About New Lunar's year in Korea

What is Seollal (Korea New Year Lunar's day)?

Seollal (설날) is one of the important traditional Korean holidays in South Korea. This special holiday commemorates the first day of the Korean Lunar Calendar. The holiday takes place in the span of several days. It is marked by the gathering of family members, performing Korean rituals, eating traditional foods, playing folk games, and other traditional activities.

 

Korean New Year Celebrations

While Christmas in Korea is usually a time for celebrate or hanging with friends or for going on dates; Seollal, like Chuseok, is more of a family-based celebration. Koreans travel back to their family homes during this period. As a result, roads will be very busy during this time of year. Additionally, train, bus, and airplane tickets will either be sold out or very expensive. If you plan to come to Korea during Seollal, make sure you get a head start and book in advance some places where specially held with variuos event.

Sebae, what it is?

세배 (sebae) is the most important of all the Korean Lunar New Year traditions. Sebae is the act of kneeling on the ground and bowing deeply so that your hands are also on the ground. Younger people must bow deeply to their elders and wish them a happy new year. This deep traditional bow signifies respect.

About Charye

Another important tradition is 차례 (charye). Charye is the term used to describe the worshiping of one’s ancestors during the Lunar New Year. Food is set out on a table as a gift for one’s ancestors, behind which are the family’s ancestral tablets. People perform deep bows on these tables in order to show respect to their ancestors. This tradition is still performed by many Koreans, but it isn’t quite as widespread as the other Seollal traditions.

 

Korean New Year Food

The most important food that is eaten during the Korean Lunar New Year is 떡국 (tteokguk) or rice cake soup. This soup is made using sliced rice cake, known as 떡 (tteok) in Korean. Tteokguk often also contains some meat and other things, such as seaweed. Traditionally, the act of eating tteokguk at New Year turns you one year older in Korean. Don’t worry though; you only get one year older if you eat it over the New Year period, not at other times of the year!

The white color of the tteok supposedly signifies purity. In the past, this meal was only eaten during Korean New Year. However, nowadays, you can find in restaurants all year round.

 

Korea's Traditional Costume, Hanbok

Hanbok is the traditional attire of the Korean people. Nowadays, it is only worn on special occasions or anniversaries. It is a formal wear and many Koreans keep a hanbok for such occasions.
While the traditional hanbok was beautiful in its own right, the design has changed slowly but surely over the generations. The core of hanbok is its graceful shape and vibrant colors, which have had a major impact on the modern fashion industry. It is slowly being revolutionized through the changing of fabrics, colors and features, reflecting the latest trend. Many aspiring hanbok designers have altered hanbok for everyday wear with traditional elements at the base of the garment but having a distinct modern feel.

Things to do over Korean Lunar New Year

Some people like to take advantage of the Lunar New Year holiday by visiting places that are usually crowded, such as amusement parks. Seoul’s palaces are also a fantastic place to visit during this time of year. That is because they often put on special shows and performances during the traditional holiday seasons.

Since many places are closed during Seollal, it is best to quickly check online to see if the place that you are planning to visit is open before you travel.