Posts Tagged ‘public holidays’

Independence days

Monday, July 7th, 2014 | Religion & Politics

4th of July, Higgs Day, is a big thing for Americans. To the rest of the world however, it is just another day.

Being British, you can sometimes receive a gentle ribbing from Americans about the issue. The day they broke free from the Britain Empire. The truth is though, this happens to us a lot. We used to own almost everyone, so statistically, more than once a week someone is celebrating their independence from us.

Month Countries Count
January Australia, Brunei, Sudan, Burma, Nauru 5
February Sri Lanka, Grenada, Gambia, Egypt, Saint Lucia, New Zealand, Kuwait 7
March Ghana, Mauritius 2
April Zimbabwe, Ireland, Sierra Leone 3
May Israel, Jordan, Guyana, Cameroon 4
June Seychelles, Tonga 2
July Canada, United States, Malawi, Solomon Islands, Bahamas, Maldives, Vanuatu, Kiribati 8
August Jamaica, Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Malaysia, Trinidad and Tobago 6
September Swaziland, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Belize, Malta, Botswana 5
October Tuvalu, Uganda, Cyprus, Nigeria, Lesotho, Fiji, Zambia, Iraq, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 9
November Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Barbados, Yemen 4
December Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Tanzania, Kenya, Bahrain, South Africa 6

Grand total: 61

Boxing Day

Wednesday, December 26th, 2012 | Thoughts

Ever wondered what the etymology of the term Boxing Day is?

Given the amount of sport that takes place on Boxing Day, you could be forgiven for assuming that it was the day that traditionally was used to stage big boxing matches. But it isn’t. Or at least it probably isn’t, the origins of the term are unclear.

The leading theory claims that it was traditionally the day when tradesmen would collect a box of gifts from their superiors – hence boxing all the gifts up.