What is Seollal (Lunar New Year), one of our nation’s biggest holidays along with Chuseok, and what are its meanings and customs?
1. When did it become a national holiday in Korea?
Although it's unclear exactly when, historical records suggest that Seollal (Lunar New Year) already existed during the Three Kingdoms period.
The Chinese historical text Sui Shu (written in 636) mentions that on Seollal morning, people in Silla would greet each other with congratulations, the king would host a feast to encourage his officials, and they held rituals for the sun and the moon. There are also records from Baekje about holding rituals for the gods of heaven and earth and the royal ancestors on the first day of the lunar calendar.
2. The Different Names for Seollal
There’s no definitive explanation for why Seollal is called "Seol" day, but some scholars speculate it comes from the word "seolda," meaning unfamiliar or strange. It’s the start of a new year, so everything feels fresh and new, right?
While we now call it Seollal, it also had other names. It was also called "Wonil" (元日), "Soe-su" (歲首), "Soe-cho" (歲初), and "Yeon-du" (年頭), all meaning "the first day of the year."
Another name was "Shinil" (愼日), which combined the character "shin" (愼) meaning "to be cautious" with "il" (日) meaning "day," meaning "a day to be careful with words and actions." People once believed that the fortune of the new year depended on the first day, so they would be especially careful with their words and actions to ensure peace for the year.
More recently, Seollal was also referred to as "Gu-jeong" (舊正), in contrast to the Western New Year ("Sin-jeong" 新正) on January 1st. The term "Gu-jeong" came about during the Japanese occupation (1910–1945), as an attempt to distinguish the Lunar New Year as an "old festival" compared to the "new festival." Since it has ties to the Japanese occupation, it’s best to avoid using the term.
I recall that when I was young, in the 1980s, we celebrated January 1st as the New Year with a holiday, but then in 1989, we switched back to celebrating the Lunar New Year. In the Joseon era, the first day of the lunar calendar was celebrated as Seollal, but in 1896, during the 35th year of the Korean Empire under King Gojong, the Gregorian calendar was introduced, and Seollal shifted to January 1st. In 1989, under the government of Roh Tae-woo, Seollal returned to being celebrated on the first day of the lunar calendar.
3. How About Other Countries?
Countries that celebrate the lunar new year like Korea include China (Chun-jeol), Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Singapore. In contrast, Japan celebrates "O-shogatsu" (正月) on January 1st according to the Gregorian calendar.
I recently saw on TV that in North Korea, people still celebrate the solar New Year. In 2003, they officially designated the Lunar New Year as the "Seollal holiday," but because people had long celebrated the solar New Year, it’s still more commonly observed.
4. What Do We Eat on Seollal?
The representative food of Seollal is "tteokguk" (rice cake soup). That’s why there’s a saying that you get a year older after eating tteokguk. Tteokguk is said to be a food that was eaten during ritual ceremonies in the Three Kingdoms period.
Tteokguk is made with thin, long white rice cakes (garaetteok), sliced into thin coins, which are then added to a clear broth. The long rice cakes symbolize longevity, and the clear broth symbolizes purity, as people wish for health and a clean start to the new year.
The expression "Instead of pheasant, use chicken" (meaning to substitute a rare item with something more common) comes from tteokguk. Originally, pheasant meat was used for the broth, but because pheasants were difficult to hunt and expensive, chicken became the more common substitute.
This year, I made vegetable tteokguk.
5. What Are Seollal Customs?
On Seollal, people wear new clothes and shoes called "Seolbim." Especially for children, traditional clothes with brightly colored sleeves, known as "saekdong jeogori," are worn.
There’s also the custom of performing "charye," a simpler ritual to honor ancestors. While regular ancestral rituals are held at night with an elaborate spread of food, the rituals on Seollal and Chuseok are held in the morning with a simpler offering.
Foods like red beans, peaches, chili powder, and garlic, which were believed to ward off evil spirits, are not used in these ritual foods. Specifically on Seollal, rice cake soup is often included in the ritual, sometimes referred to as "tteokguk charye."
After the ritual, it’s customary to visit elders for "sebae," a deep bow of respect. The elders give "deokdam" (well-wishes) and sometimes offer "sebaetdon" (money) as a token of good luck. Additionally, the visiting person might be treated to "sechan" (special foods and drinks).
A fun custom is "shoe hiding." According to an old story, during Seollal night, spirits would come down to the village and try on children’s shoes. If they found shoes that fit, they would take them. Therefore, children used to hide their shoes and go to bed early to avoid the spirits stealing them.
There’s also the custom of exchanging "sehwa" (traditional New Year pictures). In the Joseon era, these were gifts from the king to his officials, wishing them safety and luck. Over time, the custom spread to the public, and you can still receive sehwa today. There are events at Gyeongbokgung Palace around Seollal where people can receive sehwa for free.
Lastly, there are "bokjori" (lucky baskets) and "bokjumoni" (lucky pouches). Bokjori is a kitchen tool used for sifting out stones from grains, symbolizing filtering out bad luck and gathering good fortune. It was believed that when buying a bokjori, people should not haggle over the price, as doing so would drive away luck.
At home, people hang bokjori on the wall and carry lucky pouches, embroidered with words like "bok" (luck), "bu" (wealth), and "gwi" (nobility), wishing for a year filled with blessings.
6. What Games Are Played on Seollal?
One popular game is "yutnori," a traditional game played with four wooden sticks. The five possible outcomes of the sticks (do, gae, geol, yut, and mo) determine the game’s progress. Seollal also involves "yeon-naligi" (kite flying), traditionally played by men in the cold winter, and "neolttwigi" (seesaw jumping), a game played by women.
Seollal is full of vibrant and joyful customs.
I wish everyone peace, health, and happiness throughout the new year!