Wednesday, March 14, 2007, 8:08 PM
White Day is a festival that was created by a concentrated marketing effort in Japan. White Day is celebrated in Japan and Korea on March 14, one month after Valentine's Day. On Valentine's Day, women give gifts to men; on White Day, men who received chocolate on Valentine's Day return the favor and give gifts to women. This holiday is starting to gain popularity in Hong Kong, where Japanese influence is strong. The observance of Valentine's Day in Japan, particularly among students, is somewhat different than in the West. Valentine's day is mainly for the girls to present chocolates (either store-bought or handmade) to the boy of their choice. There also exists the "Giri-Choco, which translates as "Obligatory Chocolate" that a girl will give to those close to her but has no romantic interest in. When White Day rolls around, it is the boy's role to return the gift in what is called "sanbai-gaeshi" or "triple return", as the gift the boy gives is supposed to be three times the value of the initial gift from the girl.
There are many theories about the origins of White Day, but according to one, the holiday began in 1965, when a marshmallow maker started marketing to men that they should pay back the women who gave them chocolate and other gifts with marshmallows. Originally it was called Marshmallow Day, and later it was changed to White Day.
Soon, the chocolate companies started realizing that they could capitalize as well on this day, and began marketing white chocolate. Now, Japanese men give both white and non-white chocolate, as well as other edible and non-edible gifts, such as jewellery or objects of sentimental value, to the women who gave them chocolate on Valentine's Day a month prior.
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