White Day

White Day is a romantic holiday celebrated in Japan, Taiwan and South Korea. The holiday falls on March 14, one month exactly after Valentine’s Day. Tradition in these countries holds that women are supposed to give men romantic gifts on Valentine’s Day, while men are supposed to return the favor on White Day

In February 2000, we sent questionnaires to 2700 people who were registered in the category of Japan of our pen pal service and who indicated that they are willing to participate in surveys. We received 269 valid responses from Japanese people who live in Japan; 77% of them were female, 85% single, and 71% below 30 years young. In addition to the unbalance in age, marital status and gender, we must consider the fact that all survey participants are registered in an online international pen pal service, which may mean that they are overall more internationally and less traditionally oriented than the average Japanese.

On White Day, on the other hand, there seems to be a much greater variety of presents. 33% of the men celebrating White Day give cookies as presents. Only 11% give flowers. 55% make presents other than cookies, sweets or flowers. Almost half of the men give presents to two to three women and 29% to just one. The rest (19%) gives presents to more than three women. Two thirds of the men celebrating White Day give presents to their girlfriends or wives. Less than one out of four give presents to co-workers and/or friends. Only one out of ten make presents to relatives.

In 1978, the Japanese National Confection Industry recommended that men return the favor on March 14th, not coincidentally boosting confection sales. The day was originally called Marshmallow Day, as Ishimura Manseido, a candy company, created marshmallow treats specifically as gifts for this new holiday. Other companies soon followed, specializing in white chocolate treats. The day eventually became referred to as White Day, although gifts of regular dark chocolate are now common.

Gifts given on White Day often exceed the simple presents of Valentine’s Day. Presents to lovers and wives are supposed to be expensive, such as lingerie or jewelry. Men also conform to giri-choco, returning the favor to female co-workers out of obligation. This can occasionally lead to confusion, as romantic gifts can be mistaken for obligatory ones and vice-versa.

Some scorn is leveled at the celebration, as it is considered by some to be a purely commercial holiday. The confusing issues of obligation and romance are seen by some as a desperate attempt to boost chocolate sales. This has led some Japanese and Westerners to label White Day a “Hallmark Holiday,” using guilt and social obligation to boost sales of gift items.

In recent years, a new tradition has been created in Korea called Black Day. This is comparable the ironic American tradition of Singles Awareness Day, a holiday that bitterly mocks the prevalent romantic traditions of Valentine’s Day. Black Day is held on the 14th of April, one month after White Day. Traditionally, those who received no Valentine’s or White Day gifts gather in restaurants or at parties to eat noodles in black bean sauce.

White Day is a relatively new holiday, but seems to be quite popular throughout Japan. One informal survey of 13,000 Japanese citizens suggested that around 57% purchased or received gifts for the holiday. Three percent, or about 390 respondents, said that they gave or received between five and twenty gifts. Despite detractors, the holiday appears to be gaining more fans each year.