North Korea’s leadership appears to have decided against officially commemorating North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s birthday (Jan. 8) next year. Moreover, the country added no additional anniversaries or national holidays to next year’s calendar.
On a 2023 calendar published by Foreign Languages Publishing House, which was recently obtained by Daily NK, there was no separate explanation for Kim’s birthday. This contrasts with the birthdays of Kim’s predecessors, Kim Il Sung (Apr. 15) and Kim Jong Il (Feb. 16).
Jan. 8 is a day off as it falls on a Sunday, but it seems not to have been designated a holiday.
BUCKING THE TREND?
Kim has been in power for 10 years, and he is now in his 40s, yet his birthday has not been designated a day of commemoration.
North Korea designated his father Kim Jong Il’s birthday a provisional holiday from his 33rd birthday on Feb. 16, 1975.
The next year, it formally became an official holiday.
Kim Jong Il’s birthday was elevated into one of the country’s most important holidays in 1995, and was renamed “Day of the Shining Star” in 2012.
Considering the example of Kim Jong Il, designating Kim Jong Un’s birthday a state holiday would not have been unreasonable. Yet the country does not appear to be rushing to do so.
Kim has imitated many aspects of his grandfather Kim Il Sung, including his appearance, behavior and dress. Accordingly, the younger Kim may designate his birthday a holiday around 2034, when he turns 50.
Kim Il Sung’s birthday was designated a provisional holiday when he turned 50 in 1962, and it became an official holiday in 1968.
Later, his birthday was designated one of the country’s biggest holidays in 1972 when he turned 60 — in Korean culture, a major birthday celebration called hwangap.
Only in 1997 was Kim Il Sung’s birthday proclaimed the “Day of the Sun.”
NO NEW ANNIVERSARIES OR STATE HOLIDAYS NEXT YEAR
Moreover, no additional anniversaries or state holidays appeared on the 2023 calendar.
Like previous years, marked holidays included International Women’s Day (Mar. 8), the anniversary of the founding of the North Korean army (Apr. 25), the anniversary of the founding of the Korean Children’s Union (June 6), Day of Songun (Aug. 25), the anniversary of the founding of the DPRK (Sep. 9) and Mother’s Day (Nov. 16).
The calendar also reflected the decision by the Supreme People’s Assembly in October to change the date of Arbor Day from Mar. 2 to Mar. 14.
In October, the Standing Committee of the Supreme People’s Assembly abolished the Central People’s Committee ordinance that decided the previous Arbor Day on Mar. 2. It then changed the date to Mar. 14, emphasizing that the date is a “historic day” when Kim Il Sung handed down instructions on Mar. 14, 1952 calling for a pan-national effort to restore forests destroyed by US bombings during the Korean War.
North Korea has designated 69 days next year as holidays, including Sundays. That is the same number as last year, and two more days than South Korea.
Meanwhile, fewer holidays next year will mark their symbolically significant fifth or 10th anniversaries, meaning military parades and mass rallies will likely be a bit smaller than this year.
However, given that North Korea has pledged to complete preparations for its first first military reconnaissance satellite by April of next year, the country may hold large-scale events around the time of Kim Il Sung’s birthday (Apr. 15) or the anniversary of the founding of the North Korean military (Apr. 25).
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