Celebrating Chuseok: What You Need to Know About the Korean Thanksgiving Day

For K-Pop fans, Chuseok means that we get to see idols in different Chuseok holiday specials of TV programs. Korean entertainment websites also publish photos of idols in their colorful hanboks while wishing the public a merry and fruitful Chuseok, also known as the Korean Thanksgiving Day.

In a past article, allkpop gave an overview of what Chuseok holiday is and what is usually done during the long holiday. The article stated that Chuseok is actually one of the four major holidays in South Korea. It is also referred to as "Hangawi," "Jungchujul," or "Gabe." It is celebrated on the brightest full moon of the year, which happens on the 15th day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar. It lands between September to early October on the solar calendar. Koreans are still using the lunar calendar for important events, therefore, many of their holidays are centered around the moon and its cycle.

To celebrate a successful year of farming, families will pack up their things and go to their ancestral hometowns and "bon-ga" or "main house". They will dress up in traditional clothing, cook delicious food, and pay respects to their ancestors.

Three Main Duties During the Chuseok Holiday

1. Bulcho - Koreans pick weeds and such that have grown around the graves of their family members. Graves with weeds after the Chuseok holiday will make other people think that the deceased person has undutiful children, and consider it an embarrassment for the family.

2. Sungmyo - People go to the graves of their deceased loved ones to bow as a sign of respect and offer alcohol, fruits, meat, and shikhye.

3. Charye - A table setting of food at home for the ancestors. This is a very specific method - from setting the table up, lighting candles before the alcohol is poured in precisely three different cups to bowing twice after doing them. Every served dish also has a particular area of the table it needs to go on.

Eating songpyeon is also of the traditions during the Chuseok holiday. Songpyeon is one of the signature food items of Chuseok. It is made from the newly harvested rice and is a small, crescent-shaped rice cake that has either red beans, chestnuts, jujubes, powdered sesame, or just brown sugar. There is also a saying that the prettier you shape your songpyeon, the prettier our future daughter will be.

These are just some of the fun facts about Chuseok. From all of us in Korea Portal, we wish everyone a happy Chuseok!