In Britain, Boxing Day is usually celebrated on the following day
after Christmas Day, which is 26 December. However, strictly speaking,
Boxing Day is the first weekday after Christmas (see definition in the
Oxford English Dictionary).
Boxing Day is a bank or public holiday that occurs on December 26, or
the first or second weekday after Christmas Day, depending on national
or regional laws. It is observed in Australia, Canada, New Zealand,
Great Britain, some other Commonwealth nations, and across most of the
Province of Ulster in the north of Ireland.
In South Africa, Boxing Day was renamed Day of Goodwill in 1994. In
most of the Republic of Ireland (except in County Donegal) it is
recognized as St. Stephen's Day (Irish: Lá Fhéile Stiofáin) or the Day
of the Wren (Irish: Lá an Dreoilín). In most of County Donegal
(especially in Inishowen and East Donegal), like in most of the rest
of Ulster, the day is popularly known as Boxing Day. In the
Netherlands, Lithuania, Austria, Germany, Scandinavia and Poland,
December 26 is celebrated as the Second Christmas Day.
The online version of Boxing Day has been referred to as "Cyber Boxing
Day". In the UK in 2008, Boxing Day was the busiest online shopping
day of the year.[26] 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.