![]() ![]() Jeon is a pancake that contains spring onions. Traditionally, tteokguk was only eaten during the new year celebrations but now it’s eaten at any time of the year (don’t worry, it only turns you one year older at Seollal!). The soup is comforting and moreish, made using sliced rice cake (tteok). Korean new year food is of course a big part of the festivities! The king of the Seollal dishes is tteokguk, rice cake soup. A paper with the names of ancestors on the table which is then ceremoniously burnt.Bringing food to the table (soup and rice cakes).Where the food is placed is also part of the ritual. Then both sexes will participate in "eumbok” a ceremony where the food is eaten and the ancestors bless the year ahead. The female relatives will prepare the food and the male relatives will serve the food to ancestors. Traditionally, a family will take part in a ritual of respect to the ancestors known as "charye." Charye combines two integral parts of Korean culture: food and honouring ancestors. How is Seollal, the Korean New Year, celebrated? Customs and traditions During this period, most of the shops and restaurants will be closed. It’s always fun to stretch festivities out. Seollal is three days long because it includes the first day of the new year, the day before and the day after. ![]() When a baby is born some Koreans believe that the baby will have certain qualities of the animal that represents that year (some are more flattering than others!) How long is the Korean New Year celebration? Each lunar year is represented by a different animal, with a cycle of 12 animals in total: mouse, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. Seollal is a quintessentially Korean tradition, but it was influenced by China, and is based on the lunar cycle. In 2021, Seollal was on 12 February and in 2022 it was on 1 February. Seollal follows the lunar calendar and falls on the first day. In 2023, it’ll land on 22 January and the celebrations will also include 21 January 21 and 23 January. Usually, it is sometime in January or February on the Western (solar) calendar. When Seollal, the Korean Lunar New Year, exactly happens, depends on the year. When is Seollal, the Korean Lunar New Year? Traditions are very much kept alive and quality time with family is prized: story-telling and talking continue well into the night. The unwavering focus on family, the elderly and tradition is strongly respected and adhered to. But there is a different feel to this Korean holiday when compared to other countries festivities. This sounds like an idyllic Christmas day. And once you finish eating the soup, you become one year older.Īfter the food comes traditional Korean family games. The soup symbolises starting the new year with a clear mind and body. Tteokguk is served (wholesome rice cake soup). ![]() After the rituals, the children bow to their elders and receive gifts of money for the new year. The tables are laden with traditional foods. Once there they perform special rituals to thank their ancestors. Koreans often wear traditional clothes on the first morning of Seollal and go to visit elderly members of the family. Popular gifts include health products, money, traditional sweets, fruit, honey and ginseng and even foods like Korean beef and seafood! Mouth-watering, colourful dishes are prepared and gifts are bought and wrapped for family members. Koreans won’t just travel across their country but across the world if they can! Transport becomes busier than you’ll ever have seen before as Koreans travel home to spend Seollal with their families. Seollal is a three-day Korean cultural holiday and starts on the first day of the Korean lunar calendar every winter to celebrate the Korean Lunar New Year. Seollal exudes a magnetism which draws us in… What is Seollal? Perhaps it is the fact that Seollal marks a traditional celebration of growing a year older with a difference: after you’ve finished the specially prepared tteokguk soup you instantly grow one year older! Or perhaps it is the bell ringing, ceremonies, delectable food, vibrant clothes and traditional games. There is something magical about Seollal. And other celebrations happen at a later date, like the Korean Lunar New Year (Seollal). Some countries celebrate the new year starting on 1st January. ![]()
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