How does China mark Valentine's Day?
情人节（2月14日）
- Local date
- February 14, 2027
The fourteenth of February carries no official standing in China — neither list in the Measures on National Holidays and Commemorative Days contains it. What the state does recognise is the other one: Qixi. In 2006 the State Council published the first national list of intangible cultural heritage (State Council Document No. 18 of 2006, 518 items), and the Qixi festival appears as item IX-4. So in one society the day with the loudest commercial voice has no institutional identity, while the day the institutions do acknowledge is registered as heritage in need of protection — and being protected means it was judged to be slipping away.
What is this topic?
There is more than one day for showing affection, and they do not fall together: Japan has women giving chocolate on 14 February and a return gift on 14 March, Taiwan keeps both 14 February and the lunar Qixi, Brazil places it on 12 June, India stretches it into a week, and the United States keeps it to a single day.
This page compares who gives, who returns, what is given, and how large a measurable trace the day leaves in each place.
🗳️ What about you?
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At your school or workplace, is Valentine's Day encouraged, ignored, or discouraged?
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Sources and dates
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