[New Slang Dictionary] Daknunsam - Be Aware, My Friend

Daknunsam is an abbreviation of "dakchigo nuntin samwol," meaning "shut up and lurk for three months." It is used mainly in online communities to show territorial behavior toward new members who act without understanding the atmosphere of the forum. Illustration by O Seongsu.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heeyoon] “Deaf for three years, blind for three years, mute for three years, after living about six or seven years, my face that was like a pear blossom has become like a pumpkin flower. My hands that were like white jade have become like duck feet. The tears have soaked my plain white cotton skirt.” The lyrics of the oral folk song ‘Sijipsari’ (Living-in-Law Life) vividly reflect the regrets of a woman marked by suffering. However, living as her parents instructed?closing her ears, eyes, and mouth?did not earn her praise as a virtuous wife or a filial daughter-in-law. In another oral folktale about a daughter-in-law, she initially was pitied by her in-laws for blindly obeying her parents, pretending not to hear or see, and keeping silent. Gradually, they began to suspect, “Is our daughter-in-law a fool or an idiot?” Eventually, they decided to send her back to her parental home, saying that living with a disabled daughter-in-law was a disgrace to the family. The daughter-in-law, who was only following her parents’ words but was driven out by her in-laws, cried incessantly inside the palanquin on the way back to her parental home. At that moment, startled by the footsteps of her father-in-law heading to her parental home, a pheasant flew up from the forest, and the daughter-in-law said, “Father-in-law, a pheasant is flying over the mountain.” The father-in-law, delighted, immediately turned the palanquin around and took her back home. This was because seeing the pheasant proved she was not blind, hearing the sound proved she was not deaf, and speaking proved she was not mute.

“Daknunsam” is an abbreviation of “dakchigo nuntin samgawol,” meaning “shut up and lurk for three months.” It is used mainly in online communities to assert territoriality against new members who act without reading the atmosphere of the forum. It is similar to the practice in schools, workplaces, or the military, where newcomers go through temporary assembly, probation, or training to understand and adapt to the organization’s atmosphere or unwritten rules, and if they cannot accept them, they are given the opportunity to leave voluntarily. The “three months” in daknunsam is presumed to derive from the three years of sijipsari (living-in-law life). The harsh three-year term symbolized by sijipsari may be a life lesson urging one to understand and adapt to the characteristics, atmosphere, and unwritten rules of a group represented by the in-laws’ house. Since similar terms are used in the US and Japan, the culture of encouraging adaptation seems to be a universal sentiment worldwide.

Example

A: Why does it take so long to level up in this community? It’s already been weeks since you invited me.
B: That’s how it is. Newcomers mess up the atmosphere and act out, so they’re kept on hold for a certain period.
A: I think it’s dirty and unfair, so I don’t want to do it, but I can’t because of the photos and materials...
B: You have to lose something to gain something. From the perspective of those who came first and set everything up, it’s understandable why they do this.
A: Totally daknunsam. I’ll just lurk for now and try to get a feel for the atmosphere!