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Touch: Gifts of Elegance
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Imported
Holidays and Gift Exchange in Japan
The types of holidays observed in Japan are derived from Buddhist traditions
that were introduced by the Chinese, and the influence of Western European
and Untied States holidays. The following are an example of the holidays
that have been imported from the West, but with the exception of Mother's
Day and Father's Day, have very different connotations and rituals than
how they are observed in the United States.
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Mother's and
Father's Day
Mother's Day and Father's Day were imported from the United States and
took hold in the 1970's. As mentioned earlier, these holidays are observed
in Japan in a very similar fashion as they are celebrated in the United
States. Mother's Day is celebrated on the 2nd Sunday of May and is more
prominent than Father's Day. Mother's usually receive red carnations,
while white carnations are offered at Buddhist altars on behalf of mothers
that have past away. Father's Day is celebrated the third Sunday of June
and it is customary for fathers to receive ties, belt, and wallets.
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Christmas
Christmas was not widely observed until after the Tokyo Olympics in
1964, and its inspiration was from how Christmas is depicted in movies
from the United States. Since Japan is not a Christian-based society,
Christmas does not have any religious connotations, but rather is strongly
associated with romance and young lovers. It is considered as a holiday
that emphasizes love, sex, and consumption. Christmas Eve dates, which
consist of dinner and a hotel reservation, are arranged several months
in advance. Men give their girlfriends or date an expensive gift that
is usually jewelry, and the woman usually returns the gesture with small
token gifts. Unlike other gift-giving holidays in Japan, Christmas is
the only one that where it is not considered obligatory or polite to give
gifts, so when gifts are exchanged at Christmas, it is considered very
meaningful.
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Valentine's Day and
White Day
Valentine's Day was introduced in Japan in 1936 by a Kobe, Japan based
chocolate company, but was not widely celebrated until 1970's. In Japan,
however, it is customary for women to give chocolates to men, and it is
usually to men that they have no romantic attachments to. The majorirty
are given to their bosses. In exchange, White Day was devised in the late
1970's to further increase department store and chocolate company sales.
White Day is celebrated on March 14th and is the day that men return gift
of white chocolate to those women that he received dark chocolate from
on Valentine's Day. Most men neglect this, except for high positioned
businessmen, and it is their wives that take on the responsibility of
buying White Day gifts. White Day gifts are typically twice the amount
of what the woman spent on her Valentine's Day gift and may even include
personal items such as underwear. Since the underwear is purchased by
the wife of the boss, it is not considered inappropriate.
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Source:
Adapted by Patricia Lazos, Philadelphia, PA
Reference: Rupp, Katherine. Gift-Giving in Japan: Cash Connections, Cosmologies.
Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2003.
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