한국문화소개 12

[Culture: Seollal]

Seollal is Korea’s Lunar New Year’s Day. The night before Seollal is called “Seotdal Geumeum,“ the last night of the lunar year. Traditionally, Korean families observed several interesting customs on this night. One of them was hanging a “sieve” on a wall or near the entrance of the house. According to an old folk belief, a mischievous ghost called “Yagwanggwi” would become fascinated by the many holes in the sieve and spend the whole night counting them. In this way, the ghost would be kept from entering the house or bringing bad luck. How funny, yet clever!

There was another interesting belief: if you fell asleep too early on New Year’s Eve, your eyebrows would turn white. Because of this belief, family members tried to stay awake throughout the night. In fact, this tradition of staying awake was called “Suse,” or “watching over the year.” While staying up together, family members could exchange kind words and good wishes as they waited for the new year to arrive.

These old customs may sound humorous today, but they reveal something meaningful about Seollal. The transition from the old year to the new year was regarded as a special moment filled with both uncertainty and hope. The myths may have created a little nervousness about the new beginning, but they also encouraged families to stay together, protect one another, and share their hopes for the future.