1. Learning Korea through Tradition: Seollal, Korea’s Biggest Holiday
Today’s story is about Seollal (설날), the Lunar New Year and the most important traditional holiday in Korea.
Seollal is based on the lunar calendar and usually falls between late January and mid-February. It marks the first new moon of the year and has been celebrated on the Korean Peninsula for over a thousand years.
A Tradition with Deep Historical Roots
Records show that lunar New Year celebrations existed as early as the Three Kingdoms period (around the 4th–7th centuries). At that time, Korea was an agricultural society. The beginning of the lunar year was a moment to pray for good harvests, peace, and protection for the family.
During the Japanese colonial period, traditional lunar New Year celebrations were discouraged. The colonial government promoted January 1st of the solar calendar instead, as part of its modernization policy.
However, many Korean families continued to observe Seollal quietly at home.
After Korea’s liberation in 1945, Seollal gradually returned to public life. In 1989, it was officially restored as a three-day national holiday in South Korea. Today, when weekends are included, the break often lasts four or five days.
The holiday survived political change, modernization, and rapid industrialization — because families chose to keep it alive.
The Largest Annual Migration
Seollal creates one of the largest population movements in Korea each year.
Millions of people travel from Seoul and other major cities back to their hometowns. In some years, a trip that normally takes four hours can take ten or more due to traffic.
And then something surprising happens. Seoul becomes extremely quiet.
Neighborhoods that are usually crowded feel empty. Major roads are clear. Cafés are calm. For those who stay in the city, it becomes one of the rare moments when Seoul feels slow and spacious.
Family Rituals: Remembering the Past
On Seollal morning, many families hold a memorial ritual for their ancestors. A table is carefully prepared with traditional foods such as rice, soup, meat, fish, vegetables, and fruit. Family members bow together to show respect and gratitude to previous generations.
Some families also visit ancestral graves during the holiday, cleaning the site and bowing in remembrance.
Seollal is not only about welcoming a new year, it is about acknowledging that today’s family stands on the sacrifices of the past.
Tteokguk and the Korean Way of Counting Age
The most symbolic food of Seollal is tteokguk (떡국), a clear soup with thinly sliced rice cakes.
There is a traditional saying in Korea:
“You become one year older after eating tteokguk.”
This is connected to Korea’s traditional age-counting system.
In the traditional Korean system:
A baby is considered one year old at birth.
Everyone becomes one year older together on Lunar New Year’s Day.
This meant that age was not only about your birthday, but about the collective turning of the year.
For example:
If a baby was born in December, they were already one year old at birth.
Just one month later, at Seollal, they would turn two in Korean age.
In contrast, the international system (called “만 나이” in Korea) counts age starting from zero at birth, and you become older on your actual birthday.
In 2023, South Korea officially adopted the international age system for legal and administrative use. However, many people still culturally associate getting older with Seollal.
That is why children used to joke:
“How many bowls of tteokguk did you eat?”
Because eating that warm bowl of soup symbolized stepping into a new year of life.
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Seollal shows something essential about Korea.
It is a country that transformed rapidly in the 20th and 21st centuries. Yet its most important holiday remains centered on family, memory, and respect.
The year begins not with fireworks, but with a quiet bow, a reunion, and a bowl of soup.
2. Learning Korea through Language
Seollal isn’t just about tradition.
It also creates new slang and everyday expressions.
Here are some modern Korean phrases you’ll often hear during the Lunar New Year.
1) “집콕(Jib-Kok)”
Literally: “home + stuck.”
It means staying home all day, usually by choice.
“이번 설은 집콕이야.”
“This New Year, I’m just staying home.”
When most people leave the city, staying behind can feel surprisingly peaceful.
2) “연휴 순삭(Soon-Sak)”
“순삭” comes from the idea of something being “deleted in an instant.”
“연휴가 순삭됐어.”
“The holiday disappeared in a second.”
You planned to rest.
You blinked.
And suddenly it’s over.
3) “세뱃돈 플렉스(Flex)”
“플렉스 (flex)” is borrowed from English slang and means showing off in a playful way.
“이번에 세뱃돈 플렉스했어.”
“I really splurged on New Year’s money this time.”
It usually means someone gave very generous envelopes to kids in the family.
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See you in the next issue, where another story will bring you a little closer to Korea!
by Minwoo from Seoul, Korea