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 Home >> Attractions >> Tradition festival days
Chuseok, the Biggest Korean National Holiday

Chuseok is to Koreans what Thanksgiving day is to Americans. In fact Chuseok is often referred to as Korean Thanksgiving. It falls on August 15th according to the lunar calendar (September 12th by solar calendar). With New Year's Day and Dan-O (May 5th on lunar calendar), Chuseok is one of the most celebrated holidays in Korea. Also, as a national holiday, it is customary to have extra holidays before and after Chuseok.
The word "Chuseok" can be replaced with "Hangawi": "Han" means "big" and "gawi" means, "middle" in old Korean.   Hence, "Hangawi" implies a big day in the middle of August.

As it comes to Chuseok, the heat starts to fade away and the crops and fruits are becoming fully ripened.   So, with these crops and fruits people hold a ceremony for the repose of their ancestors in the morning, and visit their ancestor's graves in the afternoon.   Chuseok is a joyful and festive day for everyone, yet it is also the day when people are thankful for their prosperity and successful harvest.   On this day, neighbors share their homemade foods, and even poor people get something to eat.   As such, there is an old Korean saying that goes: "Hope 365 days be just like Hangawi".

In addition, people enjoy various Korean traditional plays, and the most renowned dance among them is called, "Ganggangsullae".   Women usually perform this traditional dance in the evening of Chuseok and this is one of the most active plays that women perform.   As the lead singer starts to sing a song, a group of women form a circle and dance hand in hand.   The song starts slow in the beginning, and as it gets faster, the motion of dance and the circle formation change accordingly.
On the other hand, men play a game called "Ssirum", in which one of the two men has to knock down the other in order to win.   The game of archery is also popular during the day of Chuseok.

Songpyeon, the Food That Represents Chuseok

One of the great foods of Chuseok is Songpyeon, which is a Korean rice-cake.   Songpyeon is prepared as rice flour is kneaded with boiled water and formed into dough. A handful of amount of the dough gets filled with sesames, red beans, beans, and chestnuts.   Then, they are shaped like half-moon and steamed on pine tree leaves.   Finally, sesame oil is applied on the surface of Songpyeon and it is ready to serve.   Since they smell like pine tree leaves, it is called, Songpyeon (a piece of pine tree).

The night before Chuseok, family members gather and make Songpyeon under the moonlight.   Also, people believe in a superstition that meeting a good spouse depends on whether one makes a good or bad Songpyeon.                        
19-07-2001
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