International Fetish Day Date in the current year: January 19, 2024

International Fetish Day originated in the United Kingdom, it was first celebrated on January 21, 2008 as National Fetish Day. The observance is dedicated to sexual fetishism – a sexual focus on a non-genital body part or a nonliving object (for example, clothes, shoes, lingerie, leather etc.). Sexual fetishism is an important aspect of the BDSM/fetish culture.

The first International Fetish Day was held a year later, on January 16, 2009. It was created to raise awareness and demonstrate support of the fetish community, encourage its members to be more open about their sexuality, and fight against social stigmatization of erotic fetishism. Although fetishism is listed in ICD-10, it is only considered a disorder when fetishistic activities interfere with normal sexual intercourse.

On International Fetish Day, members of the fetish community are encouraged to wear an item of purple clothing to indicate their affiliation with the community. This event is known as “Perverts Wear Purple”.