白色情人节是什么时候？来源是什么？

　　February is over, and you’ve survived yet another Valentine’s Day! But hold up, you’re not out of the woods quite yet!

　　2月份已经结束了，恭喜你们这些单身狗又活过一个情人节!但是坚持住，对单身狗的考验还没结束呢!

　　For most of us in the West, Valentine’s Day ends on February 15, but in Japan it’s not quite over until March 15. March 14 – exactly one month after Valentine’s Day – is White Day in Japan.

　　对大多数欧美地区的人来说，情人节2月15日就结束了，但是在日本情人节要等到3月15日才真正算完。3月14日——刚好情人节一个月之后——是日本的白色情人节。

　　Valentine’s Day In Japan

　　一、日本情人节。

　　To really understand what White Day is all about, you have to understand what Valentine’s Day in Japan is like. The basic gist of Japanese Valentine’s Day is that it’s all about the guys.

　　要想真正了解白色情人节是怎么回事，你必须先知道日本的情人节是怎么样的。日本情人节最基本的一点是——男人是情人节的主角。

　　Unlike Western traditions where gift exchanges between loved ones are mutual, Japanese Valentine’s Day is all about men getting presents. Sorry ladies, but you’re out of luck on Valentine’s Day if you want to celebrate it Japanese-style. Women have to wait for White Day before they can get any gifts.

　　和西方情人节时情侣互换礼物的习俗不同，日本情人节主要是女性单方面送礼物给男性。对不起啦妹子们，但是如果你们想庆祝日式情人节的话，那一天你可能就得两手空空啦!女性们要等到白色情人节那天才会收到礼物。

　　What Is White Day?

　　二、什么是白色情人节?

　　If Valentine’s Day in Japan is all about the guys, White Day is all about the ladies. White Day is a chance for all the men who received gifts on Valentine’s Day to return the favor to the ladies in their lives.

　　如果日本情人节的主角是男人的话，那么白色情人节的主角就是女人了。在情人节收到礼物的男士们会选择在白色情人节那天给妹子们回礼。

　　White Day and Valentine’s Day have a lot of similarities. Both aren’t necessarily romantic holidays – you can give gifts to anybody of the opposite sex, even if your relationship is strictly platonic. Friends and co-workers exchange gifts on both days.

　　白色情人节和情人节有很多相似之处。两个节日都可以无关风月——你可以给任何异性送礼物，即使你们的关系非常纯洁!朋友和同事都会在这两个节日里互换礼物。

　　And on both days, chocolate is the gift of choice, but there’s a bit more nuance to it than buying a box of See’s and being done with it. You can buy different types of chocolates for your friends and co-workers, but the home-made one should be left to your significant other.

　　而且在这两个节日里，巧克力都是送礼的首选，但是在商店买的巧克力和自己亲手做的巧克力有点不同。你可以买不同品种的巧克力送给朋友和同事，但是亲手做的那款一定得留给最重要的那个Ta。

　　The Origins Of White Day

　　三、白色情人节的起源。

　　Cynically enough, White Day is strictly a celebration manufactured by the candy industry. In 1978, the National Confectionery Industry Association tried to boost sales, and decided that a new holiday was the best way to do it.

　　很讽刺的是，严格上来说白色情人节其实是日本糖果行业制造出来的一个节日。1978年日本全国甜食行业协会为了提高销售额决定设立一个新的节日。

　　Originally it was called Marshmallow Day and was all about marshmallows, not chocolate. People liked the idea of the new holiday, but weren’t too keen on the marshmallows. The preferred candy changed from marshmallows to chocolate, but the color scheme stayed the same – hence the name "White Day," and why white chocolate remains a popular White Day gift, even today.

　　最开始这个节日被叫做“棉花糖节”，市场上卖的都是棉花糖，而不是巧克力。当时的人们很喜欢这个节日，但是却对棉花糖不太感冒。于是人们提议把节日的糖果从棉花糖换成巧克力，但是糖果的颜色仍然保持不变——因此得名“白色情人节”，这也正是为什么直到今天白色巧克力仍然是白色情人节的上佳礼物。

　　White Day Outside Of Japan

　　四、还有哪些地方的人过白色情人节?

　　White Day is definitely a uniquely Japanese invention, but it’s spread to some other Asian countries, including South Korea and China.

　　白色情人节绝对是日本人的发明，但是后来这个节日也传到了韩国和中国等亚洲国家。

（编辑：何莹莹）