as you’d expect Boxing Day took root in the countries of Empire, now Commonwealth, and are still celebrated today.
With Boxing Day in Melbourne, Australia, noted for its Test Match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, or MCG.
Although England, on the end of an Ashes humiliation, aren’t doing much partying.
Randomly, there is a corner of America where Boxing Day is a thing and that is in the least likely, Patriots’ Massachusetts.
Where since 1996 it’s been celebrated, in response to the efforts of a coalition of British citizens to ‘transport the English tradition to the United States’.
Long to wren over us
Stephen’s Day, on the other hand, is where the rest of the Christian world outside of the King’s hails the first Christian martyr.
And where the Good King Wenceslas first looked out in Prague, with his pizza deep pan, crisp and even.
The best tradition though, and we are biased here, is in Ireland.
Where Stephen’s Day is also called Wren Day… well, they would have two names for it.
It goes back to the legend that a wren’s cooing gave away Stephen.
And where Wrenboys, dressed in masks and costumes sang songs and played music for money,.
And used to hunt for wrens although now they’re carried around as stuffed or fake wren.
Then there’s the Mummer’s Festival, held every year in the village of New Inn, County Galway, and Dingle in County Kerry.
From Magyars to Murtys
While there’s also a Magyar Festival, a fertility ritual, which we discovered on our travels this year.
Where Hungarians wear sheepskin furs and use a bagpipe and a chained stick to make music.
Our household of all nations, for our part is called ‘You do the Christmas clean-up Day’.
