South Korea

The South's Korean Lunar New Year, known as Seollal, is one of the two biggest South Korean holidays, along with the Mid-Autumn Festival, which begins on the 1st day of the first lunar month every year. South Koreans celebrate Seollal as a unique time to memorialize ancestors, especially those who have come home from far away to meet and reconcile. On this day, South Koreans will wear traditional Hanbok clothing, perform ancestor ceremonies, play folk games and eat traditional food, exchange tales, and meet other people.

Most Korean businesses are closed during the Lunar New Year holiday. People take time off from work to visit their family in their native country. These days, Koreans arrange folk activities such as Yutnori, shuttlecock, kite flying, seesaw leaping, and so on. Ordinary people will go shopping one week before Seollal Day, preparing to present gifts to relatives and friends, such as fruits, ginseng, fish, honey, dried fish, and so on.