Traditions8 min
The Korean wedding: the pyebaek, the hall and the envelope
A thirty-minute ceremony, the pyebaek rite, congratulatory cash envelopes, dowries and a marriage rebound: how South Korea gets married today.
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The Kotoba Interactive journal.
Editorial features on the cultures, history and languages of Asia. Filter by culture, by topic, or search for what inspires you.
9 articles
Traditions11 min
Kimjang: Korea's great collective winter kimchi rite
Every autumn, families and neighbors salt dozens of cabbages together. Meet kimjang, the communal kimchi-making listed by UNESCO in 2013.
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Traditions5 min
Talchum: the satirical masked dance of Korea
History and meaning of talchum, Korean masked dance theatre: tal masks, satire of the powerful, village rites, regional variants and UNESCO heritage status.
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Traditions6 min
Ssireum: the traditional wrestling of Korea
History and rules of ssireum, Korean traditional wrestling: the satba belt, the sand ring, the bull prize, the Cheonha Jangsa title and UNESCO heritage status.
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Traditions7 min
Jesa: the rite of the ancestors at the heart of Korea
Discovering jesa, the Korean ancestral rite: its Confucian roots, the offering table and its rules, the charye of Chuseok and Seollal, and its evolution today.
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Traditions6 min
Seollal: the Korean Lunar New Year
Traditions and rites of Seollal, the Korean Lunar New Year: the journey home, ancestral charye rite, the sebae bow, tteokguk soup and the yutnori game.
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Traditions6 min
Korean shamanism: muism, the mudang and the gut ritual
Discovering Korean shamanism (muism): the mudang, the gut ritual, the spirits, its prehistoric roots, its survival and its presence in today's Korea.
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