The delightful "Nightmare before Christmas" starts with the poem, "Now you've probably wondered where holidays come from. If you haven't I'd say it's time you begun."
Of course, they come from ritual and custom, but are made official by government. In the US, in 1870, Congress designated four federal holidays:
- New Year's Day
- Independence Day
- Christmas Day
- Thanksgiving Day*
These originally only applied to federal workers in Washington DC, but in 1885 extended to all federal employees. Six more were added over the next 113 years:
In the UK, during the industrial revolution, holidays weren't just local, they were dictated by the factories -- when they shut down, everyone went on holiday. The Bank of England, however, had to be open every weekday for the government to function. In 1871 the UK defined the first "bank holidays" and in true "United Kingdom" fashion, they were different. In England, Wales and Ireland these were:
- George Washington's Birthday (1879)**
- Memorial Day (1888, originally called "Decoration Day")
- Labor Day (1894)
- Veterans Day (1938, originally called Armistice Day)
- Columbus Day (1968)
- Martin Luther King Jr. day (1983)***
In the UK, during the industrial revolution, holidays weren't just local, they were dictated by the factories -- when they shut down, everyone went on holiday. The Bank of England, however, had to be open every weekday for the government to function. In 1871 the UK defined the first "bank holidays" and in true "United Kingdom" fashion, they were different. In England, Wales and Ireland these were:
- Good Friday
- Easter Monday (Easter being the first weekend after the full moon which occurs on or after 21 March)
- Whit Monday (The day after Whitsun Sunday, the seventh Sunday after Easter, which often marked the beginning of the summer)
- The first Monday in August
- Christmas
- Boxing Day (aka St Stephen's day, the day after Christmas)
Scotland, being more puritanical, did not approve of religious holidays -- in fact, in 1640 Scotland made the celebration of "Yule vacations" (i.e. Christmas) illegal and New Year's Eve (Hogmanay) became the main midwinter holiday. As a result, Scotland did not get Easter Monday, Whit Monday or Boxing Day but got New Year's Day and the first Monday in May instead. (Christmas and Good Friday were still considered public holidays in Scotland.)
In 1971, the UK replaced Whit Monday with "Spring Bank Holiday" on the last Monday in May, and the holidays are the same across England and Scotland: New Year's Day; Good Friday; Easter Monday, the first and last Mondays of May; Summer Bank Holiday****; Christmas Day; and Boxing Day. Scotland also takes 2 January and St Andrew's Day off, while Northern Ireland takes off St Patrick's day and the Battle of the Boyne*****.
More than that, though, is that businesses have to abide by these holidays so most people in England and Wales get 8 holidays per year while Scotland and Northern Irelance get 10. The British government can also change the dates or declare extra bank holidays and they have done so four times in the past 20 years: In 2002 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II; in 2011 to celebrate the Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton; and in 2012 to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II; and they have already announced an extra holiday in 2022 to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II.
In 1971, the UK replaced Whit Monday with "Spring Bank Holiday" on the last Monday in May, and the holidays are the same across England and Scotland: New Year's Day; Good Friday; Easter Monday, the first and last Mondays of May; Summer Bank Holiday****; Christmas Day; and Boxing Day. Scotland also takes 2 January and St Andrew's Day off, while Northern Ireland takes off St Patrick's day and the Battle of the Boyne*****.
More than that, though, is that businesses have to abide by these holidays so most people in England and Wales get 8 holidays per year while Scotland and Northern Irelance get 10. The British government can also change the dates or declare extra bank holidays and they have done so four times in the past 20 years: In 2002 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II; in 2011 to celebrate the Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton; and in 2012 to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II; and they have already announced an extra holiday in 2022 to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II.
New Zealand, as a member of the British Empire until 1947 (or 1986 or 2003, depending on how you define "independence") inherited the UK bank holidays (plus 2 January) but eventually replaced the "spring/summer bank holidays" with:
- Labour Day (1999)
- Sovereign's Birthday (1952)
- ANZAC (1966)
- Waitangi Day (1976)
Except now New Zealand has 12.
Matariki****** is the Māori name for the Pleiades star cluster, also known as Seven Sisters or Subaru in Japanese. In the Southern hemisphere, Matariki rises above the horizon in late June/early July and Māori mark it as the new year. It was a time of celebration and there have been efforts to make it a national holiday since 2009. Jacinda Arden pledged to make it official if re-elected and has just made good on her promise, although she did delay its implementation by one year to avoid any economic impact after Covid-19, so it won't be celebrated until 24 June 2022. (She needn't have worried: Stats NZ reported today that New Zealand's unemployment rate, which was expected to rise to 6% because of covid-19, fell to under 5%.)
* Thanksgiving had been informally celebrated since 1650. In 1863, Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a "national thanksgiving day" as the last Thursday in November. In 1939, in the middle of the Great Depression, November had five Thursdays and retailers were concerned because (then as now) many Americans didn't start Christmas shopping until after Thanksgiving. To appease them, Franklin Roosevelt moved it up a week. In 1941 it was set as the fourth Thursday in November.
** In 1968 George Washington's birthday was moved from 22 February to the third Monday in February in order to create a three-day weekend. Contrary to popular opinion, it was never renamed "President's Day" and makes no reference to Abraham Lincoln (whose birthday happens to be 12 February).
*** Washington's birthday was the first federal holiday to celebrate the life of an individual; Martin Luther King Jr. day was the second. Reagan signed it into law in 1983 and it first took effect in 1986. However, some States did not enact it until 2000, and today Alabama and Mississippi celebrate "Robert E. Lee Day" on the same day!
**** Originally celebrated in England on the first Monday of August and not celebrated in Scotland at all, England now celebrates the "summer bank holiday" on the last Monday in August while Scotland celebrates it on the first Monday in August!
***** Do not go to Northern Ireland for the Battle of the Boyne holiday, better known as "The Twelfth." It's ugly.
****** Matariki is a shortened version of Ngā mata o te ariki o Tāwhirimātea, or 'the eyes of the god Tāwhirimātea,' the god of weather.
