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I'd forgotten Boxing day is largely a British thing!
Boxing Day is the day after Christmas - it's bank (public) holiday over here. It's also known as St Stephen's Day, and it's the day when gifts were given to those of a lower class or less fortunate than yourself - gifts between equals, family and so on were given on Christmas Day. Where the actual box comes from is open to speculation. A couple of popular theories are that gifts of food etc were put in boxes to be given out on that day, or that the churches alms boxes were opened and donations given on that day.
It can also cause some tension in families if you always see the same set of relatives on christmas Day as you're in effect saying they're more worthy of your time. Thankfully, ours don't see it like that!
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