11월11일이 빼빼로데이 있어요

Each year, on November 11, Koreans celebrate Pepero day!

Pepero day is similar to Valentine's day.  On Pepero day, I was explained, men should buy Pepero candy (빼빼로) for their sweethearts.  It is held on November 11 because on this day, the date can be written 11-11, which looks like 4 pieces of Pepero.  The original Pepero candy consists of sticks of baked dough dipped in chocolate.  It was first marketed by Lotte corporation in 1983.

Actually, this year's Pepero day has been deemed a "millenium" Pepero day, as today, the date is 2011-11-11.  Six 1's in a row in a date will happen only once this millenium.  But I suppose that in 2111, there will be seven 1's in a row in the date on November 11.

 A package of the original Pepero candy.

There seems to be some controversy about the origin of Pepero day.  According to one account, it was started by school girls in Busan in the 1990's.  But some Koreans see it as only a commercial holiday, probably started by Lotte.  Yet, Lotte representatives deny that the company started the Pepero day fad, but admit to selling more Pepero in early November than any other time of the year.


Over the years, many different varieties of Pepero candy have been created.  Lotte's Pepero candy is now available in strawberry flavour, peanut and chocolate flavour, and others.

Newer Pepero flavours.

But in addition to this, many other bakers and candy makers sell Pepero-like treats around November 11th.

Pepero-like candy on sale at a "Tous les jours" bakery in Danggam dong.

It is possible to distinguish an amusing sexual undertone in the Pepero day ritual.  To paraphrase an American colleague of mine, it is amusing that a romantic holiday should be marked by men giving their girlfriends candied sticks.  And this year, the "Tous les jours" bakery chain sold Pepero day treats in a box labelled "love choco stick".

"Love choco stick" Pepero day treats.

But what is most interesting for me is that the Pepero day treats sold by the "Tous les jours" bakery chain come in boxes decorated with little men in red suits and tall black hats, sometimes carrying muskets.  In my eyes, these figures are unmistakably British empire soldiers.

A Pepero day marketing brochure from 2010.

Pepero day treats in 2011.

The presence of British soldiers on the package of candy manufactured explicitly to be sold on November 11 is striking to me, as November 11 is an important military holiday in British Commonwealth countries like Canada.  On November 11, 1918, the First World War was ended in Europe.  In Canada, November 11 is known as "Remembrance day".  It is Canada's version of the American Veteran's day.

I attempted to ask the staff at my local "Tous les jours" bakery why their Pepero day treats are decorated with such obviously British symbols.  They could not tell me, possibly because they could not understand what I was asking in my very broken Korean.  But I speculate that these symbols are not meant to evoke British culture, but French culture.  November 11 is an important day in France too, as the First World War was almost entirely fought on French soil.  For this reason, I believe that the marketers at the French-themed "Tous les jours" bakery have elected to use symbols evoking the European November 11th tradition on the packaging of Pepero day treats in Korea.