Japanese Valentine’s Day Chocolate Tradition

Valentine’s Day is celebrated a little differently in Japan in comparison to the rest of the world. Valentine’s Day, particularly in Western countries, is typically a celebration of couples. Partners will enjoy a romantic dinner together in a restaurant and wives and girlfriends may be gifted with flowers and a card. In Japan, however, this is not the case. We take a look at one of the most established traditions in Japan for this day of love: chocolate giving.

While giving chocolates to the one you love is hardly a new thing, especially for Valentine’s Day, it is a must in Japan on Valentine’s Day. The biggest difference, however, is that in Japan, it is the woman’s task to gift the chocolates to the person they love.

Origins of the Tradition

As with many internationally celebrated holidays, Valentine’s Day is an imported holiday, so there are no other long-term traditions associated with Valentine’s Day in the country, unlike a lot of other Japanese celebrations. Instead, Valentine’s Day traditions in Japan have largely been shaped by marketing – similar to how Christmas in Japan now involves eating KFC! In the 1950s, confectionary makers began to introduce the idea of Valentine’s Day to Japan. One of the earliest reported attempts at starting Valentine celebrations in Japan comes from a company called Merry Chocolate, who set up stalls of heart-shaped chocolates with a sign reading “For ladies [to give] to gentlemen”, in a department store called Isetan in Tokyo in 1958.

When this tradition started to take off, it was considered fairly radical for a woman to be forward enough to confess her feelings for a man. With this new marketing about Valentine’s Day chocolates, women were finally presented with a day when it became acceptable for them to approach a man in this way. By the 1960s, the idea that women should give chocolates to men on Valentine’s Day began to be advertised in newspapers around the country. This firmly established the tradition in Japan and by the 1970s, the Valentine’s chocolates were a big source of business for confectioners.

Variations of Chocolate Giving

Alongside Honmei choco, which is the tradition of women giving chocolates to those they have feelings for, there are a few variations of chocolate giving that have become popular in Japan.

Giri Choco

Looking for further ways to market their chocolate, the idea of giri choco came into play around the 1970s. In Japanese, giri means obligation, so giri choco is a tradition which encourages women to give chocolates to males who are senior to them, such as bosses or teachers, out of a sense of obligation. Giri choco has become so common that some companies request their employees donate to charity instead of buying the senior staff chocolates that are essentially meaningless. In recent years, a number of women have also fought against this tradition.

Tomo Choco

Meaning ‘friend chocolates’, tomo choco is chocolate given to, or shared amongst, friends. Typically, tomo choco will only be enjoyed between female friends, and so, can be seen as an excuse to eat loads of chocolate with your friends! Usually, these chocolates will be quite fancy and expensive, or even homemade.

Jibin Choco

Another excuse for just tucking in to some sweet treats, jibin choco, meaning ‘self chocolate’, is the perfect choice for single people who aren’t ready to confess their love yet! While the day is meant to be about admitting your feelings to a crush, a recent survey has discovered that the most money is spent on jibin choco than any other category of chocolate for Valentine’s Day!

Gyaku Choco

While it is tradition for women to be the ones giving out the chocolates, gyaku choco, meaning ‘reverse chocolates’, is when a man gives chocolates to a woman.

White Day

In Japan, a concept called okaeshi is practised. This means that when someone gives you a gift, it is necessary to give something in return. As such, the 14 of March is designated as ‘White Day’, a day in which mean who were gifted with chocolates on Valentine’s Day should present that woman with a gift in return.

How will you be spending Valentine’s Day? Check out our range of Japanese chocolate in the UK for gift inspiration!