Chuseok (Korean: 추석), originally known as Hangawi (한가위) (from archaic Korean for "great middle"), is a major harvest festival and a three-day holiday in Korea celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar. Like many other harvest festivals, it is held around the Autumn Equinox. As a celebration of the good harvest, Koreans visit their ancestral hometowns and share a feast of Korean traditional food such as songpyeon.
Historically and according to popular belief, Chuseok originates from Gabae. Gabae started during the reign of the third king of the kingdom of Silla (57 BC - AD 935), when it was a month-long weaving contest between two teams. Come the day of Gabae, the team that had woven more cloth had won and was treated to a feast by the losing team. Many scholars also believe Chuseok may originate from ancient shamanistic celebrations of the harvest moon. New harvests are offered to local deities and ancestors, which means Chuseok may have originated as a worship ritual. In some areas, if there is no harvest, worship rituals are postponed, or in areas with no annual harvest, Chuseok is not celebrated
A variety of folk games are played on Chuseok to celebrate the coming of Autumn and rich harvest. Village folk dress themselves to look like a cow or a turtle, and go from house to house along with a Nongak band playing music. Other common folk games played on Chuseok are tug of war, ssireum, archery and gama fighting. Folk games also vary from region to region. Ganggangsullae dance which is forming a circle under a moon is performed by women and children in southwestern coastal regions, and cockfight or bullfighting in the southern regions.
On September 22 2010 16:41 Warrior Madness wrote: Is it a coincidence that the Korean thanks giving is on the same day as Teamliquid's birthday? Prrrooobbably not.
Yes it is. Korean thanksgiving is determined via "Lunar Calender" which is that mini little calender bits under REAL CALENDER which some Korean holidays are celebrated thru such as well as some Koreans b-day... like my parents actually use lunar calender to celebrate their b-day which makes it DIFFERENT every year... brrr....
On September 22 2010 23:33 alffla wrote: hey its not ONLY korean chuseok! CLOSE THIS THREAD!
I concur especially since our thread has been closed despite having a way better OP than this one. I'm calling racism here. CLOSE THIS THREAD!
Anyway since it was a nice find here's a quote from the other thread:
On September 22 2010 22:48 Emlary wrote: Oh I love the Google doodle for it, not sure if you guys can see it (only a regional thing?)
(That's the China/Taiwan one).
And here's the SK one:
Couldn't find others. Singapore, Japan, etc all show the regular Google pages. No mid-autumn festival there? And it's a shame that Google doesn't have a DPRK version, I'm sure they'd have made a sick banner - if they still celebrate traditional holidays that is, not even sure they've not reformed that.
On September 22 2010 22:48 Emlary wrote: Oh I love the Google doodle for it, not sure if you guys can see it (only a regional thing?)
(That's the China/Taiwan one).
And here's the SK one:
Couldn't find others. Singapore, Japan, etc all show the regular Google pages. No mid-autumn festival there? And it's a shame that Google doesn't have a DPRK version, I'm sure they'd have made a sick banner - if they still celebrate traditional holidays that is, not even sure they've not reformed that.
hahah oo cool lol
wel obviously chinese mid autumn festival owns korean one we got sexy ladies playing music on the moon while koreans just got some guy wearing a strange hat with a totally unsexy drum.
Upon further thought, 추석is actually the worst holiday ever in terms of food and festivities.
In what is supposed to be a celebration of a good harvest in Autumn.. This is what is traditionally eaten in the modern era:
Let's see...for those of you who don't know what those things are, they are: Various fruit [ not even exotic or expensive ], Various forms of rice [ rice cakes, rice covering dates or sesame and honey ], dried fish, shitty candy, and tteok which is a cake made entirely of glutinous rice flour.
So basically you are eating various forms of rice and fruit for a national korean holiday instead of what the nation's cuisine is known for a la soups, stews, fermented foods, seafood etc. You could make the argument that it's a festival of the harvest but in actuality most korean families make things like japchae and bulgogi which are not essentially ' of the harvest '. I GUESS if you like songpyeon then its ok. But honestly outside of 추석 how many of you eat songpyeon? Like do you ever go ' Damn I wish I had some songpyeon right now '? It's kinda like fruitcake...some people eat it during thanksgiving and winter holidays but nobody ever fucking goes, Hey I'm gonna make a fruitcake today!
As for festivities, traditionally you dress up as a cow or turtle with obnoxious music playing. Or you can decide to cockfight which is always cool, right? The only thing that salvages the festivities seems to be paying respects to your ancestors and taking care of their graves...which you should be doing anyway.. Oh and archery is kinda cool I guess but that probably never happens outside Koreans in Korea.
Anyway happy 추석 lawl, hope you get to spend it with family.
On September 23 2010 04:20 Ack1027 wrote:As for festivities, traditionally you dress up as a cow or turtle with obnoxious music playing. Or you can decide to cockfight which is always cool, right? The only thing that salvages the festivities seems to be paying respects to your ancestors and taking care of their graves...which you should be doing anyway.. Oh and archery is kinda cool I guess but that probably never happens outside Koreans in Korea. .
... Tell me there's some significance to dressing up like a cow or turtle. Chinese mid Autumn Festival seems way more awesome.
On September 23 2010 04:20 Ack1027 wrote: Upon further thought, 추석is actually the worst holiday ever in terms of food and festivities.
In what is supposed to be a celebration of a good harvest in Autumn.. This is what is traditionally eaten in the modern era:
Let's see...for those of you who don't know what those things are, they are: Various fruit [ not even exotic or expensive ], Various forms of rice [ rice cakes, rice covering dates or sesame and honey ], dried fish, shitty candy, and tteok which is a cake made entirely of glutinous rice flour.
So basically you are eating various forms of rice and fruit for a national korean holiday instead of what the nation's cuisine is known for a la soups, stews, fermented foods, seafood etc. You could make the argument that it's a festival of the harvest but in actuality most korean families make things like japchae and bulgogi which are not essentially ' of the harvest '. I GUESS if you like songpyeon then its ok. But honestly outside of 추석 how many of you eat songpyeon? Like do you ever go ' Damn I wish I had some songpyeon right now '? It's kinda like fruitcake...some people eat it during thanksgiving and winter holidays but nobody ever fucking goes, Hey I'm gonna make a fruitcake today!
As for festivities, traditionally you dress up as a cow or turtle with obnoxious music playing. Or you can decide to cockfight which is always cool, right? The only thing that salvages the festivities seems to be paying respects to your ancestors and taking care of their graves...which you should be doing anyway.. Oh and archery is kinda cool I guess but that probably never happens outside Koreans in Korea.
Anyway happy 추석 lawl, hope you get to spend it with family.
Sorry if there isnt enough meat. Its agricultural day like you said. You can stuff chicken in a duck on a turkey on american thanksgiving to satisfy your needs.
huh which korean doesnt like 떡? ever heard of the phrase "이게 웬 떡이야?" haha thats how much we like it. Though if they were born elsewhere and grew up outside, they typically dont like those really korean kinds of foods.
As for stews, I had 토란국 today. which is very 추석ish and very much stewey.
On September 23 2010 04:20 Ack1027 wrote: Upon further thought, 추석is actually the worst holiday ever in terms of food and festivities.
In what is supposed to be a celebration of a good harvest in Autumn.. This is what is traditionally eaten in the modern era:
Let's see...for those of you who don't know what those things are, they are: Various fruit [ not even exotic or expensive ], Various forms of rice [ rice cakes, rice covering dates or sesame and honey ], dried fish, shitty candy, and tteok which is a cake made entirely of glutinous rice flour.
So basically you are eating various forms of rice and fruit for a national korean holiday instead of what the nation's cuisine is known for a la soups, stews, fermented foods, seafood etc. You could make the argument that it's a festival of the harvest but in actuality most korean families make things like japchae and bulgogi which are not essentially ' of the harvest '. I GUESS if you like songpyeon then its ok. But honestly outside of 추석 how many of you eat songpyeon? Like do you ever go ' Damn I wish I had some songpyeon right now '? It's kinda like fruitcake...some people eat it during thanksgiving and winter holidays but nobody ever fucking goes, Hey I'm gonna make a fruitcake today!
As for festivities, traditionally you dress up as a cow or turtle with obnoxious music playing. Or you can decide to cockfight which is always cool, right? The only thing that salvages the festivities seems to be paying respects to your ancestors and taking care of their graves...which you should be doing anyway.. Oh and archery is kinda cool I guess but that probably never happens outside Koreans in Korea.
Anyway happy 추석 lawl, hope you get to spend it with family.
Sorry if there isnt enough meat. Its agricultural day like you said. You can stuff chicken in a duck on a turkey on american thanksgiving to satisfy your needs.
huh which korean doesnt like 떡? ever heard of the phrase "이게 웬 떡이야?" haha thats how much we like it. Though if they were born elsewhere and grew up outside, they typically dont like those really korean kinds of foods.
As for stews, I had 토란국 today. which is very 추석ish and very much stewey.
Um, lots of koreans don't like 떡. It's simply nostalgic or they eat it on special occasions. Almost all the first generation Korean adults I know simply would rather eat something other than 떡 if given the opportunity. If not that then they would rather have 떡 with broth or 떡볶이 etc...
Who said anything about meat? Is bulgogi not meat? and 토란국 are you kidding me? You would actually order something like that because you like the taste of it? hahahaha.
EPT![[image loading]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Koreanthanksgiving-chuseok.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/Korean_rice_cake-Songpyeon-01.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i53.tinypic.com/103yl3s.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i55.tinypic.com/2dwbvdl.gif)
![[image loading]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Koreanthanksgiving-chuseok.jpg/800px-Koreanthanksgiving-chuseok.jpg)
