Get briefed on the story of the week, and developing stories to watch across the Asia-Pacific. Koreans also celebrate individual birthdays, so the New Year collective birthday has become more symbolic. This comes from a combination of the importance of age and collectivity in Korean society, where age determines relational social hierarchy. No matter the date of one’s actual day of birth, all Koreans turn one year older on January 1. January 1 also merits widespread celebration as it rings in everyone’s birthdays. Similar to Christmas cards in the United States, families will send New Year’s greeting cards ( Yeon-ha-jhang ). Following the declaration of the three-day holiday, January 1 on the Gregorian calendar became a more casual holiday spent with immediate family. The Western calendar Seollal was commonly called Yaang-rek-soul following its introduction during the Japanese occupation in the 20th century. In 1985, the Korean government acknowledged these celebrations with a public holiday, “Folklore Day.” Four years later, the government replaced Folklore Day with the reinstatement of the lunar New Year’s Day, officially naming it a three-day public holiday. Despite the lack of official recognition, many families continued to celebrate Seollal and perform related rituals based on the first day of the lunar calendar. Similarly, South Korea abandoned the lunar New Year after the Korean War as it impacted taxation and was seen as a direct result of Chinese influence. It was designated as a three-day holiday in 2003. In North Korea, the lunar New Year was abolished in 1953 following the Korean War and was not revived until 1967.
While the Chinese New Year has remained a steadfast tradition in China, the lunar holiday has been inconsistently celebrated on the Korean Peninsula. Based on the lunar calendar, the lunar Seollal is usually celebrated on the same day as the Chinese New Year. The lunar Korean New Year is a three-day holiday to return home and visit extended family, along with performing ceremonies to honor your ancestors.
One occurs on the first day of the year on the lunar calendar, and the other on January 1 on the Gregorian calendar. South Korea, however, combines the best of both worlds with two separate yet similar New Year celebrations.įor Koreans, New Year’s Day, commonly known as Seollal, occurs at two times during the year. This year, the Chinese New Year will fall on February 6. While Japan follows the January 1 date of the Western Gregorian calendar, China celebrates the Chinese New Year between late January and February based on the lunar calendar. New Year celebrations in East Asia vary by country.
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