Boxing Day/St. Stephen's Day - Which is more common in Donegal?

mmcm888

Tripped across a thread in the ranting forum about using Boxing Day Vs. St. Stephen's day (not worth a link ...). I've always said Boxing day being a Donegal native - is this a Donegal thing? Is it because we had the BBC before RTE?

m.

feelpablo

think its more common around the border counties allright...
most people i know from around donegal say boxing day, myself i say what comes to mind first

babaloushka

mmcm888 wrote: »

Tripped across a thread in the ranting forum about using Boxing Day Vs. St. Stephen's day (not worth a link ...). I've always said Boxing day being a Donegal native - is this a Donegal thing? Is it because we had the BBC before RTE?

m.

My father (a Donegal native) used to become apoplectic if anyone used 'Boxing Day' instead of St. Stephen's Day - when I say it myself now (on occasion) I can feel his disapproval from the grave :eek: I think it's both a religious and a nationalist thing.

Harps

Ive always said Boxing Day..Dads English though so might have something to do with it

muffler

Boxing day always from me

irish1967

I could be wrong but is Boxin day the public holiday after Christmas day? If that's the case wouldn't it be on 28th December this year? It's movable where st. Stephens Day isn't ?
I always said boxing day because that's what it was in the radio times:)

Cul a cnoic

St Stevens Day for me, but I'm from leitrim..

donegalgirl28

Boxing Day for me, and all my friends from Donegal say it aswell. It's even advertised in the newspapers as Boxing Day.

Aligator Farmer

Was always Boxing day in our house, mind you nobody could ever explain what the 'boxing' referrred to.
Then again the parents had spent a lot of time in London before me and my siblings came along,
I'm pretty sure it was St stephens for my 'never left the country' grandparents.

shiibata

Its always being Boxing day to me as well, cant think of anybody whoever called it Stephens day.

Graces7

Saint Stephen every time; protomartyr whose feast day it is.....

Not native Irish by the way and was very, very happy to come to where it is St Stephen's Day.

mmcm888

Did a quick test in Cork over Christmas on this - almost hung by the rebels for using Boxing day!

Anyway - Happy Boxing day to the Donegal folk who are that way inclined and a happy St. Stephens's's's's Day to all others.

m.

muffler

mmcm888 wrote: »

Did a quick test in Cork over Christmas on this - almost hung by the rebels for using Boxing day!

Anyway - Happy Boxing day to the Donegal folk who are that way inclined and a happy St. Stephens's's's's Day to all others.

m.

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Graces7

Interesting; talked of this with an Irish person who emigrated to Canada over 40 years ago.

She had never heard the term "Boxing Day" and had no idea what it meant.
She was fascinated when I explained that in the UK it was the day when the tradesmen came for their Christmas "boxes" ie tips/gifts

Wondering if others know this?

In Canada the day is called "trades day".. same idea.

And see this...
http://clericalwhispers.blogspot.com/2009/12/la-fheile-stiofan-st-stephens-day-2009.html

JupiterKid

I think that it's an Ulster thing, the term "Boxing day".

My Dad is Belfast born and reared and even though he's been living in Dublin for nigh on 35 years, he always calls it boxing day. In Dublin, natives always call it St. Stephens day.

Cee-Jay-Cee

I've always called it boxing day and probably always will. I believe its because up here in donegal we had BBC/ITV long before the rest of holy catholic ireland and because Ireland/RTE were governed by the church they had to switch off the transmitters at 5pm for fear that people would forget to spend the night praying together or some such nonsense, so we mainly watched BBC/ITV and just picked up what they were calling it. There is nothing religous, non-nationalistic or anything else about it, its simply habit from what we were used to.

Those that get on their high horse about it probably are less religious than those that call it Boxing Day