Play-with-Korea

Lunar New Year’s Day is one of the biggest festive days for Koreans. Originally the New Year’s Day was based on the thoughts on the worship of ancestors and filial piety, and the meaning of New Year’s Day is very sacred time on which the gods of ancestors who passed away before are invited and be with descendants.



In the morning of New Year’s Day, descendants offer an ancestor-memorial service to pay tribute to their ancestors. After offering the service, all immediate families and relatives get together and visit their ancestral graves. Recently people visit their ancestral graves around the New Year’s Day.


Games for lunar New Year’s Day begin from around the end of December already. Kite flying begins from around the end of December continues up until the great middle of January. Kite of the great middle of January is called ‘Ill-luck kite’ and is released to fly away in the sky. In principle, kite flying is not played after the middle of January.
Besides kite flying, there are the game of “yut”, seesawing, scenic spot game and chuck-farthing as games for New Year’s Day. The game of “yut” is the most common game around the beginning of the year which many people regardless of male, female, seniors and young people can play together indoor or outdoor. The reason why seasonal customs are concentrated around the New Year’s Day is because lunar January is agricultural off-season and it is fresh and sacred period where one year begins It is the reflection of people’s belief that people’s prayers are accomplished during the sacred period. As an oral tradition for New Year’s Day, we can find many proverbs related to New Year’s Day and the great middle of January.


The clothes wearing on New Year’ Day is called ‘Gala dress on New Year’s Day’. On New Year’s Day, people wear the clothes in dyed colors (colorful dress) and especially children wear jacket with sleeves of multi-colored stripes. Children wear this kind of cloth not only during festive days but also on the anniversary like one year birthday. On one year birthday, baby boys had waist band in blue color and baby girls had waist band in purple color for distinction.