Singles' Day: Date, Origins, History, and Celebration Traditions
Explore Singles' Day's origins, significance, and how it's celebrated globally on November 11.
Singles' Day, often seen as a counterpart to Valentine’s Day on February 14, is celebrated twice a year—on February 13 and November 11.
Originating in 1993 at Nanjing University in China, Singles' Day was created to reduce social pressures related to marriage in a country with over 20 million single individuals, influenced by cultural expectations around marriage and family.
Today, Singles' Day has grown into a major retail event, particularly in China, where it’s also known as "11/11." The day now generates billions in sales worldwide through large-scale marketing campaigns and has become similar to Black Friday in terms of consumer impact.
Another day dedicated to singles, February 15 (Singles Awareness Day), is observed in countries like the U.K., Canada, and the U.S.