Bank Holidays
Name for Holiday in various countries
Bank Holidays may seem like a general term used for holidays in the British Isles, but as with most cultural events, there is always an interesting story behind everything...
On Bank Holidays, generally on a Monday, all shops and banks are closed.
Bank holidays were first introduced by the Bank Holidays Act of 1871, which designated four holidays in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and five in Scotland.
These were Easter Monday, the first Monday in August, the 26th December, and Whit Monday (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) and New Year's Day, Good Friday, the first Monday in May, the first Monday in August, and Christmas Day (Scotland).
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, both Christmas Day and Good Friday were traditional days of rest and Christian worship (as were Sundays) and did not need to be included in the Act.
But why are they called Bank Holidays, when it's not just Bank who get the day off?
According to one story, The phrase Bank Holiday was originally initiated in the States. In 1933 President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared a bank holiday to help stop the money panic in the nation because the depositors had been withdrawing their funds with such speed that many banks ran out of money to pay over the counter.
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