School holidays :

School holidays :

School holidays :

Secular holiday : Since the end of the occupation, the anniversary of Liberation Day (9 May) has been celebrated as a national holiday. But in Alderney there was no official local population to be liberated, so Alderney celebrates Homecoming Day to commemorate the return of the evacuated population. The first shipload of evacuated citizens from Alderney returned on this day. Paid holiday when falling on Saturday or Sunday [Wikipedia]

School holidays :

Catholic or protestant : Since pre-historic times in Europe, festivities (bonfires, offrerings) were marking the beginning of longer hours of daylight with fires and ritual. The Roman festival of Saturnalia lasted several days in December (gambling and offerings). Germanic tribes also celebrated mid-winter (drinking and rituals). The Bulgarian (with Koleduvane) and the Polish (with Gwiazdka) perpetuate this tradition. Jesus of Nazareth was probably born in springtime (Reformists favour autumn). But in the 4th century, December 25th was chosen for the celebration of his birth by Pope Julius I (Bishop Liberus is also mentioned in 354 A.D.). Thus, a Christian element was introduced in the long-established mid-winter festivals. Before 1582, the Papal States and other Italian city states celebrated New Year’s Day on Christmas Day.

Secular holiday : Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated on the day following Christmas Day, when servants and tradesmen would traditionally receive gifts known as a Christmas box from their masters, employers or customers. Due to historical reasons, depending on the year, Boxing Day can be celebrated BEFORE Christmas