After sebae, the children receive ‘sebaetdon’ or New Year’s money as a gift from their elders. While performing the ritual, one must wear ‘hanbok’. This deep traditional bow signifies respect. Younger people must bow deeply to their elders and wish them a happy new year. It is the act of kneeling on the ground and bowing deeply so that your hands are also on the ground. In South Korea, the clear broth and white rice cakes of tteokguk are believed to symbolize starting out the year with a clean mind and body.Īnother important ritual that is followed is called ‘sebae’. Another very common dish is ‘ddeokguk’ or rice cake soup which, though eaten throughout the year, carries special significance on Seollal. Though the food prepared for the ceremony of charye differs by region, the most common varieties are rice, soup, meat, seafood, liquor, fruit and vegetables. Then the family gets together for a ceremony called ‘eumbok’ where they eat the food blessed by the ancestors, allowing them to start the new year with many blessings and prosperity. Charye involves the preparation of food by female relatives and the serving of food to ancestors by male relatives. One of the most important rituals performed during this auspicious occasion is called ‘charye’. Seollal is a time for Koreans to return to their hometowns to pay respect to their ancestors, as well as catch up with family members. This year, Seollal falls on January 22 of the Gregorian calendar. It is also considered respectful for people to visit their mothers and fathers-in-law during the Korean New Year. Seollal (Lunar New Year’s Day first day of the lunar calendar) is one of the most celebrated national holidays in Korea. Often, the family members first visit the elders, and this includes the grandparents and the parents. We would all travel to my grandparent’s home in a small village north of Seoul, near the 48th parallel. My family in Korea would spend weeks preparing for the big event. Since it is one of the few times families may be able to get together and catch up on one another's lives, it is considered respectful and important to attend the holiday. Seollal, or Korean Lunar New Year, is a holiday I always looked forward to as a kid. Many Koreans travel from overseas to visit their families for this annual holiday. Compared to Chuseok, Seollal carries more importance as it is treated as a holiday to spend with their family members in their hometown. In such a case, the New Year falls on the third new moon after the solstice. Seollal generally occurs in January or February on the second new moon after the winter solstice, unless there is an intercalary eleventh or twelfth month in the lead-up to the New Year.

Seollal korean lunar new year