Birth Day of Kim Jong Il in North Korea in 2025
North Korea marks the 83rd anniversary of the birth of the country's late former leader Kim Jong Il on Sunday February 7th 2025
When is Birth Day of Kim Jong Il Day?
The Birth Day of Kim Jong Il is a non-working day on February 16th in North Korea.
Also known as the Day of the Shining Star, this holiday marks the birth of Kim Il Sung in 1942.
Birth Day of Kim Jong Il Day
This national holiday is called "Day of the Shining Star" in Korean as North Korea’s officially approved biography tells us that a glowing new star and a double rainbow appeared when Kim Jong Il was born on February 16th 1942 on Mountain Baekdu, a cherished mountain to the Koreans.
However, according to Soviet records, he was born in Russia in 1941, while his father was stationed there in command of a military battalion.
According to his biography, he took up golf in 1994, at North Korea's only golf course, and shot a 38-under par round recording 11 holes in one. Happy with the round, he immediately retired from the sport.
On September 9th 1948, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) was proclaimed, with Kim Il-sung, Kim Jong Il's father as Premier.
Kim succeeded his father as leader of the DPRK following Kim Il-sung's death from a heart attack in July 1994.
Kim Jong Il was called "Dear Leader" to distinguish him from his father Kim Il-sung, the "Great Leader". In addition, Kim Jong-il had 1,200 official titles including 'lodestar of the 21st century', 'the greatest man who ever lived' and 'eternal bosom of hot love'.
Kim Jong Il died in December 2011 due to medical conditions exacerbated by a heart attack.
No Day of the Shining Son?
While both his father and grandfather have public holidays for their birthdays, it is notable that despite being Supreme Leader since 2011, Kim Jong Un has not declared his birthday (January 8th) as a public holiday.
