Five Major Holidays Including Seollal and Chuseok to Become 'National Intangible Cultural Heritage'

The five major holidays, including Seol and Chuseok, traditionally spent with family, will be designated as National Intangible Cultural Heritage.

On the 18th, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced that five holidays?'Seol and Daeboreum,' 'Hansik,' 'Dano,' 'Chuseok,' and 'Dongji'?will be designated as National Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The Cultural Heritage Administration explained the background of the designation, stating, "Following last year's designation of Hanbok lifestyle and Yutnori, these holidays, which have been enjoyed and passed down as family and local community customs, are now being designated as National Intangible Cultural Heritage."

The holidays designated this time are: △ 'Seol and Daeboreum,' celebrated from the first day to the fifteenth day of the lunar new year, marking the beginning of the year; △ 'Hansik,' observed on the 105th day after Dongji, centered around ancestral rites such as tomb visits, grass cutting, and memorial services; △ 'Dano,' on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, known for various games and customs; △ 'Chuseok,' on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, featuring diverse seasonal customs from Ganggangsullae to Songpyeon; and △ 'Dongji,' the 22nd solar term, marking the longest night and shortest day of the year.

According to the National Intangible Cultural Heritage designation survey, Korean holidays originated during the Three Kingdoms period and were institutionalized in the Goryeo Dynasty, maintaining their uniqueness and diversity to this day. Considering the distinctiveness and representativeness unique to Korean holidays, they were evaluated as fully worthy of designation as National Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The designation value was also recognized due to characteristics such as humanity's annual celebration of the new year, association with ancestral rites and memorial services (Seol, Hansik, Chuseok), and their status as national holidays (Seol, Chuseok), indicating they will continue steadily in the future.

A Cultural Heritage Administration official stated, "In today's era of accelerating individualization, this designation is expected to help restore the values of family and local communities, and actively contribute to widely spreading the value of these holidays through educational fields containing history and culture, development of various play programs, cultural content, and academic research."

Going forward, the Cultural Heritage Administration plans to share the value of these five holidays with the public and actively support academic research and programs to revitalize their transmission, enabling public participation in their preservation.