Transcript South Korean Culture/People

South Korean
Culture/People
For the 2012 Asia Summer Study Trip
By Ashlin Crout 
Taekwondo
• Taekwondo has become one of the most
popular martial arts, practiced by millions of
people all over the world. Many have enjoyed
exhibitions of experts flying through the air
and breaking boards. But it goes far deeper
than just physical attacking or self defense.
Taekwondo combines all the elements of ones
body, mind, and life with a result that is
greater than the sum of the individual parts.
Kimchi
• Kimchi represents Korea's best known food.
Koreans serve kimchi at almost every meal,
and few Koreans can last more than a few days
before cravings get the better of them. During
the 1988 Summer Olympic Games, thousands
of foreigners were introduced to it for the first
time. Despite a reputation for being spicy,
most people usually develop a taste for it, and
many foreigners also find themselves missing
it after returning to their home country.
Tol-First Birthday
• In the past, due to a lack of medical information,
Korea's seasonal temperature differences, and
many childhood related diseases, the death rate
for children was extremely high. Many children
died before their first birthday. After the age of
one year, the survival rate steeply increased,
making this milestone a very happy one for the
child's parents. It has also been a custom to
celebrate a child's 100th day birthday, but in most
areas this birthday is less important than
the Tol and any celebrations are smaller in scale.
Traditional Marriage
• In Korea, the marriage between a man and woman represents the
joining of two families, rather than the joining of two individuals. As
such, the event was often called Taerye (Great Ritual), and people
from all over participated. Steeped in traditional Confucian values,
the ceremonies and events surrounding the actual marriage were
long and elaborate, from the pairing of the couple to the rituals
performed after the ceremony.
Professional matchmakers paired up likely candidates for marriage,
with the new couple often meeting for the first time at their
wedding! The families considered many factors in the decision,
consuting with fortune tellers for predictions about the couple's
future life together. During the Chosun period, people married in
their early teens, with the girl often being several years older than
the boy.
Marriage Cont.
• The groom usually traveled to the house of the bride
for the ceremony, then stayed there for 3 days before
taking his new bride to his family's home. The actual
ceremony involved many small rituals, with many bows
and symbolic gestures. The participants were expected
to control their emotions and remain somber.
Although Koreans have kept several aspects of the
traditional ceremony, most modern ceremonies
resemble Western marriage ceremonies more than
traditional Korean ones. However, many folk villages
and museums across the country regularly perform
ceremonies to keep the traditions alive.
Traditional Clothing
• Traditional Korean clothing has its roots extending back at
least as far as the Three Kingdoms Period (57 B.C. - 668
A.D.), as evidenced by wall paintings in tombs dating from
this period. The Korean hanbok represents one of the most
visable aspects of Korean culture. The top part called
a jeogori is blouse-like with long sleeves with the men's
version being longer, stretching down to the waist. Women
wear skirts (chima) while men wear baggy pants (paji).
Commoners wore white, except during festivals and special
occassions such as weddings. Clothes for the upper classes
were made of bright colors and indicated the wearer's
social status. Various accessories such as foot gear, jewelry,
and headdresses or hair pins completed the outfit.
Seol-nal (Lunar New Year)
• The Lunar New Year holiday, also known elsewhere as Chinese New
year, is second in importance only to Chuseok (the Harvest Moon
Festival). Every year, family members make a grand pilgrimage to
their hometowns. During the 3-day period, Seoul is almost deserted
a most people leave the city to return to their ancestral roots.
Although many of the younger generation take advantage of the
time off to go skiing or travel abroad, Korea's roads, railways, and
skies are full of homeward bound travelers. People line up for hours
when the bus and train tickets go on sale, about 3 months prior to
the holidays. For those masochistic enough to try driving, taking
over 24 hours to drive from Seoul to Busan is not unheard of!
(Normally, it takes 5-6 hours. However, the family bond runs deep in
Korea culture, and it seems that people gladly make the journey.
Samulnori
• Samulnori basically means "four instruments"
and refers to the four different instruments
(kwaengwari, jing, janggu, and buk) played by
the musicians. With roots in Buddhist and
farmers music, the style has changed through
the years and evolved in different ways. One
of the major influences of the style has been
Kim Duk Soo SamulNori ensemble.
Confucianism
• The teachings of Confucius describe the position
of the individual in Korean society. It is a system
of behaviors and ethics that stress the obligations
of people towards one another based upon their
relationship. The basic tenets are based upon five
different relationships: 1) ruler and subject, 2)
husband and wife, 3) parents and children, 4)
brothers and sisters and 5) friend and friend.
Confucianism stresses duty, loyalty, honor, filial
piety, respect for age and seniority, and sincerity.
The People of South Korea
• Koreans call themselves in Korean: Hangukin or Hanguk
saram. Korean people are an East Asian ethnic group and are
believed to be part of the Altaic populations, just like Mongolians,
Tungusics and Turkics. Archaeological evidence suggests that
Koreans are descendant of Altaic groups coming from South Central
Siberia. Koreans are the world’s most homogenous population
ethnically and linguistically. There are few minorities in Korea: some
Chinese, Japanese and westerners but in low numbers. So
homogenous is the population in Korea that if you are a westerner
in Korea you still feel conspicuous and, in smaller towns and villages
Koreans will stare at westerners because they are not used to
seeing people of different ethnicity.
• Korean language is a distinct language, which derives from Altaic
languages, thus it is completely different from Japanese and
Chinese (although throughout its history Korean was influenced by
those two languages) and it has some similarities with Mongolian.
People of South Korea Cont.
• Korean people are very proud of their nationality and of their
identity. Koreans are quite friendly and would do anything to help
their friends, as interpersonal relationships are very important in
Korean culture. Family as well is of outmost importance for Koreans
and so is obedience and respect to elderly people. Age is so
important in Korea that even one year difference between two
people means that the younger one will have to address the older
person with respect. This is why, one of the first things Koreans ask
when they meet somebody is their age and asking people’s age in
Korea is not disrespectful at all as it is in the west. So, if a Korean
person asks you your age, do not feel offended.
• This respect for the elderly and value placed on interpersonal
relationships comes from Confucianism, a philosophy that arrived in
Korea from China. Confucianism permeates Korean culture and
mentality in every aspect and if you know Confucianism you will be
able to understand a big part of Korean culture.
K-Pop (Hallyu)
• K-pop (an abbreviation of Korean pop or Korean popular music) is a
musical genre consisting of pop, dance, electro-pop, hip hop, rock,
R&B and electronic music originating in South Korea. In addition to
music, K-pop has grown into a popular subculture among teenagers
and young adults around the world, resulting in widespread interest
in the fashion and style of Korean idol groups and singers.
• Through the presence of Facebook fan pages, availability on iTunes,
Twitter profiles, and music videos on YouTube, the ability of K-pop
to reach a previously inaccessible audience via the Internet is
driving a paradigm shift in the exposure and popularity of the
genre. South Korean popular culture is today serving as a major
driver of youth culture all across the Pacific Rim, with special
reference to China, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, Thailand and
Vietnam. The genre is currently moving towards a position in the
region, similar to that of American music in Europe during the
1980s and 1990s.
Video Links 
• Ugly: 2NE1 (To Anyone or 21)
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGe0hHvAGk
c&ob=av2e
• Shock: Beast
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXxGo1MvNls
• Yayaya: T-ara (Tiara)
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PChUEyZTQu
M&ob=av2n
Popular Korean T.V.
• Korean drama refers to televised dramas, in a
miniseries format, produced in the Korean
language. Many of these dramas have become
popular throughout Asia and have contributed
to the general phenomenon of the Korean
wave, known as Hallyu, and also "drama
fever" in some countries.
Popular Korean T.V. Cont.
• Generally speaking, there are two main genres of Korean dramas. The first
genre resembles western soap operas with shorter, terminating plots, and
without the obvious sexual references often found in Western dramas.
These dramas typically involve conflicts associated with relationships,
money bargaining, relationships between in-laws (usually between the
mother and son/daughter in law). As well, they often include complicated
love triangles where the female hero usually falls in love with a "bad boy"
main character who mistreats her. These dramas last anywhere from 16
episodes to over 100 (most often not exceeding 200).
• The other main genre is Korean historical dramas, which are fictionalized
dramatizations of Korean history. Korean historical dramas typically
involve very complex story lines with elaborate costumes, sets, and special
effects. Martial arts, sword fighting, and horsemanship are frequently a
big component of Korean historical dramas as well. Typically, Korean
dramas, whether the historical dramas or modern dramas, are
characterized by excellent production quality, characters with depth, and
intelligent scriptwriting but largely relies on the use of archetypal
characters.