Christians all over the world celebrates the Feast of St. Stephen, or St. Stephen’s Day today.
The Feast of St. Stephen, or better known as St. Stephen’s Day, is a religious event which is celebrated on December 26 in the Western Church and on December 27 in the Eastern Church. Many orthodox churches stick to the Julian Calendar and celebrate St. Stephen’s Day on the December 27 of that calendar. The December 27 of Julian Calendar lies on January 9 of Gregorian Calendar. The Christian community around the world celebrates the day in the memory of St. Stephen, who is believed to be the first Christian martyr.
St. Stephen’s Day in Different Countries and Cultures
• Ireland—In Ireland, St. Stephen’s Day is one of the nine public holidays. It is a popular tradition to meet family members and relatives on St. Stephen’s Day. A festival, known as Mummer’s Festival, is also held on this day every year in New Inn and other villages.
• Catalonia—In Catalonia, St. Stephen’s Day is celebrated right after Christmas as traditional holiday. The celebrations include a big meal.
• Hungary—In Hungary, St. Stephen’s Day refers to 20th of August. It was the day on which the patron saint of Hungary, King St. Stephen, was moved to the city of Buda. It is a public holiday.
• Wales—In Welsh culture, St. Stephen’s Day is an important event. An odd tradition, which ended in nineteenth century, included bleeding of farm animals. Other traditions of St. Stephen’s Day included ‘holming’ of female servants by beating them with holly sticks until they bleed. Also, the last person who got out of the bed was used to be beaten by sprigs of holly and was made to obey the orders of all other family members. These customs ended in nineteenth century.
• St. Stephen’s Day is also a public holiday in UK, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Finland, and Canada.
St. Stephen
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