[Land of Squid Game] Reaching across the table to grab something

  Koreans prefer to reach across the table to grab something rather than asking another to pass it to them. They do so because they don't want to interrupt those who are eating. However, dining etiquettes may vary from culture to culture and some people may prefer asking a person who is near an item to pass it to them in order to avoid passing their hands over someone else's food. Min Byoung-chul is an endowed chair professor at Chung-Ang University who is widely known as a multicultural

Jan. 31, 2023

Old, neighborhood bathhouses are an endangered breed

Soaking in hot water with strangers, getting body scrub treatments and eating roasted eggs and sweet rice punch called "sikhye" to rehydrate -- the bathhouse experience often depicted in films and dramas has long been a part of Korean life. But the longstanding communal bathing culture may soon be history, as soaring energy prices deal a cruel blow to an industry already pummeled by the pandemic. Between March 2020 when social distancing rules were introduced and December last year, a

Jan. 27, 2023

[Subway Stories] "Streets of Flavor" in Kondae

There are several hot places to hang out in Seoul, but there are few that does so to the extent of “Kondae street,” located in eastern Seoul adjacent to Konkuk Univ. Station Lines No. 2 and No. 7. Just as the name suggests, the subway station is located right next to Konkuk University campus, with the university hospital next to exits No. 3 and No. 4. The area is always bustling with students, those visiting the hospital, and mostly people out to dine and party across the road with

Jan. 25, 2023

What a roll of gimbap could mean

If you’re a fan of Korean dramas, you would be no stranger to gimbap. The seaweed rice roll, usually filled with various ingredients, are akin to sandwiches in the West. It is easy to get, inexpensive and good for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It is the ultimate meal on the go. Recently in K-dramas, this versatile dish has taken on different meanings. In Netflix’s hit drama “The Glory,” protagonist Moon Dong-eun, played by actor Song Hye-kyo, eats gimbap whenever she can

Jan. 25, 2023

[Korean History] Censored April Revolution reporting and history of press freedom

Among the first actions by South Korea's founding President Syngman Rhee, after his administration mowed down protesters in what would later be known as the "Bloody Tuesday," was to call for patriotism. The front page of the April 21, 1960, edition for The Korean Republic -- forerunner of The Korea Herald -- carried the initial reaction by the Rhee administration to the April 19 Revolution, which eventually led to Rhee’s resignation. Thousands of students had poured out onto

Jan. 25, 2023

[Korea Quiz] Places in Korean proverbs

Find the answer at the bottom of the page. Some Korean proverbs are associated with specific places. In “Even the view of Geumgangsan can be enjoyed after eating,” which Koreans would be heard saying in just seven syllables -- Geum-gang-san-do shik-hoo-kyung -- the mountain is used as a symbol of an awe-inspiring spectacle or an exceptionally good experience. (The last three of the seven letters are from Chinese characters which respectively mean "eating" "after&quo

Jan. 25, 2023

New Seollal scenes: Digital folding screens, diffusers and pets clad in hanbok

The act of honoring the spirits of ancestors by offering them food and drinks during the Lunar New Year has been considered a serious tradition for centuries in South Korea. But this year, some families have decided to honor the tradition in a lighter mood, according to photos gone viral on online communities. Versatile screen This photo, uploaded by an anonymous user and shared on Instagram, shows a clever use of a wall-mounted TV screen, a staple in Korean living rooms. Instead of keeping

Jan. 24, 2023

[Land of Squid Game] Waiting until the oldest person starts eating

In Korea, once you're seated at the table, it is common etiquette to wait until the oldest person starts eating before you start enjoying your meal. Also, before taking your first bite, it's polite to say “Jal-meok-get-sseumnida” or “I'll eat well” as a way to express your gratitude for the host. Add this phrase to your Korean dining etiquette list and you will never have to worry about offending your Korean friends. Min Byoung-chul is an endowed chair pr

Jan. 24, 2023

It's Seollal, and you've got Spam

Spam is one of the most popular gift items in South Korea, particularly during the Lunar New Year gift-giving season. A spam gift set typically holds stacks of cans, sometimes combined with cooking oils and other everyday condiments, in boxes of various sizes and prices. On Gmarket, the country’s largest online marketplace, Spam gift sets are sold starting from under 20,000 won ($16) to over 120,000 won. “Spam gained popularity as a holiday gift since the 2000s. Gift sets account f

Jan. 22, 2023

N. Korea to impose harsher penalties on use of S. Korean slang

North Korea is clamping down on the use of South Korean slang and expressions, which experts in Seoul see as a response to the growing influence of South Korean dramas and films in the reclusive state. According to the North’s official Korean Central News Agency, the communist regime has adopted new legislation that seeks to impose stronger punishment on its residents who taint the “Pyongyang standard language” with foreign influences. It was among the issues and agenda items d

Jan. 19, 2023

[Korea Quiz] Only for the pregnant

Test your knowledge of Korea with our weekly quiz on the language, culture, history or anything K-related. Find the answer at the bottom of the page. Upon entering certain Seoul subway cars, there are single seats at the end of a row, colored in pink. These pink seats mark priority sitting exclusively for pregnant women, a system that was first introduced by the Seoul government for transit buses in 2009 and the subway in 2013. Since then, pregnancy priority seating has been added to publi

Jan. 18, 2023

[Korean Dilemma] Is time up for feasts for ghosts of Korea's patriarchal past?

The Korean tradition of ancestral rites has been passed down through generations for thousands of years. But it may be only a matter of time before the ritual disappears for good. The lighting of incense, circling of rice wine and bowing before a table of assorted food items offered to one’s dead ancestors are called “charye” on major holidays like Seollal (New Year’s Day) and Chuseok, and “jesa” on their death anniversaries. The tradition itself means well. B

Jan. 17, 2023

Chase bunnies in Year of the Rabbit

2023 is the Year of the Black Rabbit. The furry, nimble animal, long associated with fertility and prosperity, has already been appearing at various places across Seoul, embodying Koreans’ wish for the year to be a fruitful one. Following are some of the places you can find the bunnies. Giant bunnies On a recent Tuesday afternoon, foreign tourists took pictures near a 12-meter-tall rabbit sculpture holding a traditional Korean lucky bag, set up at Gwanghwamun Square in downtown Seoul earli

Jan. 17, 2023

[Land of Squid Game] Pouring drinks for others

In Korea, liquor and beer are served in a bottle and people will pour drinks for others at the table as a way to show friendliness for their friends and coworkers (and as a sign of respect for their seniors). Additionally, it's mostly the younger ones being courteous by pouring drinks for their elders and seniors. So, next time you meet your Korean acquaintances, you know how not to offend them while drinking. Min Byoung-chul is an endowed chair professor at Chung-Ang University who is wi

Jan. 17, 2023

[Newsmaker] [Hello Hangeul] 'Hangeul education is basic right for multicultural students'

Publicly offered Korean language education for children from immigrant and foreign families is necessary because they are entitled to learn the language as part of their human rights, said Seoul City's education chief, stressing the need to expand quality high-level classes currently limited to adults. “Students of multicultural backgrounds should be given a chance to learn the Korean language as a basic human right that they are entitled to,” said Cho Hee-yeon, superintendent

Jan. 15, 2023

[Subway Stories] Pangyo, a magnet for innovative talent, startups and tech moguls

The following is part of Seoul Subway Stories, a Korea Herald series exploring the subway stations and surrounding areas in and around the city. -- Ed. Surrounded by glossy office buildings, a department store and apartment complexes, the Pangyo Station area looks like a more spacious and suburban version of the area around Seoul’s Samseong Station. Built on what used to be forests and farms growing flowers and vegetables that had been a greenbelt zone until the early 2000s, the resident

Jan. 14, 2023

[Korean History] Is reunification of Korea still a goal, 70 years on?

“History through The Korea Herald” revisits significant events and issues over the seven decades through articles, photos and editorial pieces published in the Herald and retell them from a contemporary perspective. – Ed. “Re-unification of Korea is goal, Rhee,” says the front page of The Korea Herald, then called The Korean Republic, in its founding edition on Aug. 15, 1953. To today’s Koreans, this message from the late inaugural President Syngman Rhee may

Jan. 11, 2023

[Newsmaker] After 'giant' interest rate hikes, are savers better off?

When a small provincial branch of NongHyup Bank offered an online-exclusive installment savings plan with an annual interest of 8.2 percent in November last year, the news spread like wildfire among savvy savers. It sold like lottery tickets. Within hours, the bank sold 900 billion won ($707.8 million) of saving products, which was more than five times the size of the branch's total assets of 167 billion won. The problem was that the rural bank just wanted to attract just 10 billion won of fu

Jan. 11, 2023

[Korea Quiz] (35) Big hands, wide feet, thin ears

Q. Which of the following idiomatic expressions in Korean is matched with the wrong meaning? a. Have big hands: To be open-handed, or generous in giving or spending. b. Have wide feet: To have a wide circle of acquaintances. c. Have thin ears: To be easily swayed by what others say. d: Have heavy hips: To be overweight Find the answer at the bottom of the page. Koreans use body parts in various idioms and everyday expressions. When someone is described as having big hands, it means the per

Jan. 11, 2023

[Newsmaker] South Korea’s most infamous serial killers

Recently, the possibility police discovered a new serial killer sent shock waves across South Korea. Lee Ki-young, who was arrested late last month for the murder of a taxi driver and his ex-girlfriend, will undergo an extensive investigation into additional DNA found inside his home. Looking back, South Korea’s history of serial killers is still considered for its hateful brutality and aggression. Here are three of Korea’s most notorious serial killers: 1. Lee Choon-jae, the &l

Jan. 10, 2023